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History · Simpson

Simpson was first counted by the census in 1930, and 19% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1903 on and the census since 1930.

1930first census
0on the National Register
19%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Simpson began

When was Simpson founded?

1930

Simpson first appears in the census in 1930. Another post office, Chicod (1888), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 209 in 19302020 census: 39096 years
Founding year: the first census.

What stands out about Simpson’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 Simpson are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19033 editions of the USGS map, 1903 to 1998. Watch Simpson change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Simpson’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Simpson’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

Simpson on the map, 1903 to 1998

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

Simpson on the 1903 USGS mapSimpson on the 1982 USGS mapSimpson on the 1998 USGS map1903Winterville 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 Simpson.

The story so far

Simpson, in brief

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

Simpson is a village in Pitt County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 390 at the 2020 census. The village is a part of the Greenville Metropolitan Area.

Its first post office opened in 1930. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 416 to 390 (-6%).

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

Timeline

Simpson, 1888 to 1960

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888Post officeThe Chicod post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1903On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1960Post officeThe Chicod post office closes
  6. 1960Post officeThe Simpson post office opens
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your album
People over time

Simpson, census by census

010020030040050019401960198020002020Peak: 464

Between 209 and 464 people in every census since 1930.

6 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Simpson

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

See all →
Lee NorrisAmerican actor · b. 1981
Murray HamiltonAmerican actor · b. 1923
Billy TaylorAmerican jazz pianist, composer, broadcaster, a… · b. 1921
William Churchill deMilleAmerican screenwriter and film director · b. 1878
Josephus DanielsAmerican diplomat and newspaper editor · b. 1862
B
Bernard EdwardsAmerican bassist and record producer · b. 1952
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Simpson’s post office has been open since 1960. Another post office, Chicod, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Chicod
1888–1960
Simpson
1960–today
18801950today

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

Questions about Simpson’s history

What year was Simpson founded?

The Simpson post office opened in 1930, 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 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.