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C−History
History · Worthington

Worthington dates to 1920, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 17% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: maps from 1898 on and the census since 1930.

1920founded
0on the National Register
12%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Worthington began

When was Worthington founded?

1920

Worthington dates its founding to 1920 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1930.

First census: 843 in 19302020 census: 1,501106 years

How historic is Worthington?

C−

More historic than 17% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1933.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Worthington’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Worthington is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Worthington’s overall grade.
Founding era1920, from Wikidata: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194012.4% of homes (±9.5) · typical KY town 5.9% · U.S. 8.4%B−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical KY town 29.9 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 17%
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 Worthington’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (12% of Kentucky towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.5 points). Two sources give 1920.

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 Worthington’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 Worthington are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18987 editions of the USGS map, 1898 to 2002. Watch Worthington change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Worthington’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Worthington’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
On the map

Worthington on the map, 1898 to 2002

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

Worthington on the 1898 USGS mapWorthington on the 1900 USGS mapWorthington on the 1953 USGS mapWorthington on the 1961 USGS mapWorthington on the 1972 USGS mapWorthington on the 1985 USGS mapWorthington on the 2002 USGS map1898Ironton 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 Worthington.

The story

How Worthington came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Worthington.

Read it all →

The site of the present city was once owned by Abraham Buford, who sold the land to the Means and Russell Iron Company. This company sold the land to W. J. Worthington, who was William O. Bradley's lieutenant governor from 1895 to 1899. After his death, the property was given to his daughters, who founded the present town and named it for their father.

Worthington was incorporated as a city by the Kentucky General Assembly on February 5, 1920.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Worthington, 1898 to 1933

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1898On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 20th century
  4. 1920
    FoundingWorthington is established
  5. 1929Born hereJohn W. Collier is born here
  6. 1933Post officeThe Worthington post office opens
By decade

Worthington, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Worthington Elementary2012Worthington ElementaryTunnel Construction2012Tunnel ConstructionChurches2012ChurchesKYMap-doton-Worthington2004KYMap-doton-Worthington
People over time

Worthington, census by census

05001,0001,5002,00019401960198020002020Peak: 1,948

Between 695 and 1,948 people in every census since 1930.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Old corners

Worthington’s post office has been open since 1933.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Melrose

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

RacelandIts storyDWurtland2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Worthington’s history

What year was Worthington founded?

In 1920, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Worthington’s post office opened in 1933, and the census of 1930 counted 843 people here.

How does Worthington rank for history?

Worthington is more historic than 17% 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.

How old are the homes in Worthington?

12% of Worthington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.5 points), against a typical 5.9% for a Kentucky town; the median home was built in 1965.

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 (4), 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.