Newtown-Stephensburg Historic District

Stephens City, in Frederick County, Virginia, was chartered in 1758 as Stephensburg and is described as the second oldest town in the Shenandoah Valley after Winchester. This historic district covers the core of the original town, centered on Main Street along the Valley Pike. The 1758 grid of half-acre and ten-acre lots is still visible in the street pattern. About 147 contributing buildings and sites remain, including several late-18th-century log dwellings that were later enlarged and given Folk Victorian porches. Other landmarks include an 1819 Federal-style brick tavern, a stone commercial building remodeled in the mid-19th century, Lutheran, Methodist and African American churches, and early cemeteries. The town was settled mainly by Germans, was known for its wagonmakers in the 1830s, and changed hands repeatedly during the Civil War. The district is notable for its high integrity and its range of styles from the 18th to the early 20th century.