Folkston’s post office opened in 1881, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 46% of U.S. towns · #118 of 263 in Georgia. What drives it
Most of Folkston was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1980. Its Register listings are the Charlton County Courthouse and the William Mizell Sr. House. Its Register listings are the Charlton County Courthouse and the William Mizell Sr. House. Below: maps from 1918 on and the census since 1900.
The Folkston post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1911. Another post office, Bachlott (1888), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 167 in 19002020 census: 4,464145 years
How historic is Folkston?
B−
More historic than 46% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Folkston post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1911.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Folkston’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Folkston is more historic than 46% of U.S. towns, #118 of 263 in Georgia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Folkston’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 Folkston’s 8.6 sits near the middle of its state (51% 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 C to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1911.
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 Folkston’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Folkston was founded on August 19, 1911. The city was named in honor of William Brandon Folks, M.D., a prominent physician and surgeon in his day. In the years 1925 through 1927, many new and commodious residences were built and several modern brick buildings were erected, including the Citizen Bank Block, the Masonic Temple building, a grammar school building, and a courthouse. Shortly after its creation, the village of Folkston was incorporated as a town government and functioned as a town until 1911 when the area was incorporated as a city. For a number of years, Folkston was the self-proclaimed "Marriage Capital of the World"; Floridians who could not endure their state's waiting period before tying the knot would cross the state line to wed.
The Folkston post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1911.
How does Folkston rank for history?
Folkston is more historic than 46% of U.S. towns, #118 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 Folkston?
Two places: the Charlton County Courthouse (listed 1980) and the William Mizell Sr. House (1997).
How old are the homes in Folkston?
10% of Folkston’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.6 points), against a typical 3.8% for a Georgia town; the median home was built in 1980.
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 (4), Wikidata (2), 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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