Jacksonville dates to 1833, and 8 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 73% of U.S. towns · #33 of 187 in Alabama. What drives it
Most of Jacksonville was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. 8 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 168 buildings between them. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1834.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Jacksonville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jacksonville is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #33 of 187 in Alabama. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Jacksonville’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 Jacksonville’s 122 sits above most of its state (84% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 176 historic buildings outnumber those of 92% 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 (±2.0 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1833.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Jacksonville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
Jacksonville, building by building, 1885–1910
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.
1885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Places that used to be
Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Jacksonville’s post office has been open since 1834.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Betta-LifeBonny BrookEastwoodGermania Springs
Gone or out of use
Calhoun County Veterans SchoolschoolJacksonville Municipal Airportairport
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jacksonville
GreenlawnHillcrestJacksonville City
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Jacksonville was founded on July 20, 1833, on land purchased from Creek Indian Ho-bith Tus-tun-nuck-i.e., referred to as "Ladiga" by the men who bought the land. First called Drayton, the town was renamed to honor President Andrew Jackson in 1834. There are several Civil War monuments in town, including a statue of Major John Pelham in the city cemetery and a statue of a Confederate soldier in the middle of the square. Jacksonville served as the county seat for Calhoun County until the 20th century when the county seat moved to Anniston. Jacksonville State University was founded in the city in 1883.
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.
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.
In 1833, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Jacksonville’s post office opened in 1834, and the census of 1850 counted 716 people here.
How does Jacksonville rank for history?
Jacksonville is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #33 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 Jacksonville?
8 listings: 6 buildings, among them the Dr. J. C. Francis Office (listed 1970, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Downtown Jacksonville Historic District and the Profile Cotton Mills Historic District, with 168 contributing buildings. 176 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Jacksonville?
4% of Jacksonville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.0 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 1989.
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), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (8), 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.
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