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History · Oakville

Oakville’s post office opened in 1854, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper from 1907 on.

1854first post office
0on the National Register
18%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Oakville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Oakville began

When was Oakville founded?

1854

The Oakville post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 9,504172 years
Founding year: the first Oakville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Oakville’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Oakville’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewStreetcars in Oakville postcard: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Oakville, in brief

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

Oakville is a census-designated place (CDP) and neighborhood section of Watertown, in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, Oakville had a population of 9,504. It is the most populous community in Watertown, with more than twice as many people as the center village of Watertown. The ZIP code for Oakville is 06779.

Its first post office opened in 1854. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 9,047 to 9,504 (+5%).

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

By decade

Oakville, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s1 item
Streetcars in Oakville postcard1907–1915Streetcars in Oakville postcardPostcard
1910s–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
Today5 recent
Oakville, CT2025Oakville, CTSaint Mary Magdalene Catholic Church2023Saint Mary Magdalene Catholic ChurchPost Office2023Post OfficeMain Street2023Main StreetConnecticut State Route 732011Connecticut State Route 73
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.

Streetcars in Oakville postcard
Retake this viewStreetcars in Oakville postcard, 1907–1915

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Oakville

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

See all →
Harriet Beecher StoweAmerican abolitionist and author · b. 1811
James Van Der BeekAmerican actor · b. 1977
Rosalind RussellAmerican actress · b. 1907
A
Annie LeibovitzAmerican photographer · b. 1949
E
Elizabeth GilbertAmerican writer · b. 1969
Henry Ward BeecherAmerican clergyman and activist · b. 1813
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Watertown3 historic placesA−Waterbury25 historic placesA+

Questions about Oakville’s history

What year was Oakville founded?

The Oakville post office opened in 1854, 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 Wikimedia Commons (6). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.