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D−History
History · Florence

Florence’s post office opened in 1901

More historic than 3% of U.S. towns · #92 of 100 in Mississippi. What drives it

Most of Florence was built recently: 0.5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1999. Below: maps from 1906 on and the census since 1910.

1901first post office
0on the National Register
0.5%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Roastedbeanz1 · CC BY 4.0
Quick answers

How Florence began

When was Florence founded?

1901

The Florence post office opened in 1901, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Steen Creek (1829), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 260 in 19102020 census: 4,572125 years

How historic is Florence?

D−

More historic than 3% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Florence post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Florence’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Florence is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #92 of 100 in Mississippi. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Florence’s overall grade.
Founding era1901, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19400.5% of homes (±0.7) · typical MS town 4.5% · U.S. 8.4%DNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical MS town 71.9 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 3%
NewerOlder
Mississippi towns of 2,500+ (100)Ahead of 8%

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 Florence’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (19% of Mississippi towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be D−. The pre-1940 share (±0.7 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

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 Florence’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 Florence are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19063 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 1980. Watch Florence change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Florence’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Florence on the map, 1906 to 1980

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

Florence on the 1906 USGS mapFlorence on the 1971 USGS mapFlorence on the 1980 USGS map1906Florence 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 Florence.

The story so far

Florence, in brief

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

Florence is a city in Rankin County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2020 census, Florence had a population of 4,572. It is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Its first post office opened in 1901. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 4,141 to 4,572 (+10%).

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

Timeline

Florence, 1829 to 1974

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1829Post officeThe Steen Creek post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1901Post officeThe Steen Creek post office closes
  5. 1901Post officeThe Florence post office opens
  6. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1920Born hereRosetta A. Ferguson is born here
  8. 1941Born hereRobert Braddy is born here
  9. 1974Born hereTate Reeves is born here
By decade

Florence, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Florence, Mississippi Post Office2025Florence, Mississippi Post OfficeFlorence, Mississippi2024Florence, MississippiPainted gourds are often fashioned into nests for purple martins, as here2017Painted gourds are often fashioned into nests for pur…Jerry's Catfish House restaurant has an outer-space look2017Jerry's Catfish House restaurant has an outer-space l…Nana of the Universe2012Nana of the UniverseNice Detail2006Nice Detail
People over time

Florence, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0001920194019601980200020204,572

Grew from 260 people in 1910 to 4,572 in 2020, more than tenfold.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Florence

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

See all →
Tate Reeves65th governor of Mississippi · b. 1974
Rosetta A. FergusonPolitician · b. 1920
R
Robert BraddyBaseball player · b. 1941
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

Florence’s post office has been open since 1901. Another post office, Steen Creek, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Steen Creek
1829–1901
Florence
1901–today
18201920today
Gone or out of use
Steens Creek Churchchurch
1cemetery inside Florence
Florence

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.

ClearyIts storyDRichland1 historic placeD

Questions about Florence’s history

What year was Florence founded?

The Florence post office opened in 1901, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Florence rank for history?

Florence is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #92 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.

How old are the homes in Florence?

0.5% of Florence’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 4.5% for a Mississippi town; the median home was built in 1999.

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 (4), the Library of Congress (2), 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.