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History · Denton

Denton dates to 1886, and 40% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1885 on and the census since 1900.

1886founded
0on the National Register
40%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Denton began, and where its name came from

When was Denton founded?

1886

Denton dates its founding to 1886 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 247 in 19002020 census: 130140 years

How did Denton get its name?

Denton was named for one of its founders, John Denton.

Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1905. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Denton’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 Denton are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18855 editions of the USGS map, 1885 to 1990. Watch Denton change.Boom and bustPeaked at 337 in 1910; 130 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Denton’s homes were built before 1956.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Denton’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Denton on the map, 1885 to 1990

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

Denton on the 1885 USGS mapDenton on the 1893 USGS mapDenton on the 1961 USGS mapDenton on the 1985 USGS mapDenton on the 1990 USGS map1885Atchison sheet · 1:125,000

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

People over time

Denton, census by census

01002003001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 337

Peaked at 337 in 1910; 130 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

The story

How Denton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Denton.

Read it all →

Denton was laid out in 1886. It was named for one of its founders, John Denton.

The first post office at the site of Denton was established in 1882. Prior to 1905, it was called Darwin for some time, then Dentonville.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Denton in 1905

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

The Bank of Denton does a general banking business and steadily increased in volume of business and in capacity to serve its patrons. No banking institution in this vicinity has a steadier, evener business than the Bank of Denton.
Gray's Doniphan County history. A record of the happenings of half a hundred years1905Read the page →
Read the text

The Bank of Denton does a general banking business and steadily increased in volume of business and in capacity to serve its patrons. No banking institution in this vicinity has a steadier, evener business than the Bank of Denton.

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.

Timeline

Denton, 1885 to 1910

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1885On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 1886
    FoundingDenton is established
  4. 20th century
  5. 1905Post officeThe Denton post office opens
  6. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 337
By decade

Denton, decade by decade

Today1 recent
KSMap-doton-Denton2004KSMap-doton-Denton

Questions about Denton’s history

What year was Denton founded?

In 1886, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Denton’s post office opened in 1905, and the census of 1900 counted 247 people here.

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
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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), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) 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.