History · Byram

Byram’s post office opened in 1858, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns · #71 of 100 in Mississippi. What drives it

Most of Byram was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2001. Its Register listing is the Ervin Lewis House. Below: maps from 1971 on and the census since 2000.

1858first post office

1on the National Register

2%homes built before 1940

1famous people

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Quick answers

How Byram began

When was Byram founded?

1858

The Byram post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 2009.

First census: 7,386 in 20002020 census: 12,666168 years

How historic is Byram?

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓

Founding year: the first Byram post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 2009.

History grade

What drives Byram’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Byram is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #71 of 100 in Mississippi. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Byram’s overall grade.

Founding era1858, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC⁺Homes built before 19402.4% of homes (±1.8) · typical MS town 4.5% · U.S. 8.4%C⁻National Register1 listing, 0.8 per 10,000 residents · typical MS town 71.9 · U.S. 2.4B⁻

All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 26%

NewerOlder

Mississippi towns of 2,500+ (100)Ahead of 29%

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 Byram’s 0.8 sits near the middle of its state (39% of Mississippi towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 2009.

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 Byram’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 Byram are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.

★ What stands out · Help out

Start Byram’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Byram’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

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The story so far

Byram, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Byram yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Byram (US: ) is a city in Hinds County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 11,489 as of the 2010 census, up from 7,386 at the 2000 census, at which time it was an unincorporated census-designated place (CDP); in 2020, its population was 12,666. It is part of the Jackson metropolitan statistical area. It was incorporated for a second time in its history on June 16, 2009.

Its first post office opened in 1858. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 11,489 to 12,666 (+10%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Byram, 1858 to 1971

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

19th century
1858Post officeThe Byram post office opens
1860BuiltErvin Lewis House is built
20th century
1901Born hereIshman Bracey is born here
1938Post officeThe Byram post office closes
1971On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey

By decade

Byram, decade by decade

Today1 recent

2009Byram Mississippi incorporation

On the map

Byram on the map, 1971 to 1980

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

1971Florence 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 Byram.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Byram

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

place listed

National Historic Landmarks

none yet

historic buildings protected

each building in a district counts

first listed

1989

Ervin Lewis House

Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1

Ervin Lewis HouseGreek Revival · Built 1860

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

People over time

Byram, census by census

Between 7,386 and 12,666 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Byram had its own post office from 1858 to 1938.

Byram

1858–1938

18501940today

Hamlets and corners on the map

BrookwoodGary EstatesNew Byram

Gone or out of use

Big Creek Schoolschool

1cemetery inside Byram

Big Creek

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Jackson80 historic placesB⁺Terry4 historic placesB

Questions about Byram’s history

What year was Byram founded?

The Byram post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 2009.

How does Byram rank for history?

Byram is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #71 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 Byram?

One place: the Ervin Lewis House (listed 1989).

How old are the homes in Byram?

2% of Byram’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 4.5% for a Mississippi town; the median home was built in 2001.

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 (1), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.

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