1 of Springfield’s places is on the National Register
Its Register listing is the Springfield Brick House. Most of Springfield was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979. Below: maps from 1921 on and old-book passages.
Established on December 16, 1790, at the "Cross Roads" of Hampshire County on the property of William and Samuel Abernethy by an act of the Virginia General Assembly, Springfield was named in commemoration of the Battle of Springfield (1780).
George Washington first visited the Springfield area in 1748 as a member of a party that surveyed the land holdings of Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron in the South Branch Potomac River Valley.
In June 1861, the town organized a company of men known as the "Potomac Guards" in support of the Confederacy. The company was under the command of Captain Philip T. Grace.
On August 23, 1861, Springfield played host to an American Civil War skirmish between the Unionists and the Confederates.
My Dear Judge Humphrey: The celebration of the one hundred and second anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, to be held in the City of Springfield, under the auspices of the Lincoln Centennial Association, is a matter in which I take deep personal interest, and it is with keen regret that I write to say, I will be unable to be present. My health is improving and I fear to jeopardize it by taking so long a trip during the middle of the Winter. Under
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History of Hampshire County, West Virginia1897 · page 378Read the page →
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Springfield was organized in 1833 at the time of the reorganization of Romney. Seven years before, in 1826, a church had been organized at Bloomery. North river church was organized in 1833. Stone Quarry, near French's Depot, is a flourishing congregation with a considerable membership: ' The last two churches of this faith, Westminster, at Capon bridge, and the one at Rio were organized in 1894, making eight churches of this
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take me out of a very quiet life. As I said to the President, I am more sorry than I can tell you, that I can not be with you, for I enjoyed so much the celebration which was so splendidly given at Springfield two years ago. Believe me, Very sincerely yours, Honorable J. Otis Humphrey Robert T. Lincoln Springfield, Illinois [39]
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Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (2), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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