Blackshear’s post office opened in 1858, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 26% of U.S. towns · #183 of 263 in Georgia. What drives it
Most of Blackshear was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. Its Register listings are the Pierce County Jail, the Pierce County Courthouse and the Blackshear Depot. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1860.
Founding year: the first Blackshear post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Blackshear’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Blackshear is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #183 of 263 in Georgia. 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 Blackshear’s overall grade.
Georgia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Georgia town has 10.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Blackshear’s 11.2 sits near the middle of its state (56% of Georgia towns have fewer) while its 4 historic buildings outnumber those of 68% 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 (±0.8 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Blackshear’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
1885Sheet 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.
Blackshear was founded in 1858 to serve as the seat of the newly formed Pierce County. The city was named after General David Blackshear, who authorized the construction of roads, bridges and 11 forts for defense. He was a patriot in the American Revolution, fighting in the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge and the Battle of Buford's Bridge. He served as a general during the War of 1812. He also served in the Georgia state legislature as Senator of Laurens County.
During the American Civil War, the city became a temporary prisoner-of-war camp for more than 5,000 Union prisoners. This site is marked by a historical landmark sign.
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.
Blackshear’s post office has been open since 1858.
Gone or out of use
Lakeview Country Clublocale
1cemetery inside Blackshear
Blackshear City
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Blackshear’s history
What year was Blackshear founded?
The Blackshear post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Blackshear rank for history?
Blackshear is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #183 of 263 in Georgia. 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 Blackshear?
Three places: the Pierce County Jail (listed 1980), the Pierce County Courthouse (1980) and the Blackshear Depot (2000).
How old are the homes in Blackshear?
0.0% of Blackshear’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.8% for a Georgia town; the median home was built in 1983.
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 (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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), 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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