Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Most of Canon was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 11 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1891 on and the census since 1910.
The Canon post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Canon’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Canon. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Canon.
Peaked at 1,132 in 1920; 643 people lived here in 2020.
12 censuses, 1910–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Canon’s Wikipedia page.
From Wikipedia’s history of Canon.
Canon was originally called "West Bowersville", and under the latter name was laid out in 1875. The Georgia General Assembly incorporated the place as the "Town of Canon" in 1902, with the town corporate limits extending in a one-mile radius from the intersection of Broad and Depot streets.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
The Canon post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
Two places: the Canon Commercial Historic District (listed 1985) and the Historic Churches of Canon Historic District (1985).
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (7), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.
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