St. Matthews’ post office opened in 1851, and 5 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 44% of U.S. towns · #92 of 142 in Kentucky. What drives it
Most of St. Matthews was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1969. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1986 on, and the census since 1960.
From St. Matthews’ archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How St. Matthews began
When was St. Matthews founded?
1851
The St. Matthews post office opened in 1851, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1950. Three smaller post offices, Lynnford (1849), Saint Matthews (1851) and Warwick Villa (1893), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 8,738 in 19602020 census: 17,534175 years
How historic is St. Matthews?
C+
More historic than 44% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first St. Matthews post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1950.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives St. Matthews’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, St. Matthews is more historic than 44% of U.S. towns, #92 of 142 in Kentucky. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of St. Matthews’ 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 St. Matthews’ 6.3 sits near the middle of its state (36% of Kentucky towns have fewer) while its 11 historic buildings outnumber those of 76% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B−. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1950.
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 St. Matthews’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Dating the arrival of American Indians to present-day Kentucky remains controversial, with estimates ranging from 40,000 to 10,000 years before the present. As with later European cultures, indigenous cultures were often divided near the falls of the Ohio River, which marked a transition zone in travel and settlement. During the late Woodland period (c. 1st century), this area was between the Ohioan Hopewell culture and the Illinois Crab Orchard culture that extended to the west. Later (c. 1200), it was the boundary between the Mississippian and Fort Ancient cultures. During the 18th century, the area was claimed by various Indian tribes, including the Shawnee from the northwest and the Iroquois to the east; based in New York and Pennsylvania, the Iroquois used the Ohio Valley as a hunting ground by right of conquest.
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.
The St. Matthews post office opened in 1851, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1950.
How does St. Matthews rank for history?
St. Matthews is more historic than 44% of U.S. towns, #92 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 St. Matthews?
5 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Ridgeway (listed 1973, the first). 11 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in St. Matthews?
10% of St. Matthews’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 5.9% for a Kentucky town; the median home was built in 1969.
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 (5), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (5), Wikipedia, 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.
1939
2008
2008