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B+History
History · Wheelwright

Wheelwright’s post office opened in 1916, and 37% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns. What drives it

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 16 buildings. Below: 18 old photos and papers, maps from 1916 on, and the census since 1920.

1916first post office
1on the National Register
37%homes built before 1940
18old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Wheelwright’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Wheelwright began

When was Wheelwright founded?

1916

The Wheelwright post office opened in 1916, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1917.

First census: 506 in 19202020 census: 509110 years

How historic is Wheelwright?

B+

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Wheelwright post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1917.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Wheelwright’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wheelwright is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wheelwright’s overall grade.
Founding era1916, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194037.4% of homes (±20.2) · typical KY town 5.9% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register1 listing, 16 historic buildings, 166 per 10,000 residents · typical KY town 29.9 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 67%
NewerOlder

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 Wheelwright’s 166 sits above most of its state (78% of Kentucky towns have fewer) while its 16 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±20.2 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1917 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.

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 Wheelwright’s past

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

A town in old photos18 old photos, postcards and papers.Boom and bustPeaked at 2,037 in 1950; 509 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19164 editions of the USGS map, 1916 to 1992. Watch Wheelwright change.Old housesHalf of Wheelwright’s homes were built before 1955.
★ What stands out · By decade

Wheelwright, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1940s18 items
After the movies, snack bar at bowling alleys is crowded with younger generation. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright... …1946After the movies, snack bar at bowling alleys is crow…Baptist Church Choir, won district singing competition in 1945. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright ^1 & 2 Mines... - NAR…1946Baptist Church Choir, won district singing competitio…Breakman and motorman at mine portal. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright #1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd County, Kentuc…1946Breakman and motorman at mine portal. Inland Steel Co…Changing shifts at the mine portal in the afternoon. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright #1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd…1946Changing shifts at the mine portal in the afternoon. …Changing shifts at the mine portal in the afternoon. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright #1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd…1946Changing shifts at the mine portal in the afternoon. …Choir of Methodist Church, Rev. Jackson is at extreme right. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright ^1 & 2 Mines... - NARA -…1946Choir of Methodist Church, Rev. Jackson is at extreme…Class in high school which George Fain (center) son of Harry Fain, coal loader, attends. He is a veteran who is in... -…1946Class in high school which George Fain (center) son o…Class in high school which George Fain (center) son of Harry Fain, coal loader, attends. He is a veteran who is in... -…1946Class in high school which George Fain (center) son o…Cleaning plant and tipple of the mines. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright #1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd County, Kent…1946Cleaning plant and tipple of the mines. Inland Steel …Coal miners in soda fountain. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright #1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd County, Kentucky1946Coal miners in soda fountain. Inland Steel Company, W…Community church, Methodist in denomination. Inland Steel Company1946Community church, Methodist in denomination. Inland S…Credit department of the company. Miners are pictured drawing money in advance of payday. Inland Steel Company... - NAR…1946Credit department of the company. Miners are pictured…Crowd of miners and families in soda fountain prior to movie showing Saturday night. Inland Steel Company... - NARA - 5…1946Crowd of miners and families in soda fountain prior t…Crowd waiting to attend movie showing on Saturday night. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright ^1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright...…1946Crowd waiting to attend movie showing on Saturday nig…Daughter of neighbor applied lipstick in home of Harry Fain, coal miner. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright ^1 & 2... - …1946Daughter of neighbor applied lipstick in home of Harr…Doctor gives wife of miner an innoculation in dispensary. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright ^1 & 2 Mines... - NARA - 54…1946Doctor gives wife of miner an innoculation in dispens…Doctor taking blood pressure of miner's wife in treatment room of clinic. Inland Steel Company Wheelwright ^1 & 2... - …1946Doctor taking blood pressure of miner's wife in treat…Doorkeeper at meeting of local UMWA union. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright #1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd County, K…1946Doorkeeper at meeting of local UMWA union. Inland Ste…
1950s–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

Wheelwright, census by census

05001,0001,5002,000192019401960198020002020Peak: 2,037

Peaked at 2,037 in 1950; 509 people lived here in 2020.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

On the map

Wheelwright on the map, 1916 to 1992

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

Wheelwright on the 1916 USGS mapWheelwright on the 1954 USGS mapWheelwright on the 1979 USGS mapWheelwright on the 1992 USGS map1916Pikeville 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 Wheelwright.

The story

How Wheelwright came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Wheelwright.

Read it all →

Before the arrival of coal mining jobs, many locals lived by farming or logging. The land which would later become Wheelwright was owned by the Hall family. In 1916, the Halls sold their land to the Elk Horn Coal Company. That same year a post office was established with the name Wheelwright, named for the company's president at that time, Jere H. Wheelwright. The city was officially incorporated in 1917. Elk Horn leased its mines from the Consolidation Coal. In 1930, Consolidation sold the Wheelwright coal camp to Inland Steel. In 1966, Inland Steel sold the camp to Island Creek Coal. The mine closed in the 1970s. After the mine was abandoned, the Kentucky Housing Corporation purchased the town, rehabilitated the homes, and sold the homes to residents.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Wheelwright, 1916 to 1950

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1916Post officeThe Wheelwright post office opens
  3. 1916On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 1935Born hereNelson Royal is born here
  5. 1946In the archiveAfter the movies, snack bar at bowling alleys is crowded with younger generation. Inland …
  6. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 2,037
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.

After the movies, snack bar at bowling alleys is crowded with younger generation. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright... …
Retake this viewAfter the movies, snack bar at bowling alleys is crowded with younger generation. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright... …, 1946

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 listing protects 16 historic buildings

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
16
each building in a district counts
first listed
1980
Wheelwright Commercial District
Wheelwright Commercial District
Districts

Architectural styles listings

Classical Revival1
Colonial Revival1
Wheelwright Commercial DistrictClassical Revival

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

Help out

Finish Wheelwright’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewAfter the movies, snack bar at bowling …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Wheelwright’s history

What year was Wheelwright founded?

The Wheelwright post office opened in 1916, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1917.

How does Wheelwright rank for history?

Wheelwright is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns. 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 Wheelwright?

One place: the Wheelwright Commercial District (listed 1980).

How old are the homes in Wheelwright?

37% of Wheelwright’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±20.2 points), against a typical 5.9% for a Kentucky town; the median home was built in 1955.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (18), 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.