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History · Cruger

Cruger’s post office opened in 1887

Most of Cruger was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1940 on, and the census since 1910.

1887first post office
0on the National Register
4%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Cruger’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Cruger began

When was Cruger founded?

1887

The Cruger post office opened in 1887, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 231 in 19102020 census: 268139 years
Founding year: the first Cruger post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Cruger’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Boom and bustPeaked at 548 in 1990; 268 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · People over time

Cruger, census by census

0100200300400500600192019401960198020002020Peak: 548

Peaked at 548 in 1990; 268 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story so far

Cruger, in brief

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

Cruger is a town in Holmes County, Mississippi, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 268.

Its first post office opened in 1887. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 386 to 268 (-31%).

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

Timeline

Cruger, 1887 to 1990

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1887Post officeThe Cruger post office opens
  3. 1895Born hereRay Roberts is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1930Born hereRobert Curtis Smith is born here
  6. 1938In the archiveOld grave near Cruger, Mississippi
  7. 1940On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1990CensusPopulation peaks at 548
By decade

Cruger, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s6 items
Old grave near Cruger, Mississippi1938Old grave near Cruger, MississippiNegro church near Cruger, Mississippi1938Negro church near Cruger, MississippiOld grave near Cruger, Mississippi1938Old grave near Cruger, MississippiHeadstone on grave near Cruger, Mississippi1938Headstone on grave near Cruger, MississippiTower on old Negro church near Cruger, Mississippi1938Tower on old Negro church near Cruger, MississippiUntitled photo, possibly related to: Old grave near Cruger, Mississippi1938Untitled photo, possibly related to: Old grave near C…
1940s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today2 recent
CrugerMSWelcomeSign2017CrugerMSWelcomeSignCrugermississippisign2013Crugermississippisign
On the map

Cruger on the map, 1940 to 1982

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

Cruger on the 1940 USGS mapCruger on the 1957 USGS mapCruger on the 1982 USGS map1940Seven Pines 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 Cruger.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Old grave near Cruger, Mississippi
Retake this viewOld grave near Cruger, Mississippi, 1938

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Cruger’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

2 famous people were born in Cruger

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

See all →
R
Ray RobertsAmerican baseball player · b. 1895
R
Robert Curtis SmithAmerican Piedmont blues singer, guitarist and s… · b. 1930
Help out

Finish Cruger’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewOld grave near Cruger, Mississippi: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Cruger’s history

What year was Cruger founded?

The Cruger post office opened in 1887, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (2), the Library of Congress (6), 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.