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History · Webster

Webster’s post office opened in 1874, and 13% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1958 on and the census since 1910.

1874first post office
0on the National Register
13%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: DanTD · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Webster began

When was Webster founded?

1874

The Webster post office opened in 1874, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 301 in 19102020 census: 778152 years
Founding year: the first Webster post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Webster’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Webster are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1950 and 1960, then more than doubled.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Webster’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Webster, census by census

0200400600800192019401960198020002020569 in 1950Low: 366

Lost a third of its people between 1950 and 1960, then more than doubled.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Webster’s Wikipedia page.

The story so far

Webster, in brief

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

Webster is a city located in Sumter County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 778. The ZIP Code for this city is 33597, which is shared by Oak Grove, St. Catherine, Croom-a-Coochee, Tarrytown, Linden and part of Mabel.

Its first post office opened in 1874. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 785 in 2010, 778 in 2020.

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

Timeline

Webster, 1874 to 1995

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1874Post officeThe Webster post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1928Born hereChuck Smith is born here
  5. 1958On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 856
  7. 1995Born hereKeanu Neal is born here
By decade

Webster, decade by decade

Today18 recent
08; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201608; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-2307; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201607; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-2306; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201606; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-2305; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201605; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-2304; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201604; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-2303; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201603; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-2302; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201602; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-2301; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23201601; Webster, FLA; 2016-07-23Webster FL old State Bank042011Webster FL old State Bank04Webster FL old State Bank032011Webster FL old State Bank03Webster FL old State Bank022011Webster FL old State Bank02Webster FL old State Bank012011Webster FL old State Bank01Webster FL Rowell Library022011Webster FL Rowell Library02Webster FL Rowell Library012011Webster FL Rowell Library01Webster FL Fussell House032011Webster FL Fussell House03Webster FL Fussell House022011Webster FL Fussell House02Webster FL Fussell House012011Webster FL Fussell House01FLMap-doton-Webster2004FLMap-doton-Webster
On the map

Webster on the map, 1958 to 1979

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Webster. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Webster on the 1958 USGS mapWebster on the 1979 USGS map1958Webster sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Webster.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Webster

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Keanu NealAmerican football player · b. 1995
Chuck SmithAmerican politician from Florida · b. 1928

Questions about Webster’s history

What year was Webster founded?

The Webster post office opened in 1874, 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 (18), 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.