A history of Romney,
since 1725
Postcards, papers and photographs of Romney from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Established by consecutive acts of the Virginia House of Burgesses and approved by the governor on December 23, 1762, Romney and Mecklenburg (later renamed Shepherdstown), in Jefferson County, are the oldest towns in West Virginia. The bill containing the Act for establishing the town of Romney, in the county of Hampshire, and for other purposes therein-mentioned, is listed 20th on a list of approved "publick and private bills" and is immediately followed by An Act for establishing the town of Mecklenburg, in the county of Frederick.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowFinish Romney’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewView of Romney, Va. Hampshire Cou…, 1861: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Romney
See all 15 →
Romney, decade by decade
![Back view of Romney Hamilton [i.e., Hampshire] Co. Va](https://images.towntapestry.org/story/18666/07b9ee358cd8038ca7df-s.jpg)
1990s
8 historic places in Romney
Romney has 8 listings on the National Register, and they protect 233 historic buildings, because Romney Historic District alone counts 220.
Where they are
Architectural styles
When they were listed
Listed 1977Wilson-Wodrow-Mytinger House
Listed 1979Literary Hall
Listed 1980Sycamore Dale
Listed 2005District Parsonage, Old
Listed 2005Hampshire County Courthouse
Listed 2012Valley ViewListed 2022West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind Dairy BarnListed 2026Romney Historic DistrictThen & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as View of Romney, Va. Hampshire County (1861) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (4) and the Library of Congress (2). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.