History · Prichard

Prichard’s post office opened in 1880, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 38% of U.S. towns · #98 of 187 in Alabama. What drives it

Most of Prichard was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1968. Its Register listings are the Jacob Magee House and the Charles Denby Garrison Sr. House. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1922 on, and the census since 1930.

1880first post office

2on the National Register

5%homes built before 1940

4old photos & papers

9famous people

Add an old photo Share a memory

From Prichard’s archive · credits on each photo

Quick answers

How Prichard began, and where its name came from

When was Prichard founded?

1880

The Prichard post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name. Six smaller post offices, Whistler (1855), Kushla (1887) and Bienville (1889), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 4,580 in 19302020 census: 19,322146 years

How did Prichard get its name?

Prichard was named for Cleveland Mason Prichard (1840-1899), who purchased a tract of land (1879) on the east side of the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad track and developed it into a vegetable-shipping point for markets in the North and East.

How historic is Prichard?

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 Prichard post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

History grade

What drives Prichard’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Prichard is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #98 of 187 in Alabama. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C⁺

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

Founding era1880, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC⁺Homes built before 19405.1% of homes (±1.8) · typical AL town 3.2% · U.S. 8.4%C National Register2 listings, 3 historic buildings, 1.6 per 10,000 residents · typical AL town 2.7 · U.S. 2.4B

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

NewerOlder

Alabama towns of 2,500+ (187)Ahead of 48%

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 Prichard’s 1.6 sits near the middle of its state (55% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to C+. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 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 Prichard’s past

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

Lost villages6 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Prichard, and 11 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 47,371 in 1960; 19,322 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19226 editions of the USGS map, 1922 to 1982. Watch Prichard change.

★ What stands out · Places that used to be

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

Prichard had its own post office from 1880 to 1943. Six other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Whistler

1855–1949

Prichard

1880–1943

Kushla

1887–1919

Bienville

1889–1894

Plateau

1899–1949

North Mobile

1913–1913

Eight Mile

1943–1965

18501940today

Hamlets and corners on the map

Ashley OaksCollege WoodsEight MileHenry Road EstatesKushlaNeelyParkwoodRosehavenSullivans Mobile Home ParkSummervilleWhistler

Gone or out of use

Alvares FerrycrossingBrunson Pit Number 6mineCamp Whistlerlocale

8cemeteries and burying grounds inside Prichard

ElamGethsemane NorthMyersPrichardShilohWhispering PinesWhistlerWhistler Citizens

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

Help out

Start Prichard’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps -…: stand where they stood+15 Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

People over time

Prichard, census by census

Peaked at 47,371 in 1960; 19,322 people lived here in 2020.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

The story

How Prichard came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Prichard.

Read it all →

Prichard began as a settlement in the 1830s, bordering Telegraph Road, known now as U.S. Highway 43. It was named for Cleveland Mason Prichard (1840-1899), who purchased a tract of land (1879) on the east side of the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio [GM&O] Railroad track and developed it into a vegetable-shipping point for markets in the North and East. This business model was copied by entrepreneurs throughout Florida, Texas and other states.

Chapters20th century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Prichard, 1855 to 1984

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

19th century
1855Post officeThe Whistler post office opens
1880In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Alabama - Mobile County
1880Post officeThe Prichard post office opens
1887Post officeThe Kushla post office opens
20th century
1919Post officeThe Kushla post office closes
1922On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
1924Born hereLil Greenwood is born here
1936Born hereJimmie V. Adams is born here
1938Born hereJerry Lott is born here
1943Post officeThe Prichard post office closes
1949Post officeThe Whistler post office closes
1960CensusPopulation peaks at 47,371
1984Born hereKennedy Winston is born here

By decade

Prichard, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s4 items

1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Alabama - Mobile County

18801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Alabama - Mob…

1890s–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

Today2 recent

2014Int165nRoad-Exit1AB-Int65ns1Mile

2004ALMap-doton-Prichard

On the map

Prichard on the map, 1922 to 1982

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

1922Mobile sheet · 1:62,500

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

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.

Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Alabama - Mobile County, 1880

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

Retake this view · +15

On the National Register

2 historic places in Prichard

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

1988

Jacob Magee House

Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1

Gulf Coast Cottage1

Classical Revival1

Colonial Revival1

Ranch Style1

Jacob Magee HouseGreek Revival

All 2 listings

Charles Denby Garrison Sr. HouseBuilding · listed 2009

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

Famous people

9 famous people were born in Prichard

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

See all →

Kennedy WinstonAmerican professional basketball player · b. 1984

Jerry LottAmerican musician · b. 1938

Jimmie V. AdamsGeneral officer · b. 1936

Lil GreenwoodAmerican jazz and R&B vocalist · b. 1924

Delores BrumfieldAmerican baseball player · b. 1932

Jacoby GlennAmerican football player · b. 1993

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Mobile115 historic placesA Chickasaw1 historic placeB⁻SaralandIts storyD⁻

Questions about Prichard’s history

What year was Prichard founded?

The Prichard post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Prichard rank for history?

Prichard is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #98 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 Prichard?

Two places: the Jacob Magee House (listed 1988) and the Charles Denby Garrison Sr. House (2009).

How old are the homes in Prichard?

5% of Prichard’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 1968.

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.

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