Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: maps from 1886 on and the census since 1900.
The Fair Play post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Fair Play’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Fair Play. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Fair Play.
From Wikipedia’s history of Fair Play.
The first post office in Fair Play was established in 1852. The founder wished to call it Oakland, but because that name was already assigned to another community, he declared "We'll just call it Fair Play".
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Fair Play, cut from the printed page as they were published.
When W. W. was old enough to attend school he lived so far away from the school house that he had but little benefit in the way of education. He attended the public school at Fair Play two years, beginning in 1888 in the primary department under Prof. P. B. Wonacott. He entered Southwest Baptist college, September 4, 1890, with a full determination to graduate in the A. B. course. And this resolution he carried out in full, paying his own expenses and receiving the degree on the 29th day of
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Between 328 and 486 people in every census since 1900.
13 censuses, 1900–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Fair Play’s Wikipedia page.
Nobody well known was born in Fair Play itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Fair Play post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikipedia, 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
