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History · Centerville

Centerville’s post office opened in 1889

Below: 6 old photos and papers and maps from 1888 on.

1889first post office
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Centerville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Centerville began

When was Centerville founded?

1889

The Centerville post office opened in 1889, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 283137 years
Founding year: the first Centerville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
The story so far

Centerville, in brief

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

Centerville is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Yell County, Arkansas, United States. Centerville is located at the junction of Arkansas Highways 7 and 154, 6.5 miles (10.5 km) north-northeast of Ola. It was first listed as a CDP in the 2020 census with a population of 283. Centerville has a post office with ZIP code 72829.

Its first post office opened in 1889.

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

Timeline

Centerville, 1888 to 1940

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 1889Post officeThe Centerville post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1940In the archiveCommunity service center. Faulkner County
By decade

Centerville, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1940s6 items
Community service center. Faulkner County1940Community service center. Faulkner CountyCommunity service center. Faulkner County1940Community service center. Faulkner CountyCommunity service center. Faulkner County1940Community service center. Faulkner CountyCommunity service center. Faulkner County1940Community service center. Faulkner CountyUsing welding facilities at community service center. Faulkner County1940Using welding facilities at community service center.…Working in machine shop. Community service center, Faulkner County1940Working in machine shop. Community service center, Fa…
1950s–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
On the map

Centerville on the map, 1888 to 1972

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

Centerville on the 1888 USGS mapCenterville on the 1972 USGS map1888Dardanelle #4 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 Centerville.

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.

Community service center. Faulkner County
Retake this viewCommunity service center. Faulkner County, 1940

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Centerville

Nobody well known was born in Centerville itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
T
Tom CottonAmerican politician and army officer · b. 1977
Scott BradleyAmerican composer · b. 1891
Corliss WilliamsonAmerican basketball player · b. 1973
Steve WomackU.S. Representative from Arkansas · b. 1957
M
Maurice JeffersAmerican basketball player · b. 1979
J
Johnny CarpenterAmerican actor · b. 1914
Help out

Finish Centerville’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 viewCommunity service center. Faulkner Coun…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Centerville’s history

What year was Centerville founded?

The Centerville post office opened in 1889, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From the Library of Congress (6), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.