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History · Butler

Butler’s post office opened in 1860, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Fryer House.

1860first post office
1on the National Register
14%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Butler began

When was Butler founded?

1860

The Butler post office opened in 1860, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 646166 years
Founding year: the first Butler post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Butler’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 Butler are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Butler’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Butler’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
The story

How Butler came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Butler.

Read it all →

The city of Butler was established around 1852 when the Kentucky Central Railroad was built through the area. When it was incorporated on February 1, 1868, the city was named for area's earlier U.S. representative William O. Butler.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Butler, 1860 to 1897

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1860Post officeThe Butler post office opens
  3. 1870Born hereBilly Taylor is born here
  4. 1897Born hereBirkett Pribble is born here
By decade

Butler, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Fryer House — Pendleton County, Kentucky2019Fryer House — Pendleton County, KentuckyButler-post-office-ky2019Butler-post-office-kyButler-RR-tracks-ky2019Butler-RR-tracks-kyButler-Front-St-ky2019Butler-Front-St-kyButler-Deposit-Bank-ky2019Butler-Deposit-Bank-kyKYMap-doton-Butler2004KYMap-doton-Butler
On the National Register

1 historic place in Butler

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Fryer House
Buildings
Fryer HouseBuilding

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Butler

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

See all →
B
Billy TaylorBaseball third baseman for the Louisville Colon… · b. 1870
B
Birkett PribbleAmerican football player · b. 1897

Questions about Butler’s history

What year was Butler founded?

The Butler post office opened in 1860, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Butler?

One place: the Fryer House (listed 1976).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.