Most of Glenwood was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1985. Its Register listing is the Glenwood Iron Mountain Railroad Depot. Below: maps from 1913 on and the census since 1910.
The Glenwood post office opened in 1907, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1909. Another post office, Rock Creek (1868), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 768 in 19102020 census: 2,068119 years
How historic is Glenwood?
C−
More historic than 23% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Glenwood post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1909.
History grade
What drives Glenwood’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Glenwood is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Glenwood’s overall grade.
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 Glenwood’s 5.4 sits near the middle of its state (36% of Arkansas towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.5 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1909 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 Glenwood’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost a third of its people between 1930 and 1960, then more than doubled.
12 censuses, 1910–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Glenwood’s Wikipedia page.
The story so far
Glenwood, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Glenwood yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Glenwood is a city in Pike and Montgomery counties in Arkansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,068. The community is located along the Caddo River in the Ouachita Mountains. Glenwood was formed as a boomtown following the development of the Gurdon and Fort Smith Railroad and timber interests in the area. After the establishment of a lumber mill, the community received a post office and incorporated in April 1909. Although the community saw its major employer leave during the Great Depression, the city has again seen rapid growth in recent decades. The city also sees significant tourism related to its scenic position in the Ouachitas and among several recreational…
Its first post office opened in 1907. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 2,228 to 2,068 (-7%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Glenwood, 1868 to 2010
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Glenwood. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1942Glenwood 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 Glenwood.
Every building
Glenwood, building by building, 1913–1919
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 year, then a sheet.
1913Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Glenwood
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
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 and old corners
Glenwood’s post office has been open since 1907. Another post office, Rock Creek, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Rock Creek
1868–1908
Glenwood
1907–today
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Rock Creek
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Glenwood’s history
What year was Glenwood founded?
The Glenwood post office opened in 1907, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1909.
How does Glenwood rank for history?
Glenwood is more historic than 23% 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 Glenwood?
One place: the Glenwood Iron Mountain Railroad Depot (listed 1996).
How old are the homes in Glenwood?
9% of Glenwood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.5 points), against a typical 3.1% for an Arkansas town; the median home was built in 1985.
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 (8), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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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