Most of Hawthorne was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1976. Its Register listing is the Hawthorne Cemetery. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1943 on, and the census since 1900.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1880.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Hawthorne’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hawthorne is more historic than 45% 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 Hawthorne’s overall grade.
Few Florida towns list much on the Register (a typical Florida town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Hawthorne’s 6.2 sits above most of its state (82% of Florida towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1881.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.1 points).
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Hawthorne’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
People have been living in the Hawthorne area since the mid-Woodland period; a Cades Pond culture (100–600 CE) mound is near the city, and an Alachua culture (600–1700 CE) campsite was found in Hawthorne with aboriginal ceramics and lithics. Timucua-speaking natives were living in North Florida when the Spanish arrived during the 16th century. Natives in Alachua County were allied with Chief Potano, and those in Palatka were allied with Chief Utina. In 1774, William Bartram traveled between western Alachua County and the Palatka area on what he called an "old Spanish highway", an "old Indian and trading trail" which passed through the Hawthorne area. Hawthorne's history is tied to its crossroads.
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.
Hawthorne’s post office has been open since 1950. Another post office, Hawthorn, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Hawthorn
1880–1950
Hawthorne
1950–today
18801950today
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Hawthorne
Hawthorne Baptist ChurchMorrison
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Hawthorne’s history
What year was Hawthorne founded?
In 1881, according to Wikidata. Hawthorne’s post office opened in 1880, and the census of 1900 counted 296 people here.
How does Hawthorne rank for history?
Hawthorne is more historic than 45% 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 Hawthorne?
One place: the Hawthorne Cemetery (listed 2015).
How old are the homes in Hawthorne?
7% of Hawthorne’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.1 points), against a typical 0.6% for a Florida town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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) 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.
2006
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