The story
Read it all →How Paxton came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Paxton.
Paxton was once called Soda Bar. A post office called Paxton was established in 1917, and remained in operation until 1952.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
–Not graded
History · Paxton
Paxton’s post office opened in 1917
Below: maps from 1950 on.
1917first post office
0on the National Register
Quick answers
How Paxton began
When was Paxton founded?
1917
The Paxton post office opened in 1917, the earliest record of the town by name.
109 years
Founding year: the first Paxton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
What stands out about Paxton’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 Paxton’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Paxton’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.Timeline
Paxton, 1917 to 1952
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your albumOn the map
Paxton on the map, 1950 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Paxton. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1950Greenville 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 Paxton.
Famous people
See all →Famous people close to Paxton
Nobody well known was born in Paxton itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices
Paxton had its own post office from 1917 to 1952.
Paxton
19101970today
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about Paxton’s history
What year was Paxton founded?
The Paxton post office opened in 1917, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikipedia, 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.