Pikeville dates to 1824, and 12 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 65% of U.S. towns · #58 of 142 in Kentucky. What drives it
Most of Pikeville was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. 12 places in town are on the National Register, among them five historic districts with 60 buildings between them. Below: 8 old photos and papers, maps from 1910 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1881.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Pikeville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pikeville is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #58 of 142 in Kentucky. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pikeville’s overall grade.
Kentucky towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Kentucky town has 29.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Pikeville’s 89.5 sits above most of its state (66% of Kentucky towns have fewer) while its 67 historic buildings outnumber those of 87% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1824.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A−. The pre-1940 share (±1.4 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Pikeville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Pikeville’s post office has been open since 1881. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Pikeville
1881–today
Jake
1888–1889
Bigshoal
1919–1946
Pauley
1922–1933
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Big ShoalBlair TownHarrolds BranchKeel AdditionLower ChloeMayo VillagePauleyPleasant ValleyStanleyTitan SidingYorktown
Gone or out of use
Bent School Number NineschoolBig Shoal Post Officepost officeHarrolds Branch SchoolschoolJake Post Officepost officeLower Chloe Creek SchoolschoolMouth of Peter Fork SchoolschoolPauley Post Officepost officePikeville AirfieldairportSaltlick Schoolschool
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Pikeville
DillJohnson MemorialJohnson MemorialPeggy Sword
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the National Register
12 listings protect 67 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
On March 25, 1822, state officials decided to build a new county seat named "Liberty", 1.5 miles (2.4 km) below the mouth of the Russell Fork. Public disapproval of the site led a new decision on December 24, 1823, to establish the county seat on land donated by local farmer Elijah Adkins. This settlement was established as the town of Pike in 1824, taking its name from Pike County, which was named after brigadier general and explorer Zebulon Pike. The name was changed in 1829 to Piketon and incorporated under that name in 1848; it was renamed Pikeville in 1850.
Pikeville was host to part of the Hatfield–McCoy feud. Randolph McCoy and his wife and daughter are buried on a hillside overlooking the town.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pikeville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1916Pikeville 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 Pikeville.
Every building
Pikeville, building by building, 1910–1925
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
In 1824, according to Wikidata. Pikeville’s post office opened in 1881, and the census of 1870 counted 140 people here.
How does Pikeville rank for history?
Pikeville is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #58 of 142 in Kentucky. 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.
What is on the National Register in Pikeville?
12 listings: 6 buildings, among them the Pikeville College Academy Building (listed 1973, the first), 5 historic districts with 60 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 67 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Pikeville?
3% of Pikeville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.4 points), against a typical 5.9% for a Kentucky town; the median home was built in 1983.
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 (12), the National Register of Historic Places (12), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1880
1941
1941
1941
1941
2011
2011
2006
2004
