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History · Bailey

Bailey’s post office opened in 1908, and 30% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1902 on and the census since 1910.

1908first post office
0on the National Register
30%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Bailey began

When was Bailey founded?

1908

The Bailey post office opened in 1908, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 195 in 19102020 census: 568118 years
Founding year: the first Bailey post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Bailey’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 Bailey are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 795 in 1960; 568 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Bailey’s homes were built before 1955.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bailey’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Bailey’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
People over time

Bailey, census by census

0200400600800192019401960198020002020Peak: 795

Peaked at 795 in 1960; 568 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Bailey came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bailey.

Read it all →

The Morgan School was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bailey, 1902 to 2001

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1902On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 1908Post officeThe Bailey post office opens
  4. 1923Born hereAllen Bunn is born here
  5. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 795
  6. 21st century
  7. 2001Born hereZonovan Knight is born here
By decade

Bailey, decade by decade

Today3 recent
Morgan School2020Morgan SchoolBailey, North Carolina2019Bailey, North CarolinaNCMap-doton-Bailey2004NCMap-doton-Bailey
On the map

Bailey on the map, 1902 to 1978

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

Bailey on the 1902 USGS mapBailey on the 1978 USGS map1902Spring Hope 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 Bailey.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Bailey

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

See all →
A
Allen BunnMusical artist · b. 1923
Zonovan KnightAmerican football player · b. 2001

Questions about Bailey’s history

What year was Bailey founded?

The Bailey post office opened in 1908, 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 (3), 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) 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.