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History · Smithland

Smithland’s post office opened in 1802, and 21% of its homes were built before 1940

5 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 22 old photos and papers, maps from 1954 on, and the census since 1810.

1802first post office
5on the National Register
21%homes built before 1940
22old photos & papers
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Smithland’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Smithland began

When was Smithland founded?

1802

The Smithland post office opened in 1802, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 99 in 18102020 census: 240224 years
Founding year: the first Smithland post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Smithland’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A town in old photos22 old photos, postcards and papers, 1912–1937.Boom and bustPeaked at 882 in 1850; 240 people lived here in 2020.Deep rootsA post office since 1802: 224 years of Smithland.Landmarks on the Register5 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · By decade

Smithland, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s–1930s22 items
Doodstraf, SFA0228247491912Doodstraf, SFA022824749Doodstraf, SFA0228247501912Doodstraf, SFA022824750Doodstraf, SFA0228247511912Doodstraf, SFA022824751Scene in Smithland, Kentucky, man, woman, and child1935Scene in Smithland, Kentucky, man, woman, and childSmithland, Kentucky1935Smithland, KentuckyBank1935BankScene1935ScenePost office1935Post officeScene1935SceneScene1935SceneResident of Smithland, Kentucky1935Resident of Smithland, KentuckyResident of Smithland, Kentucky1935Resident of Smithland, KentuckyCircus poster1935Circus posterScene at Smithland, Kentucky1935Scene at Smithland, KentuckyScene1935SceneUntitled photo, possibly related to: Bank1935Untitled photo, possibly related to: BankUntitled photo, possibly related to: Scene1935Untitled photo, possibly related to: SceneUntitled photo, possibly related to: Resident of Smithland, Kentucky1935Untitled photo, possibly related to: Resident of Smit…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Scene at Smithland, Kentucky1935Untitled photo, possibly related to: Scene at Smithla…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Scene at Smithland, Kentucky1935Untitled photo, possibly related to: Scene at Smithla…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bank1935Untitled photo, possibly related to: BankWarning sign1937Warning sign
1940s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
People over time

Smithland, census by census

02004006008001850190019502000Peak: 882

Peaked at 882 in 1850; 240 people lived here in 2020.

19 censuses, 1810–2020.

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

Timeline

Smithland, 1780 to 1954

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1780BuiltGower House is built
  3. 19th century
  4. 1802Post officeThe Smithland post office opens
  5. 1818Born hereJames Leeper Johnson is born here
  6. 1827Born hereRichard W. Johnson is born here
  7. 1841BuiltRichard Olive House is built
  8. 1850CensusPopulation peaks at 882
  9. 1858Born hereSamuel H. Piles is born here
  10. 1896Born hereCarter W. Clarke is born here
  11. 20th century
  12. 1912In the archiveDoodstraf, SFA022824749
  13. 1935In the archiveScene in Smithland, Kentucky, man, woman, and child
  14. 1954On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story so far

Smithland, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Smithland yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Smithland is a home rule-class city in Livingston County, Kentucky, United States, at the confluence of the Ohio and Cumberland Rivers. As of the 2020 census, Smithland had a population of 240. It is the county seat of Livingston County. Smithland is part of the Paducah metropolitan area.

Its first post office opened in 1802. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 301 to 240 (-20%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

On the map

Smithland on the map, 1954 to 1990

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

Smithland on the 1954 USGS mapSmithland on the 1967 USGS mapSmithland on the 1990 USGS map1954Smithland sheet · 1:24,000

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

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Doodstraf, SFA022824749
Retake this viewDoodstraf, SFA022824749, 1912

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Smithland’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

5 historic places in Smithland

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

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
5
each building in a district counts
first listed
1973
Gower House
Gower House, built 1780Richard Olive House, built 1841Masonic Hall-Federal Commissary BuildingLivingston County Courthouse and Clerk's OfficesFort Star
BuildingsSites

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival2
Georgian1
Early Federal1
Commercial1
Romanesque1
Italianate1
Gower HouseGeorgian · Built 1780
Richard Olive HouseGreek Revival · Built 1841
Masonic Hall-Federal Commissary BuildingCommercial
Livingston County Courthouse and Clerk's OfficesGreek Revival
All 5 listings
Fort StarSite · listed 1998

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

Famous people

4 famous people were born in Smithland

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

See all →
Samuel H. PilesAmerican politician · b. 1858
Richard W. JohnsonUnion Army General · b. 1827
J
James Leeper JohnsonAmerican politician · b. 1818
C
Carter W. ClarkeUnited States general · b. 1896
Help out

Finish Smithland’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewDoodstraf, SFA022824749: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Smithland’s history

What year was Smithland founded?

The Smithland post office opened in 1802, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Smithland?

5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Gower House (listed 1973, the first), and 1 site.

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 (4), the Library of Congress (18), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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.