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A−History
History · Winnsboro

Winnsboro’s post office opened in 1845, and 3 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 80% of U.S. towns · #15 of 161 in Louisiana. What drives it

Most of Winnsboro was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1971. 3 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 28 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1924 on and the census since 1910.

1845first post office
3on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
9famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Winnsboro began

When was Winnsboro founded?

1845

The Winnsboro post office opened in 1845, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 821 in 19102020 census: 4,862181 years

How historic is Winnsboro?

A−

More historic than 80% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Winnsboro’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Winnsboro is more historic than 80% of U.S. towns, #15 of 161 in Louisiana. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Winnsboro’s overall grade.
Founding era1845, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19409.0% of homes (±7.3) · typical LA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register3 listings, 37 historic buildings, 78.3 per 10,000 residents · typical LA town 3.8 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 80%
NewerOlder
Louisiana towns of 2,500+ (161)Ahead of 91%

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 Winnsboro’s 78.3 sits above most of its state (86% of Louisiana towns have fewer) while its 37 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.3 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 Winnsboro’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 Winnsboro are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Winnsboro Commercial Historic District takes in 20 historic buildings.Deep rootsA post office since 1845: 181 years of Winnsboro.Famous sons and daughtersWoody Sauldsberry, Perry Jones III and 7 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Winnsboro’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Winnsboro’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 National Register

3 listings protect 37 historic buildings

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

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
37
each building in a district counts
first listed
1982
Winnsboro Commercial Historic District
Winnsboro Commercial Historic DistrictJackson HouseJackson Street Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne2
Colonial Revival1
Eastlake1
Greek Revival1
Winnsboro Commercial Historic DistrictColonial Revival
All 3 listings
Jackson HouseBuilding · listed 1982Jackson Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1982

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

Timeline

Winnsboro, 1845 to 1991

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1845Post officeThe Winnsboro post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1933Born hereFred Carter, Jr. is born here
  5. 1934Born hereWoody Sauldsberry is born here
  6. 1935On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1977Born hereBooger McFarland is born here
  8. 1991Born herePerry Jones III is born here
The story

How Winnsboro came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Winnsboro.

Read it all →

Franklin Parish was created on March 1, 1843, from portions of Ouachita, Catahoula, and Madison parishes through the efforts of Louisiana Senator John Winn. Land for a centrally located parish seat, Winnsborough (later Winnsboro), was purchased in 1844. It was designated as the parish seat of government in 1846 and incorporated on March 18, 1902.

Early Winnsboro City records show that the telephone came to Winnsboro in 1905; electricity in 1914; and water and sewer service in 1923. In 1924, a volunteer fire department was formed. Most of the community's streets were hard surfaced after 1950.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Winnsboro, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Boudin kolaches at Lickin' Good Donuts2015Boudin kolaches at Lickin' Good DonutsFlags fly in Winnsboro (May 2013) IMG 7491 12013Flags fly in Winnsboro (May 2013) IMG 7491 1Winnsboro, LA, welcome sign IMG 03222010Winnsboro, LA, welcome sign IMG 0322Franklin Parish Veterans Memorial, Winnsboro, LA IMG 03242010Franklin Parish Veterans Memorial, Winnsboro, LA IMG …Winnsboro, LA, sign IMG 12752008Winnsboro, LA, sign IMG 1275
On the map

Winnsboro on the map, 1935 to 1983

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

Winnsboro on the 1935 USGS mapWinnsboro on the 1958 USGS mapWinnsboro on the 1976 USGS mapWinnsboro on the 1983 USGS map1935Winnsboro 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 Winnsboro.

Every building

Winnsboro, building by building, 1924

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a sheet.

Winnsboro fire insurance map, 1924, sheet 11924Sheet 1 of 4
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

People over time

Winnsboro, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,500192019401960198020002020Peak: 5,921

Between 821 and 5,921 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Famous people

9 famous people were born in Winnsboro

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

See all →
Woody SauldsberryAmerican basketball player · b. 1934
Perry Jones IIIAmerican basketball player · b. 1991
Booger McFarlandAmerican football player and analyst · b. 1977
F
Fred Carter, Jr.American musician · b. 1933
Susie MorganDistrict Judge · b. 1953
G
Goldie SellersAmerican football player · b. 1942

Questions about Winnsboro’s history

What year was Winnsboro founded?

The Winnsboro post office opened in 1845, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Winnsboro rank for history?

Winnsboro is more historic than 80% of U.S. towns, #15 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 Winnsboro?

Three places: the Winnsboro Commercial Historic District (listed 1982), the Jackson House (1982) and the Jackson Street Historic District (1982).

How old are the homes in Winnsboro?

9% of Winnsboro’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.3 points), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana town; the median home was built in 1971.

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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.