Founding year: the first Denton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1907.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Denton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Denton is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Denton’s overall grade.
North Carolina towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical North Carolina town has 12.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Denton’s 6.6 sits near the middle of its state (49% of North Carolina 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 B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.9 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1907.
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 Denton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The land that is now Denton was originally inhabited by Native American peoples long before European settlement. During the colonial era, the region formed part of the vast land holdings of Lord Granville, a descendant of Sir George Carteret, one of the original Lords Proprietors of Carolina. Lord Granville eventually sold his interests in North Carolina to King George II. This royal holding stretched from the Virginia border southward to an area a few miles beyond the present site of Denton. Following the American Revolutionary War, the Crown lost control of these lands, and ownership passed to the State of North Carolina.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Questions about Denton’s history
What year was Denton founded?
The Denton post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1907.
How does Denton rank for history?
Denton is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns. 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 Denton?
One place: the Mor-Val Hosiery Mill (listed 2001).
How old are the homes in Denton?
17% of Denton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.9 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1969.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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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