Greenville’s post office opened in 1819, and 29 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 81% of U.S. towns · #9 of 187 in Alabama. What drives it
Most of Greenville was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. 29 places in town are on the National Register, among them eight historic districts with 241 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: the first Greenville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1871.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Greenville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Greenville is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #9 of 187 in Alabama. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Greenville’s overall grade.
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 Greenville’s 371 sits above most of its state (93% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 266 historic buildings outnumber those of 95% 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 (±4.1 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1871.
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 Greenville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Greenville was first settled in 1819. Its original name was Buttsville, but after becoming the county seat in 1822, its name was changed to Greenville, in remembrance of the former locale in South Carolina of many of the original settlers. The first county seat was at Fort Dale, a fortification that was named for Sam Dale, who fought to defend the area during the Creek War. The site of Fort Dale lies on the north of the city near the Fort Dale Cemetery, along what is now Alabama Highway 185.
The namesake of the county, Captain William Butler, was killed during the Creek War. He is buried in the Pioneer Cemetery, which is across from the oldest church in Butler County, the First United Methodist Church of Greenville.
Passages that mention Greenville, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The history of Butler County, Alabama, from 1815 to 18851885 · page 85Read the page →
Read the text
This road passed diagonally across Butler County, and within the corporate limits of the town of Greenville. This little place was now a town of several hundred souls, and her progress had been greatly retarded for the want of a more convenient means of transportation.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Butler County, Alabama, from 1815 to 18851885Read the page →
Read the text
Georgiana, fourteen miles south of Greenville, is a flourishing little town of 800 souls, and ranks next to Greenville in importance in the county.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Greenville, 1819 to 1971
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Greenville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1971Greenville East sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Greenville.
Every building
Greenville, building by building, 1884–1927
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.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Greenville’s history
What year was Greenville founded?
The Greenville post office opened in 1819, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1871.
How does Greenville rank for history?
Greenville is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #9 of 187 in Alabama. 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 Greenville?
29 listings: 20 buildings, 8 historic districts with 241 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 266 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Greenville?
7% of Greenville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.1 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 1977.
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 (2), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (29), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.
1880
