Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Elkhorn City

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Elkhorn City

Elkhorn City dates to 1810, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Elkhorn City Elementary and High School. Below: maps from 1915 on and the census since 1890.

1810founded
1on the National Register
12%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Elkhorn City began

When was Elkhorn City founded?

1810

Elkhorn City dates its founding to 1810 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 100 in 18902020 census: 1,035216 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1919.The full story ↓

What stands out about Elkhorn City’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 Elkhorn City are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,446 in 1980; 1,035 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19154 editions of the USGS map, 1915 to 1978. Watch Elkhorn City change.Deep rootsEstablished in 1810: 216 years of Elkhorn City.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Elkhorn City’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Elkhorn City’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
People over time

Elkhorn City, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,446

Peaked at 1,446 in 1980; 1,035 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

On the map

Elkhorn City on the map, 1915 to 1978

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

Elkhorn City on the 1915 USGS mapElkhorn City on the 1954 USGS mapElkhorn City on the 1963 USGS mapElkhorn City on the 1978 USGS map1915Regina sheet · 1:62,500

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

The story

How Elkhorn City came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Elkhorn City.

Read it all →

Elkhorn City was first settled by William Ramey of North Carolina c. 1810. However, in 1767–1768, Daniel Boone took his first steps in what is now Kentucky near present-day Elkhorn City on a hunting expedition.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Elkhorn City, 1810 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1810
    FoundingElkhorn City is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1915On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1919Post officeThe Dunleary post office opens
  6. 1929Born hereRobert H. Reed is born here
  7. 1940Post officeThe Dunleary post office closes
  8. 1952Post officeThe Elkhorn City post office opens
  9. 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 1,446
By decade

Elkhorn City, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Elkhorn City High School2016Elkhorn City High SchoolKYMap-doton-ElkhornCity2004KYMap-doton-ElkhornCity
On the National Register

1 historic place in Elkhorn City

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
2015
Elkhorn City Elementary and High School
Elkhorn City Elementary and High School
Buildings
Elkhorn City Elementary and High SchoolBuilding

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 places now gone

Elkhorn City’s post office has been open since 1952. Another post office, Dunleary, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Dunleary
1919–1940
Elkhorn City
1952–today
19101970today
Hamlets and corners on the map
DunlearyFederal
Gone or out of use
Drafin SchoollocaleDunleary Post Officepost officeDunleary Railroad StationlocaleElkhorn City Railroad StationlocaleFederal Railroad StationlocaleMouth of Beaver Schoolschool

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

Questions about Elkhorn City’s history

What year was Elkhorn City founded?

In 1810, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Elkhorn City’s post office opened in 1919, and the census of 1890 counted 100 people here.

What is on the National Register in Elkhorn City?

One place: the Elkhorn City Elementary and High School (listed 2015).

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 (2), Wikidata (1), 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.