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C+History
History · Ringgold

Ringgold’s post office opened in 1849

More historic than 39% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Most of Ringgold was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1973. Below: maps from 1947 on and the census since 1880.

1849first post office
0on the National Register
5%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Billy Hathorn at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Ringgold began

When was Ringgold founded?

1849

The Ringgold post office opened in 1849, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 133 in 18802020 census: 1,379177 years

How historic is Ringgold?

C+

More historic than 39% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Ringgold’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ringgold is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Ringgold’s overall grade.
Founding era1849, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19405.4% of homes (±5.3) · typical LA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%CNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical LA town 3.8 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 39%
NewerOlder

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 Ringgold’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (21% of Louisiana 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 C− to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.3 points). 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 Ringgold’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 Ringgold are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,856 in 1990; 1,379 people lived here in 2020.Deep rootsA post office since 1849: 177 years of Ringgold.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ringgold’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Ringgold’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
People over time

Ringgold, census by census

05001,0001,5002,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,856

Peaked at 1,856 in 1990; 1,379 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Timeline

Ringgold, 1849 to 1990

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1849Post officeThe Ringgold post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1900Born hereGarnie W. McGinty is born here
  5. 1931Born hereLong John Hunter is born here
  6. 1947On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1962Born hereWillie Jackson is born here
  8. 1990CensusPopulation peaks at 1,856
The story

How Ringgold came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Ringgold.

Read it all →

In 1690, the Ringgold area was explored by the scout Domingo Terán de los Ríos, whom the government of Mexico sent to determine the extent of the holdings of the Caddo Indians. He was considered the first white leader to sight what became the man-made Lake Bistineau. A priest with the expedition, Father Masinettes, established "Mission Loretteto." De los Rios was thereafter from 1891 to 1892 the first governor of Spanish Texas.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Ringgold, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Lake at Southland Camp, Ringgold, LA IMG 10072017Lake at Southland Camp, Ringgold, LA IMG 1007Revised, downtown Ringgold, LA IMG 00492010Revised, downtown Ringgold, LA IMG 0049Downtown Ringgold, LA IMG 06992009Downtown Ringgold, LA IMG 0699Ringgold, LA, city limits sign IMG 16072008Ringgold, LA, city limits sign IMG 1607Downtown Ringgold, LA IMG 16092008Downtown Ringgold, LA IMG 1609LAMap-doton-Ringgold2004LAMap-doton-Ringgold
On the map

Ringgold on the map, 1947 to 1972

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

Ringgold on the 1947 USGS mapRinggold on the 1956 USGS mapRinggold on the 1972 USGS map1947Ringgold 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 Ringgold.

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Ringgold

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

See all →
L
Long John HunterAmerican Texas blues guitarist · b. 1931
Garnie W. McGintyAmerican historian · b. 1900
W
Willie JacksonAmerican basketball player and coach · b. 1962

Questions about Ringgold’s history

What year was Ringgold founded?

The Ringgold post office opened in 1849, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Ringgold rank for history?

Ringgold is more historic than 39% 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 Ringgold?

5% of Ringgold’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.3 points), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana town; the median home was built in 1973.

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 (6), 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.