The story
Read it all →How Dermott came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Dermott.
During World War II, Dermott was the site of one of several camps holding German prisoners of war.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
CHistory
History · Dermott
Dermott’s post office opened in 1877, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 30% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Most of Dermott was built recently: 0.6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1975. Its Register listings are the Dermott Bank & Trust Company Building, the M.E. Davis House and the Crenshaw-Burleigh House. Its Register listings are the Dermott Bank & Trust Company Building, the M.E. Davis House and the Crenshaw-Burleigh House. Below: maps from 1908 on and the census since 1900.
1877first post office
3on the National Register
0.6%homes built before 1940
7famous people
Quick answers
How Dermott began
When was Dermott founded?
1877
The Dermott post office opened in 1877, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1890.
First census: 467 in 19002020 census: 2,021149 years
How historic is Dermott?
C
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 30% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Dermott post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1890.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Dermott’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Dermott is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns. 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 Dermott’s overall grade.
Founding era1877, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19400.6% of homes (±0.9) · typical AR town 3.1% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register3 listings, 6 historic buildings, 25.8 per 10,000 residents · typical AR town 20.5 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 30%
NewerOlder
Arkansas towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Arkansas town has 20.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Dermott’s 25.8 sits near the middle of its state (59% of Arkansas towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% 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 (±0.9 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1890 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Dermott’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Dermott’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Dermott’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.People over time
Dermott, census by census
Peaked at 4,731 in 1980; 2,021 people lived here in 2020.
13 censuses, 1900–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Dermott’s Wikipedia page.
Timeline
Dermott, 1877 to 1980
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1877Post officeThe Dermott post office opens
- 1899Born hereZilner Randolph is born here
- 20th century
- 1928Born hereRoscoe Robinson is born here
- 1936
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1953
Born hereLarry D. Alexander is born here - 1957Born hereArt Kaufman is born here
- 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 4,731
By decade
Dermott, decade by decade
2016
2014
2014
2014
2014On the map
Dermott on the map, 1936 to 1981
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Dermott. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1936McGehee sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Dermott.
Every building
Dermott, building by building, 1908
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.
1908Sheet 1 of 3BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
On the National Register
3 historic places in Dermott
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts
first listed
1994
Dermott Bank & Trust Company Building
Buildings
Dermott Bank & Trust Company BuildingBuilding
M.E. Davis HouseBuilding
Crenshaw-Burleigh HouseBuilding
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Famous people
See all →7 famous people were born in Dermott
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
R
Roscoe RobinsonAmerican singer · b. 1928Z
Zilner RandolphAmerican jazz trumpeter · b. 1899A
Art KaufmanAmerican football player and coach · b. 1957
Places that used to be
Old corners and burying grounds
Dermott’s post office has been open since 1877.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Constance
1cemetery inside Dermott
McDermott
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Dermott’s history
What year was Dermott founded?
The Dermott post office opened in 1877, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1890.
How does Dermott rank for history?
Dermott is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns. 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 Dermott?
Three places: the Dermott Bank & Trust Company Building (listed 1994), the M.E. Davis House (2004) and the Crenshaw-Burleigh House (2012).
How old are the homes in Dermott?
0.6% of Dermott’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.1% for an Arkansas town; the median home was built in 1975.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (5), Wikidata (5), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.