History · Opp

Opp’s post office opened in 1900, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 38% of U.S. towns · #99 of 187 in Alabama. What drives it

Most of Opp was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1972. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 62 buildings. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1930 on, and the census since 1910.

1900first post office

2on the National Register

6%homes built before 1940

5old photos & papers

7famous people

Add an old photo Share a memory

From Opp’s archive · credits on each photo

Quick answers

How Opp began

When was Opp founded?

1900

The Opp post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Hallton (1885) and Poley (1901), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 863 in 19102020 census: 6,771126 years

How historic is Opp?

C⁺

More historic than 38% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓

Founding year: the first Opp post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

History grade

What drives Opp’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Opp is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #99 of 187 in Alabama. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C⁺

HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Opp’s overall grade.

Founding era1900, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsD Homes built before 19405.8% of homes (±2.5) · typical AL town 3.2% · U.S. 8.4%C National Register2 listings, 63 historic buildings, 93.9 per 10,000 residents · typical AL town 2.7 · U.S. 2.4A⁻

All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 38%

NewerOlder

Alabama towns of 2,500+ (187)Ahead of 47%

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 Opp’s 93.9 sits above most of its state (81% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 63 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B. The pre-1940 share (±2.5 points) is firm at this size. 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 Opp’s past

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

A historic districtThe Opp Commercial Historic District takes in 62 historic buildings.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Opp, and 4 old place names are still on the map.

★ What stands out · On the National Register

2 listings protect 63 historic buildings

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

places listed

National Historic Landmarks

none yet

historic buildings protected

each building in a district counts

first listed

1973

William T. Shepard House

BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Neo-Classical Revival1

Colonial Revival1

Commercial1

All 2 listings

William T. Shepard HouseBuilding · listed 1973 Opp Commercial Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2001

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

Places that used to be

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

Opp’s post office has been open since 1900. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hallton

1885–1900

Opp

1900–today

Poley

1901–1922

18801950today

Hamlets and corners on the map

BlairsDuvallLakeview Village Mobile Home ParkLakewood Mobile Home Park

Gone or out of use

PoleylocaleWallaces Milllocale

1cemetery inside Opp

Peaceful Acres Memorial Gardens

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

The story so far

Opp, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Opp yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Opp is a city in Covington County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 6,771. Opp is named after Henry Opp, a lawyer for the Louisville and Nashville Railroad.

Its first post office opened in 1900. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 6,659 in 2010, 6,771 in 2020.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Opp, 1885 to 1990

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

19th century
1885Post officeThe Hallton post office opens
20th century
1900Post officeThe Hallton post office closes
1900Post officeThe Opp post office opens
1901Post officeThe Poley post office opens
1908BuiltWilliam T. Shepard House is built
1922Post officeThe Poley post office closes
1953Born hereMike DuBose is born here
1963Born hereTim Jessie is born here
1967Born hereLamar Rogers is born here
1971On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
1972Born hereJames Logan is born here
1990In the archiveAlabama & Florida A & F 1214 (SW7)

By decade

Opp, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

On the map

Opp on the map, 1971 to 1986

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

1971Opp West 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 Opp.

Every building

Opp, building by building, 1930

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 sheet.

1930Sheet 1 of 5

Sheets

+4 more at the Library of Congress

BrickWoodStone

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

People over time

Opp, census by census

Between 863 and 7,204 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Famous people

7 famous people were born in Opp

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

See all →

James LoganAmerican football player · b. 1972

Lamar RogersAmerican football player · b. 1967

Tim JessieAmerican football player · b. 1963

Mike DuBoseAmerican college football player, college footb… · b. 1953

MooskiMusical artist

Thomas K. HearnWake Forest University administrator (b. 1937, … · b. 1937

Help out

Finish Opp’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 viewAlabama & Florida A & F 1214 (SW7): stand where they stood+15 Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

BabbieIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town Horn HillIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Opp’s history

What year was Opp founded?

The Opp post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Opp rank for history?

Opp is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #99 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 Opp?

Two places: the William T. Shepard House (listed 1973) and the Opp Commercial Historic District (2001).

How old are the homes in Opp?

6% of Opp’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.5 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 1972.

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 (16), the Library of Congress (8), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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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