Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: maps from 1943 on and the census since 1880.
The Pickering post office opened in 1871, 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 Pickering’s history is told.
Peaked at 316 in 1930; 149 people lived here in 2020.
14 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Pickering’s Wikipedia page.
From Wikipedia’s history of Pickering.
Pickering was laid out in 1871. The community was named by Josiah Coleman for Pickering Clark, a railroad man. A post office called Pickering has been in operation since 1871.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Pickering, cut from the printed page as they were published.
graded cattle, and keeps his farm well stocked. His orchard is an excellent one. This farm was one of the first settled in this vicinity, and was known as the Ingall's farm, in White Oak Grove. About the time Pickering was founded, Mr. Kinney, in company with others, started a wagon and farm implement factory in Pickering. He became one of the managers and a member of the executive committee, and, after running for one year, he bought his other partners' interest, continuing the business for about three years. He then moved the tools to his farm,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
from his early calling. During the war he served in the Enrolled Missouri Militia. His landed estate consists of 160 acres of fine land, upon which is a handsome residence, situated on an eminence overlooking the town of Pickering. He also has a good orchard, and is largely interested in stock raising. He has filled the offices of assessor and township collector many times, and has held his present position of clerk of the district some six years. Commencing life with a limited amount of capital, he has worked his way up steadily, though having met with several reverses.
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.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyEvery edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pickering. 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 Pickering.
Pickering’s post office has been open since 1871.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The Pickering post office opened in 1871, 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 Wikimedia Commons (2), 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 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.
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2004