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C−History
History · Grambling

Grambling’s post office opened in 1906, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 25% of U.S. towns · #101 of 161 in Louisiana. What drives it

Most of Grambling was built recently: 0.8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1976. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 16 buildings. Below: maps from 1950 on and the census since 1960.

1906first post office
2on the National Register
0.8%homes built before 1940
6famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Grambling began

When was Grambling founded?

1906

The Grambling post office opened in 1906, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Allen Greene (1884), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 3,144 in 19602020 census: 5,239120 years

How historic is Grambling?

C−

More historic than 25% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Grambling post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Grambling’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Grambling is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #101 of 161 in Louisiana. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Grambling’s overall grade.
Founding era1906, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19400.8% of homes (±1.4) · typical LA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register2 listings, 17 historic buildings, 32.2 per 10,000 residents · typical LA town 3.8 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 25%
NewerOlder
Louisiana towns of 2,500+ (161)Ahead of 38%

Louisiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Louisiana town has 3.8 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Grambling’s 32.2 sits above most of its state (79% of Louisiana towns have fewer) while its 17 historic buildings outnumber those of 79% 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 (±1.4 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

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 Grambling’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 Grambling are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Grambling’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Grambling’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
The story so far

Grambling, in brief

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

Grambling is a city in Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,239 in 2020. The city is home to Grambling State University and is part of the Ruston micropolitan statistical area. Grambling was designated a "city" in the early 1990s (either in 1992 or 1993), but was erroneously considered a "town" during the 2000 census. The city is named after P. G. Grambling.

Its first post office opened in 1906. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 4,949 to 5,239 (+6%).

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

Timeline

Grambling, 1884 to 1950

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1884Post officeThe Allen Greene post office opens
  3. 1886Post officeThe Allen Greene post office closes
  4. 20th century
  5. 1906Post officeThe Grambling post office opens
  6. 1910Born hereEdward Haygood Adams is born here
  7. 1928Born herePaul "Tank" Younger is born here
  8. 1945Born hereJophery Brown is born here
  9. 1948Born herePinkie C. Wilkerson is born here
  10. 1950On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Grambling, decade by decade

Today6 recent
The Frederick C. Hodby Assembly Center on the campus of Grambling State University, a pre-eminent HBCU (historically bl…2020The Frederick C. Hodby Assembly Center on the campus …The McCall Dining Center on the campus of Grambling State University, a pre-eminent HBCU (historically black college or…2020The McCall Dining Center on the campus of Grambling S…A massive, horizontal "G" sculpture on the campus of Grambling State University, a pre-eminent HBCU (historically black…2020A massive, horizontal "G" sculpture on the campus of …A tiny house of worship, the Church of the Restoration2020A tiny house of worship, the Church of the RestorationA vintage metal water tower2020A vintage metal water towerDowntown Grambling, LA IMG 00912010Downtown Grambling, LA IMG 0091
On the map

Grambling on the map, 1950 to 1994

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

Grambling on the 1950 USGS mapGrambling on the 1968 USGS mapGrambling on the 1985 USGS mapGrambling on the 1994 USGS map1950Ruston 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 Grambling.

On the National Register

2 listings protect 17 historic buildings

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

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
17
each building in a district counts
first listed
1996
Charles P. Adams House
Grambling State University Historic DistrictCharles P. Adams House
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Colonial Revival1
Moderne1
International Style1
Grambling State University Historic DistrictColonial Revival
All 2 listings
Charles P. Adams HouseBuilding · listed 1996

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

People over time

Grambling, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0001960198020002020Peak: 5,484

Between 3,144 and 5,484 people in every census since 1960.

7 censuses, 1960–2020.

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

Famous people

6 famous people were born in Grambling

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

See all →
Edward Haygood AdamsAmerican college football and basketball coach · b. 1910
J
Jophery BrownAmerican baseball player · b. 1945
Paul "Tank" YoungerAmerican football player · b. 1928
P
Pinkie C. WilkersonAmerican politician · b. 1948
R
Rodney YoungAmerican football player · b. 1973
V
Vencie GlennAmerican football player · b. 1964
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Grambling’s post office has been open since 1906. Another post office, Allen Greene, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Allen Greene
1884–1886
Grambling
1906–today
18801950today

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.

Ruston21 historic placesC+

Questions about Grambling’s history

What year was Grambling founded?

The Grambling post office opened in 1906, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Grambling rank for history?

Grambling is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #101 of 161 in Louisiana. 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 Grambling?

Two places: the Grambling State University Historic District (listed 2010) and the Charles P. Adams House (1996).

How old are the homes in Grambling?

0.8% of Grambling’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.4 points), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana town; the median home was built in 1976.

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 (1), the Library of Congress (5), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.