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C+History
History · Kennesaw

Kennesaw was first counted by the census in 1880, and 7 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 35% of U.S. towns · #151 of 263 in Georgia. What drives it

Most of Kennesaw was built recently: 0.5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1998. 7 places in town are on the National Register, among them four historic districts with 99 buildings between them. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1907 on, and the census since 1880.

1880first census
7on the National Register
0.5%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
10famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Kennesaw’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Kennesaw began, and where its name came from

When was Kennesaw founded?

1880

Kennesaw first appears in the census in 1880. Another post office, Big Shantee (1859), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 244 in 18802020 census: 33,036146 years

How did Kennesaw get its name?

The name "Kennesaw" is derived from the Cherokee word Ganisahv (Cherokee spelling: ᎦᏂᏌᎲ), meaning 'cemetery' or 'burial ground'.

How historic is Kennesaw?

C+

More historic than 35% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first census. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Kennesaw’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kennesaw is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #151 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 Kennesaw’s overall grade.
Founding era1880, from the first census: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19400.5% of homes (±0.4) · typical GA town 3.8% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register7 listings, 100 historic buildings, 28.9 per 10,000 residents · typical GA town 10.0 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 35%
NewerOlder
Georgia towns of 2,500+ (263)Ahead of 43%

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 Kennesaw’s 28.9 sits near the middle of its state (63% of Georgia towns have fewer) while its 100 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: the first census (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 Kennesaw’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1880 and 1890, then grew more than tenfold.A historic districtThe Big Shanty Village Historic District takes in 36 historic buildings.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Kennesaw, and 5 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Kennesaw’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewConfederates dragging guns up Kenesaw: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Kennesaw, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00018801900192019401960198020002020244 in 1880Low: 168

Lost a third of its people between 1880 and 1890, then grew more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

On the National Register

7 listings protect 100 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
7
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
100
each building in a district counts
first listed
1973
General, The
Big Shanty Village Historic DistrictCherokee Street Historic DistrictNorth Main Street Historic DistrictSummers Street Historic DistrictGeneral, TheCamp McDonaldHiram Butler House
BuildingsDistrictsSitesStructures

Architectural styles listings

Late Victorian3
Bungalow/Craftsman1
Queen Anne1
Greek Revival1
Italianate1
Big Shanty Village Historic DistrictLate Victorian
Cherokee Street Historic DistrictLate Victorian
North Main Street Historic DistrictLate Victorian
Summers Street Historic DistrictBungalow/Craftsman
All 7 listings
General, TheStructure · listed 1973Camp McDonaldSite · listed 1980Hiram Butler HouseBuilding · listed 1995

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How Kennesaw came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Kennesaw.

Read it all →

As the Western and Atlantic Railroad was being built in the late 1830s, shanty towns arose to house the workers. These were near a big spring. A grade up from the Etowah River became known as "the big grade to the shanties", then "Big Shanty Grade", and finally "Big Shanty". It was officially incorporated as the city of Kennesaw in 1887.

Camp MacDonald, a training camp, was located there from 1861 to 1863.

ChaptersCivil WarLater history

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Kennesaw, 1818 to 2020

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1818In the archiveMap showing Approximate Position and Entrenchments of the Army of Miss. -along the Chatta…
  3. 1853Post officeThe Kenesaw post office opens
  4. 1859Post officeThe Big Shantee post office opens
  5. 1864In the archiveConfederates dragging guns up Kenesaw
  6. 1869Post officeThe Big Shantee post office closes
  7. 1887In the archiveIiif-public gdcmassbookdig greatlocomotivec00pitt 3 greatlocomotivec00pitt 3 0008-full-pc…
  8. 20th century
  9. 1907On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1970Born hereRon Lester is born here
  11. 1989Born hereSean O'Pry is born here
  12. 1995Born hereJane Campbell is born here
  13. 1999Born hereJustin Fields is born here
  14. 21st century
  15. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 33,036
By decade

Kennesaw, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1810s to the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1810s1 item
Map showing Approximate Position and Entrenchments of the Army of Miss. -along the Chattahoochee and in the vicinities …1818Map showing Approximate Position and Entrenchments of…Map
1860s–1880s3 items
Confederates dragging guns up Kenesaw1864Confederates dragging guns up KenesawLOST MTN1864LOST MTNIiif-public gdcmassbookdig greatlocomotivec00pitt 3 greatlocomotivec00pitt 3 0008-full-pct 100.0-0-default1887Iiif-public gdcmassbookdig greatlocomotivec00pitt 3 g…
1890s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today14 recent
Kennesaw Mountain High School2015Kennesaw Mountain High SchoolHarrison High School (Georgia)2015Harrison High School (Georgia)Top of the Kennesaw Mountain2014Top of the Kennesaw MountainTrees of2012Trees ofK-Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History2012K-Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive HistoryRoman Glick 12011Roman Glick 1The Drop2010The DropSummit of Kennesaw Mountain2010Summit of Kennesaw MountainAntenna Tower at Kennesaw Mountain2010Antenna Tower at Kennesaw MountainUntitled photo2010Untitled photoUntitled photo2010Untitled photoFEMA - 42145 - Mitigation Display at Home Supply Store2009FEMA - 42145 - Mitigation Display at Home Supply StoreKennesawCityHall2007KennesawCityHallGAMap-doton-Kennesaw2005GAMap-doton-Kennesaw
On the map

Kennesaw on the map, 1907 to 1992

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

Kennesaw on the 1907 USGS mapKennesaw on the 1956 USGS mapKennesaw on the 1968 USGS mapKennesaw on the 1973 USGS mapKennesaw on the 1985 USGS mapKennesaw on the 1992 USGS map1907Acworth sheet · 1:62,500

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

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Confederates dragging guns up Kenesaw
Retake this viewConfederates dragging guns up Kenesaw, 1864

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Kennesaw’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

10 famous people were born in Kennesaw

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

See all →
Sean O'PryAmerican model · b. 1989
Jane CampbellAmerican soccer player · b. 1995
R
Ron LesterAmerican actor · b. 1970
Justin FieldsAmerican football player · b. 1999
Dansby SwansonAmerican baseball player · b. 1994
K
Kelsey DaughertyAmerican soccer player · b. 1996
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Big Shantee, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Kenesaw
1853–today
Big Shantee
1859–1869
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
DeerfieldGiles CrossingMarietta Mobile Home ParkNorth Bridge TraceNowlin Woods
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Kennesaw
HendersonKennesaw CityMount Zion MethodistPine Ridge MemorialSardisShiloh

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Acworth6 historic placesB

Questions about Kennesaw’s history

What year was Kennesaw founded?

The Kennesaw post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Kennesaw rank for history?

Kennesaw is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #151 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 Kennesaw?

7 listings: 1 building, 4 historic districts with 99 contributing buildings, 1 site, and 1 structure. 100 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Kennesaw?

0.5% of Kennesaw’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.8% for a Georgia town; the median home was built in 1998.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (16), the Library of Congress (2), the National Register of Historic Places (7), 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.