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BHistory
History · Abbeville

Abbeville’s post office opened in 1833, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 63% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Most of Abbeville was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1970. Its Register listings are the Kennedy House and the Oates House. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1907 on, and the census since 1850.

1833first post office
2on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
8famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Abbeville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Abbeville began

When was Abbeville founded?

1833

The Abbeville post office opened in 1833, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 300 in 18502020 census: 2,358193 years

How historic is Abbeville?

B

More historic than 63% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Abbeville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Abbeville’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Abbeville is more historic than 63% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Abbeville’s overall grade.
Founding era1833, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19406.4% of homes (±3.7) · typical AL town 3.2% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register2 listings, 7.3 per 10,000 residents · typical AL town 2.7 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 63%
NewerOlder

Alabama towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Alabama town has 2.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Abbeville’s 7.3 sits near the middle of its state (63% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% 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 (±3.7 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 Abbeville’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Boom and bustPeaked at 3,173 in 1990; 2,358 people lived here in 2020.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1907 to 1924, drew every building in Abbeville.Deep rootsA post office since 1833: 193 years of Abbeville.Famous sons and daughtersRecy Taylor, Chris Porter and 6 more were born here.
★ What stands out · People over time

Abbeville, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5001850190019502000Peak: 3,173

Peaked at 3,173 in 1990; 2,358 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1850–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Abbeville’s Wikipedia page.

Every building

Abbeville, building by building, 1907–1924

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.

Abbeville fire insurance map, 1907, sheet 11907Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Abbeville, 1833 to 1990

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1833Post officeThe Abbeville post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1919Born hereRecy Taylor is born here
  5. 1933In the archiveFRONT AND SIDE VIEW, S.W. - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbe…
  6. 1952Born hereLeroy Cook is born here
  7. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1957Born hereAl Richardson is born here
  9. 1978Born hereChris Porter is born here
  10. 1990CensusPopulation peaks at 3,173
The story

How Abbeville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Abbeville.

Read it all →

European Americans set up an active trading post in Abbeville in Alabama Territory early in 1819. The first settler gateway to the wiregrass region was at Franklin, located fourteen miles west of Abbeville.

Named for the nearby Abbie Creek. Locals say the name of Abbie Creek derives from the Muscogee name for Abbie Creek, Yatta Abba, meaning "dogwood tree grove".

Abbeville was designated as the Henry County seat in 1833; the seat had previously been Columbia. Abbeville acquired its Post Office in 1833. It was formally incorporated in 1853.

Chapters20th century to present

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Abbeville, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s6 items
FRONT AND SIDE VIEW, S.W. - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbeville, Henry County, AL HABS A…1933FRONT AND SIDE VIEW, S.W. - Oates-Danzey House, West …HALL AND REAR DOOR, N. END OF HOUSE - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbeville, Henry County …1933HALL AND REAR DOOR, N. END OF HOUSE - Oates-Danzey Ho…MANTEL IN DINING ROOM N.E. ROOM - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbeville, Henry County, AL …1933MANTEL IN DINING ROOM N.E. ROOM - Oates-Danzey House,…MANTEL IN N.W. ROOM - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbeville, Henry County, AL HABS ALA,34-…1933MANTEL IN N.W. ROOM - Oates-Danzey House, West Washin…MANTEL IN S.E. BED ROOM ALSO SHOWING DOOR TREATMENT - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, HABS ALA…1933MANTEL IN S.E. BED ROOM ALSO SHOWING DOOR TREATMENT -…REAR AND SIDE VIEW, N.E. - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbeville, Henry County, AL HABS AL…1933REAR AND SIDE VIEW, N.E. - Oates-Danzey House, West W…
1940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today5 recent
Henry County, Alabama Courthouse2012Henry County, Alabama CourthouseAbbeville Christian Academy2012Abbeville Christian AcademyAbbeville Alabama2012Abbeville AlabamaAbbeville Alabama Memorial Library2012Abbeville Alabama Memorial LibraryAbbeville Alabama City Hall and Police Department2012Abbeville Alabama City Hall and Police Department
On the map

Abbeville on the map, 1953 to 1981

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Abbeville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Abbeville on the 1953 USGS mapAbbeville on the 1981 USGS map1953Dothan sheet · 1:250,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Abbeville.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

FRONT AND SIDE VIEW, S.W. - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbeville, Henry County, AL HABS A…
Retake this viewFRONT AND SIDE VIEW, S.W. - Oates-Danzey House, West Washington and Trawick Streets, Abbeville, Henry County, AL HABS A…, 1933

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Abbeville’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in Abbeville

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1978
Kennedy House
Kennedy HouseOates House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Creole Cottage1
Classical Revival1
Kennedy HouseCreole Cottage
All 2 listings
Oates HouseBuilding · listed 1989

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

8 famous people were born in Abbeville

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Recy TaylorAmerican civil rights activist and kidnap victim · b. 1919
C
Chris PorterAmerican basketball player · b. 1978
A
Al RichardsonAmerican football player · b. 1957
L
Leroy CookAmerican football player · b. 1952
M
Mary Sue McClurkinAmerican politician · b. 1947
E
Edward VaughnAmerican politician · b. 1934
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Abbeville’s post office has been open since 1833.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Graball
Gone or out of use
Henry County Hospitalhospital
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Abbeville
Hickory GroveSaint Peters

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Abbeville’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewFRONT AND SIDE VIEW, S.W. - Oates-Danze…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Abbeville’s history

What year was Abbeville founded?

The Abbeville post office opened in 1833, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Abbeville rank for history?

Abbeville is more historic than 63% 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 Abbeville?

Two places: the Kennedy House (listed 1978) and the Oates House (1989).

How old are the homes in Abbeville?

6% of Abbeville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.7 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 1970.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (11), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, 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.