The Oxford post office opened in 1871, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Neptawah (1871), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 403 in 18802020 census: 1,048155 years
How did Oxford get its name?
Oxford was named after Oxford University, in England.
How historic is Oxford?
B−
More historic than 51% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Oxford is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Oxford’s overall grade.
Kansas towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Kansas town has 5.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Oxford’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (19% of Kansas towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% 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 is a Census survey estimate (±10.8 points). 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 Oxford’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Oxford was founded in 1871 at the site of a former trading post. Oxford was incorporated as a city on October 17, 1879. It was named after Oxford University, in England. The founding city officials were Ben Smith (1831–1898), the elected mayor, Joseph Sleigh (1842–1924), the elected police judge and George Walton (1820–1902), the appointed city clerk.
When Oxford was known as Napawalla, a post office had been established and Lafe Binkley (1842–1917) was postmaster. When Oxford was founded, a new post office was opened and T.E. Clark was appointed postmaster.
Between 403 and 1,173 people in every census since 1880.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Oxford’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices
Oxford’s post office has been open since 1871. Another post office, Neptawah, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Neptawah
1871–1871
Oxford
1871–today
18701950today
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Oxford’s history
What year was Oxford founded?
The Oxford post office opened in 1871, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Oxford rank for history?
Oxford is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns. 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.
How old are the homes in Oxford?
39% of Oxford’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.8 points), against a typical 10% for a Kansas town; the median home was built in 1952.
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 (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.
2005