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History · Jamestown

Jamestown dates to 1830, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: old-book passages.

1830founded
0on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
2famous people
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Photo: ONUnicorn · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Jamestown began

When was Jamestown founded?

1830

Jamestown dates its founding to 1830 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1831.

2020 census: 942196 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1831.The full story ↓

What stands out about Jamestown’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 Jamestown are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Deep rootsEstablished in 1830: 196 years of Jamestown.Old housesHalf of Jamestown’s homes were built before 1959.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Jamestown’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Jamestown’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
Timeline

Jamestown, 1830 to 1902

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1830
    FoundingJamestown is established
  3. 1831Post officeThe Jamestown post office opens
  4. 1839Born hereThomas Jefferson Hudson is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1902Born hereHerman B Wells is born here
The story

How Jamestown came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Jamestown.

Read it all →

Jamestown was established in 1830, and was platted in 1832. The town was named for its founder, James Mattock.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Jamestown, 1902–1913

Passages that mention Jamestown, cut from the printed page as they were published.

The Press of Jamestown^ The ''Jamestown Journar’ was the pioneer newspaper of Jamestown. It was established in 1826 by Adolphus Fletcher. Though it has passed through various proprietorships and its name changed to Jamestown Evening Journal, its existence has been continuous. It has been progressiv…
Jamestown, past and present1913Read the page →
Read the text

The Press of Jamestown^ The ''Jamestown Journar’ was the pioneer newspaper of Jamestown. It was established in 1826 by Adolphus Fletcher. Though it has passed through various proprietorships and its name changed to Jamestown Evening Journal, its existence has been continuous. It has been progressive and is an up-to-date news-

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Samuel A. Brown came to Jamestown on horse back in 1816, and in the same month was admitted as attorney in the county court, having had three years’ experience in his brother’s law office previous to his arrival in Jamestown.
Jamestown, past and present1913Read the page →
Read the text

Samuel A. Brown came to Jamestown on horse back in 1816, and in the same month was admitted as attorney in the county court, having had three years’ experience in his brother’s law office previous to his arrival in Jamestown.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
In 1 781 CornwaLUV last fight, before he took his final and fatal stand at Yorktown, was at Jamestown Ford. Lafayette and Wayne, with about 5,000 men, had closely chased Cornwallis clown the Peninsula from Richmond, when, on July 6th, 17S1, the British General laid a trap for his pursuers at the Ja…
Jamestown [1607-1907] a sketch of the history and present condition of the site of the first permanent English settlement in America1902Read the page →
Read the text

In 1 781 CornwaLUV last fight, before he took his final and fatal stand at Yorktown, was at Jamestown Ford. Lafayette and Wayne, with about 5,000 men, had closely chased Cornwallis clown the Peninsula from Richmond, when, on July 6th, 17S1, the British General laid a trap for his pursuers at the Jamestown causeway. Concealing the principal part of Ins army on the mainland, he stationed a smaller part on the Jamestown Peninsula

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
in their conversion. Some few instances of the influences of gospel principles on the savage mind gave sanguine hope of success; ‘‘Of a single instance, the settlement at Jamestown,—-(endangered by the insurrection of 1622, which was instigated by the treachery of Opechancanough) through the timely…
By-ways of Virginia history1907Read the page →
Read the text

in their conversion. Some few instances of the influences of gospel principles on the savage mind gave sanguine hope of success; ‘‘Of a single instance, the settlement at Jamestown,—-(endangered by the insurrection of 1622, which was instigated by the treachery of Opechancanough) through the timely warning oi a Christianized Indian, was preserved to the inhabitants, when other settlements were wiped out.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Jamestown, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Automobile junkyards are a common site across rural America, but this one, near Jamestown in Elkhart County, Indiana, i…2016Automobile junkyards are a common site across rural A…Automobile junkyards are a common site across rural America, but this one, near Jamestown in Elkhart County, Indiana, i…2016Automobile junkyards are a common site across rural A…Automobile junkyards are a common site across rural America, but this one, near Jamestown in Elkhart County, Indiana, i…2016Automobile junkyards are a common site across rural A…A partially harvested cornfield on an Elkhart County, Indiana, farm near the town of Jamestown2016A partially harvested cornfield on an Elkhart County,…The substantial American Countryside farmers' market building near Jamestown in Elkhart County, Indiana2016The substantial American Countryside farmers' market …Jamestown, Indiana water tower2010Jamestown, Indiana water tower
Famous people

2 famous people were born in Jamestown

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

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Thomas Jefferson HudsonAmerican politician · b. 1839
H
Herman B WellsPresident of Indiana University · b. 1902

Questions about Jamestown’s history

What year was Jamestown founded?

In 1830, according to Wikidata. Jamestown’s post office opened in 1831.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

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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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (1), the Library of Congress (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.