The Spencer post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, New California (1852), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 196 in 18602020 census: 2,063168 years
How historic is Spencer?
A−
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Spencer post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Spencer’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Spencer is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Spencer’s overall grade.
West Virginia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical West Virginia town has 29.6 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Spencer’s 292 sits above most of its state (80% of West Virginia towns have fewer) while its 67 historic buildings outnumber those of 87% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.1 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Spencer’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
The story so far
Spencer, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Spencer yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Spencer is a city in and the county seat of Roane County, West Virginia, United States. Originally known as "California," Spencer was chartered in 1858, and named after Spencer Roane (1762–1822), a distinguished jurist from Virginia, who served on the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, and for whom Roane County was named. The population was 2,062 at the 2020 census. Spencer is the home of the annual West Virginia Black Walnut Festival. Points of interest include Charles Fork Lake, Chrystal Water and Power Company-Spencer Water and Ice Company, the McIntosh Mansion, and the Robey Theatre.
Its first post office opened in 1858. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 2,322 to 2,063 (-11%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Spencer, 1852 to 1997
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Spencer. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1907Spencer sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Spencer.
Every building
Spencer, building by building, 1905–1918
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The Spencer post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Spencer rank for history?
Spencer is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Spencer?
5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Albert S. Heck Mansion (listed 1999, the first), and 1 historic district, the Spencer Commercial Historic District, with 62 contributing buildings. 67 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Spencer?
25% of Spencer’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.1 points), against a typical 13% for a West Virginia town; the median home was built in 1963.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (12), the Library of Congress (4), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (5), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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