Aberdeen dates to 1834, and 25 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 85% of U.S. towns · #4 of 100 in Mississippi. What drives it
Most of Aberdeen was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1974. 25 places in town are on the National Register, among them seven historic districts with 399 buildings between them. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1836.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Aberdeen’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Aberdeen is more historic than 85% of U.S. towns, #4 of 100 in Mississippi. 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 Aberdeen’s overall grade.
Mississippi towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Mississippi town has 71.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Aberdeen’s 875 sits above most of its state (95% of Mississippi towns have fewer) while its 428 historic buildings outnumber those of 97% 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 (±4.1 points). Two sources give 1834.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Aberdeen’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1540, Hernando DeSoto's expedition was the first occasion that Europeans traveled through the vicinity of Aberdeen.
Aberdeen was first settled in 1834 and chartered as a town in 1837. In 1849, it replaced Athens as the county seat.
On February 18, 1864, during the American Civil War, a skirmish occurred between the Union army and the Confederate army in Aberdeen. Lieutenant Colonel Burgh and the 9th Illinois Cavalry Regiment came into contact with Confederate militias, driving them back and taking possession of Aberdeen. The battle resulted in the company taking 18 prisoners of war, as well as the destruction of Confederate food supplies and machinery.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Aberdeen. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1966Aberdeen sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Aberdeen.
Every building
Aberdeen, building by building, 1885–1918
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 year, then a sheet.
Central ParkEast AberdeenEvergreenGladneyvilleGreen AcresHillcrestLakewoodPinehurstPiney GroveStanfordTanglewoodTucker PlaceVasserWoodcrestWoodland Heights
Gone or out of use
Aberdeen Female CollegeschoolAberdeen HospitalhospitalChurch of ChristchurchDays MilllocaleMorgan FerrycrossingStinson Field Municipal Airportairport
1cemetery inside Aberdeen
Oak Lawn Park
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Aberdeen’s history
What year was Aberdeen founded?
In 1834, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Aberdeen’s post office opened in 1836, and the census of 1870 counted 2,022 people here.
How does Aberdeen rank for history?
Aberdeen is more historic than 85% of U.S. towns, #4 of 100 in Mississippi. 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 Aberdeen?
25 listings: 18 buildings, among them the U.S. Courthouse and Post Office (listed 1976, the first), and 7 historic districts with 399 contributing buildings. 428 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Aberdeen?
10% of Aberdeen’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.1 points), against a typical 4.5% for a Mississippi town; the median home was built in 1974.
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 (23), Wikidata (7), the National Register of Historic Places (25), 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.
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