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BHistory
History · Madison

Madison dates to 1818, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 58% of U.S. towns · #54 of 187 in Alabama. What drives it

Most of Madison was built recently: 0.4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2001. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 86 buildings. Below: maps from 1936 on and the census since 1880.

1818founded
2on the National Register
0.4%homes built before 1940
7famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Madison began

When was Madison founded?

1818

Madison dates its founding to 1818 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 410 in 18802020 census: 56,933208 years

How historic is Madison?

B

More historic than 58% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1856.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Madison’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Madison is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #54 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 Madison’s overall grade.
Founding era1818, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19400.4% of homes (±0.3) · typical AL town 3.2% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register2 listings, 87 historic buildings, 14.5 per 10,000 residents · typical AL town 2.7 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 58%
NewerOlder
Alabama towns of 2,500+ (187)Ahead of 72%

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 Madison’s 14.5 sits above most of its state (70% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 87 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1818.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share (±0.3 points) is firm at this size.

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 Madison’s past

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

Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Madison, and 15 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Madison are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Madison Station Historic District takes in 86 historic buildings.Old burying grounds15 cemeteries and burying grounds inside Madison.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Madison’s post office has been open since 1856. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Madison
1856–today
Madison Station
1856–1907
Rainbow
1901–1904
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BrentwoodBurgreen GinChickasaw EstatesClift AcresCrestview EstatesIndian HillsMadison HighlandsMadison PointMaplewoodNolan HillsOaklandRainbowRainbow Gap EstatesRolling WoodsStone Ridge
Gone or out of use
Fuller ChapelchurchUnion Hill Schoolschool
15cemeteries and burying grounds inside Madison
AndersonBaileyBibbCamperCliftFaith MemorialFarleyGloverGooch - DublinMadisonMoorePalmerRoyalWashingtonWhitworth

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

Help out

Start Madison’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Madison’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

2 listings protect 87 historic buildings

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

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
87
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
James H. Bibb House
James H. Bibb HouseMadison Station Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1
Queen Anne Victorian1
Bungalow/Craftsman1
Colonial Revival1
Tudor1
James H. Bibb HouseGreek Revival
Madison Station Historic DistrictQueen Anne Victorian

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

The story

How Madison came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Madison.

Read it all →

The area was occupied historically by the Koasati (also known as Coushatta), a Muskogean-speaking people. Before them were thousands of years of indigenous cultures.

Madison's first European-American resident was John Cartwright, who settled in the area in 1818. The city was originally known as "Madison Station", as it developed in the 1850s around a stop of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad. Textile mills were built in the area in the late 19th century for processing and manufacture of cotton products.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Madison, 1818 to 1997

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1818
    FoundingMadison is established
  3. 1856Post officeThe Madison post office opens
  4. 1856Post officeThe Madison Station post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1901Post officeThe Rainbow post office opens
  7. 1904Post officeThe Rainbow post office closes
  8. 1907Post officeThe Madison Station post office closes
  9. 1936On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1969Born hereLinda Burgess is born here
  11. 1992Born hereLevi Randolph is born here
  12. 1992Born hereJordan Matthews is born here
  13. 1997Born hereZach Harting is born here
By decade

Madison, decade by decade

Today6 recent
US72 and Hughes Road Facing South - Madison AL - August 20142014US72 and Hughes Road Facing South - Madison AL - Augu…Norfolk Southern Line - County Line Road Madison AL - August 20142014Norfolk Southern Line - County Line Road Madison AL -…Madison City Schools Stadium May 20112011Madison City Schools Stadium May 2011Bob Jones HS May 20112011Bob Jones HS May 2011Former city hall, now a restaurant2010Former city hall, now a restaurantYield Sign2009Yield Sign
On the map

Madison on the map, 1936 to 1975

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

Madison on the 1936 USGS mapMadison on the 1964 USGS mapMadison on the 1975 USGS map1936Madison 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 Madison.

People over time

Madison, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,00050,00055,00060,0001880190019201940196019802000202056,933

Grew from 410 people in 1880 to 56,933 in 2020, more than tenfold.

14 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

7 famous people were born in Madison

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

See all →
Levi RandolphAmerican basketball player · b. 1992
Z
Zach HartingAmerican swimmer · b. 1997
Jordan MatthewsAmerican football player · b. 1992
L
Linda BurgessTurkish-American basketball player · b. 1969
Chip LindseyAmerican football coach · b. 1970
Lewie HardageAmerican college football player, college footb… · b. 1891

Questions about Madison’s history

What year was Madison founded?

In 1818, according to Wikidata. Madison’s post office opened in 1856, and the census of 1880 counted 410 people here.

How does Madison rank for history?

Madison is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #54 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 Madison?

Two places: the James H. Bibb House (listed 1984) and the Madison Station Historic District (2006).

How old are the homes in Madison?

0.4% of Madison’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 2001.

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 (6), 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) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.