About

Located in the mountain town of Elkton in Rockingham County, near the heart of the Shenandoah Valley, the Elkton Historic District originally began ca. 1816 as a small crossroads community centered around a single store and homestead known as Conrad's Store. The community steadily grew throughout the 19th century and experienced several waves of residential and commercial development. The establishment of the Shenandoah Valley Railroad in 1881 transformed the district from a crossroads village into a bustling railroad town, which in 1908 became formally incorporated as the Town of Elkton. Most of Elkton's early industry focused on agriculture. Elkton's expansion from a small crossroads settlement to a booming railroad town is also reflected in the architecture of its residential and commercial buildings. Romantic- and Victorian-era styles, including Italianate, Classical Revival, and Queen Anne, as well as vernacular-style buildings featured prominently in Elkton during the late 19th century after the railroad arrived. As Elkton continued to prosper in the 20th century, empty lots were infilled and new buildings featuring architectural trends of the era, including Moderne, Minimal Traditional, Bungalow, American Foursquare, and Ranch styles, replaced older buildings. The growth of Elkton began to taper off in the second half of the 20th century, after rail service declined, and Elkton's role as an important hub for commerce and transportation further declined during the 1970s with the construction of a bypass connecting U.S. Business Route 33 to U.S. Route 340.