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History · State Line

State Line’s post office opened in 1879

Most of State Line was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. Below: 18 old photos and papers, maps from 1974 on, and the census since 1880.

1879first post office
0on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
18old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From State Line’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How State Line began

When was State Line founded?

1879

The State Line post office opened in 1879, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, State Line Station (1855), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 97 in 18802020 census: 452147 years
Founding year: the first State Line post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about State Line’s past

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

A town in old photos18 old photos, postcards and papers.Boom and bustPeaked at 653 in 1960; 452 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · By decade

State Line, decade by decade

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

1930s18 items
Turpentine still1938Turpentine stillTurpentine still1938Turpentine stillTurpentine still1938Turpentine stillTurpentine still1938Turpentine stillTurpentine still1938Turpentine stillTurpentine still1938Turpentine stillBarrels of the natural turpentine oleoresin1938Barrels of the natural turpentine oleoresinUntitled photo, possibly related to: Turpentine still1938Untitled photo, possibly related to: Turpentine stillUntitled photo, possibly related to: Turpentine still1938Untitled photo, possibly related to: Turpentine stillUntitled photo, possibly related to: Turpentine still1938Untitled photo, possibly related to: Turpentine stillOwner in front of his turpentine still1938Owner in front of his turpentine stillWorker at turpentine still caulking barrels for resin1938Worker at turpentine still caulking barrels for resinEmpty barrels which had contained pitch from the turpentine pine at still1938Empty barrels which had contained pitch from the turp…Scooping up the resin from settling vat. Resin is then poured into barrels for shipping. State Line, Mississippi1938Scooping up the resin from settling vat. Resin is the…Owner atop his turpentine still. Goosneck runs from the still to the condenser coils where vapors are chilled. State Li…1938Owner atop his turpentine still. Goosneck runs from t…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Owner atop his turpentine still. Goosneck runs from the still to the condenser coi…1938Untitled photo, possibly related to: Owner atop his t…Distillate from turpentine still separates into two layers of water and spirits of turpentine which are easily removed …1938Distillate from turpentine still separates into two l…Distillate from turpentine still separates into two layers of water and spirits of turpentine which are easily removed …1938Distillate from turpentine still separates into two l…
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
People over time

State Line, census by census

010020030040050060070018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 653

Peaked at 653 in 1960; 452 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How State Line came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of State Line.

Read it all →

A post office was established in 1856, and the town incorporated in 1875. State Line was located on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, built through Mississippi in the 1850s. The next station north was in Eret, 2.5 miles (4.0 km) away.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

State Line, 1855 to 1974

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1855Post officeThe State Line Station post office opens
  3. 1879Post officeThe State Line Station post office closes
  4. 1879Post officeThe State Line post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1938In the archiveTurpentine still
  7. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 653
  8. 1974On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

State Line on the map, 1974 to 1984

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

State Line on the 1974 USGS mapState Line on the 1984 USGS map1974State Line 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 State Line.

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.

Turpentine still
Retake this viewTurpentine still, 1938

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to State Line

Nobody well known was born in State Line itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Roy CochranAmerican sprinter and hurdler · b. 1919
A
Ashton ShepherdAmerican country music singer-songwriter · b. 1986
Beverly Jo ScottAmerican musician · b. 1959
Lloyd GreenAmerican musician · b. 1937
Jerrell PoweAmerican football defensive lineman · b. 1987
Benito JonesAmerican football player · b. 1997
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

State Line’s post office has been open since 1879. Another post office, State Line Station, opened and closed inside today’s town.

State Line Station
1855–1879
State Line
1879–today
18501940today
1cemetery inside State Line
State Line

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

Help out

Finish State Line’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 viewTurpentine still: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about State Line’s history

What year was State Line founded?

The State Line post office opened in 1879, 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 the Library of Congress (18), Wikipedia, 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.