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B−History
History · Suwanee

Suwanee’s post office opened in 1837, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 53% of U.S. towns · #101 of 263 in Georgia. What drives it

Most of Suwanee was built recently: 0.3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2003. 1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 40 buildings. Below: maps from 1964 on and the census since 1880.

1837first post office
1on the National Register
0.3%homes built before 1940
11famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Suwanee began

When was Suwanee founded?

1837

The Suwanee post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Brandon (1860), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 215 in 18802020 census: 20,786189 years

How historic is Suwanee?

B−

More historic than 53% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Suwanee post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Suwanee’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Suwanee is more historic than 53% of U.S. towns, #101 of 263 in Georgia. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Suwanee’s overall grade.
Founding era1837, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19400.3% of homes (±0.6) · typical GA town 3.8% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register1 listing, 40 historic buildings, 17.9 per 10,000 residents · typical GA town 10.0 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 53%
NewerOlder
Georgia towns of 2,500+ (263)Ahead of 62%

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 Suwanee’s 17.9 sits near the middle of its state (58% of Georgia towns have fewer) while its 40 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 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 Suwanee’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 Suwanee are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Suwanee Historic District takes in 40 historic buildings.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Suwanee, and 4 old place names are still on the map.Deep rootsA post office since 1837: 189 years of Suwanee.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Suwanee’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Suwanee’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
On the National Register

1 listing protects 40 historic buildings

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
40
each building in a district counts
first listed
2013
Suwanee Historic District
Suwanee Historic District
Districts
All 1 listings
Suwanee Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2013

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Suwanee’s post office has been open since 1837. Another post office, Brandon, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Suwanee
1837–today
Brandon
1860–1866
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Abbey HillLevel CreekSettles BridgeSuwanee Farms
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Suwanee
BrandonConnollyDouglassLockridge Family

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

The story

How Suwanee came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Suwanee.

Read it all →

Suwanee, like many towns in Georgia, has its roots based in the name of Native American with this name being from the Shawnee and a former Shawnee area. Settlement always thrived along the Chattahoochee River, where various societies flourished. The city was officially recognized by the U.S. government in 1837, following the establishment of a post office. With the construction of the Georgia Air Line Railroad in 1871, and the Rhodes House hotel in 1880 to accommodate railroad passengers, Suwanee saw in influx of people and a boost in trade and economic activity. Suwanee Methodist Church was established in 1873, serving both the local Methodist and Baptist congregations. Although a devastating fire in 1881 spared only one building on Main Street, the town continued to persevere. From 1880 to 1920, the population remained relatively static, growing from 216 people to 241 over 40 years. A…

ChaptersEarly historyRecent history

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Suwanee, 1837 to 2001

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1837Post officeThe Suwanee post office opens
  3. 1860Post officeThe Brandon post office opens
  4. 1866Post officeThe Brandon post office closes
  5. 20th century
  6. 1964On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1990Born hereKevin Minter is born here
  8. 1993Born hereC. J. Uzomah is born here
  9. 1995Born hereWill Harris is born here
  10. 21st century
  11. 2001Born hereJosh Downs is born here
By decade

Suwanee, decade by decade

Today15 recent
Suwanee Caboose2026Suwanee CabooseElevated pedestrian bridge in Town Center on Main2026Elevated pedestrian bridge in Town Center on MainSettles Bridge2025Settles BridgeSettles Bridge from downstream2025Settles Bridge from downstreamSuwanee Creek, May 20212021Suwanee Creek, May 2021Portland Trail Drive, Suwanee, GA May 20212021Portland Trail Drive, Suwanee, GA May 2021Berlin Wall segment, Suwanee, GA May 20212021Berlin Wall segment, Suwanee, GA May 2021629 Main Street, Suwanee GA, March 20192019629 Main Street, Suwanee GA, March 2019Suwanee Half Marathon2018Suwanee Half MarathonTaziki's Mediterranean Café, Suwanee GA, Oct 20172017Taziki's Mediterranean Café, Suwanee GA, Oct 2017Suwanee Georgia City Hall2013Suwanee Georgia City HallUntitled photo2009Untitled photoSuwanee, GA 30024, USA - panoramio - 走遍美国 (2)2009Suwanee, GA 30024, USA - panoramio - 走遍美国 (2)Suwanee, GA 30024, USA - panoramio - 走遍美国 (1)2009Suwanee, GA 30024, USA - panoramio - 走遍美国 (1)panoramio - 走遍美国 (4)2009panoramio - 走遍美国 (4)
On the map

Suwanee on the map, 1964 to 1992

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

Suwanee on the 1964 USGS mapSuwanee on the 1972 USGS mapSuwanee on the 1992 USGS map1964Suwanee 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 Suwanee.

People over time

Suwanee, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,0001880190019201940196019802000202020,786

Grew from 215 people in 1880 to 20,786 in 2020, more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

11 famous people were born in Suwanee

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

See all →
C. J. UzomahAmerican football player · b. 1993
Will HarrisAmerican football player · b. 1995
J
Josh DownsAmerican football player · b. 2001
Kevin MinterAmerican football player, linebacker · b. 1990
Z
Zach GrahamAmerican basketball player · b. 1989
DJ TurnerAmerican football player · b. 2000
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Sugar HillIts storyD−Duluth1 historic placeC

Questions about Suwanee’s history

What year was Suwanee founded?

The Suwanee post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Suwanee rank for history?

Suwanee is more historic than 53% of U.S. towns, #101 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 Suwanee?

One place: the Suwanee Historic District (listed 2013).

How old are the homes in Suwanee?

0.3% of Suwanee’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.8% for a Georgia town; the median home was built in 2003.

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 (15), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.