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BHistory
History · Weaverville

Weaverville’s post office opened in 1873, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 56% of U.S. towns · #119 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 4 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1936 on, and the census since 1880.

1873first post office
3on the National Register
14%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Weaverville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Weaverville began

When was Weaverville founded?

1873

The Weaverville post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 147 in 18802020 census: 4,567153 years

How historic is Weaverville?

B

More historic than 56% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Weaverville’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Weaverville is more historic than 56% of U.S. towns, #119 of 290 in North Carolina. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Weaverville’s overall grade.
Founding era1873, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194014.0% of homes (±10.7) · typical NC town 4.1% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register3 listings, 8 historic buildings, 17.1 per 10,000 residents · typical NC town 12.5 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 56%
NewerOlder
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 59%

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 Weaverville’s 17.1 sits near the middle of its state (58% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 8 historic buildings outnumber those of 74% 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 (±10.7 points). 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 →

The story

How Weaverville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Weaverville.

Read it all →

Chartered in 1875 and named for Michael Montraville Weaver who gave the land for the town, Weaverville sits along the Dry Ridge (named by the Native Americans for its relatively arid conditions). The Treaty of Holston signed in 1786 cleared the way for settlers to move into the area. Among the first settlers were John and Elizabeth Weaver, parents of the town's founder. Early residents, friends, and relatives soon began gathering for religious camp meetings near the south end of College Street. On land first known as the Reems Creek Camp Grounds, a large conference house (built in the 1830s) housed the Methodist assembly which became the first school in the area in 1840.

ChaptersDevelopment

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Weaverville, 1872 to 1955

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1872Born hereZebulon Weaver is born here
  3. 1873Post officeThe Weaverville post office opens
  4. 1898Born hereJ. E. Mainer is born here
  5. 1899In the archive1899 Weaver family reunion in
  6. 20th century
  7. 1900In the archiveThe Old Homestead in
  8. 1910In the archiveThe Depot, Weaverville, N.C
  9. 1936On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1955Born hereMalcolm Holcombe is born here
By decade

Weaverville, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1910s6 items
1899 Weaver family reunion in18991899 Weaver family reunion inThe Old Homestead inc. 1900The Old Homestead inThe Depot, Weaverville, N.C1910The Depot, Weaverville, N.CThe Depot, Weaverville, N.C1910The Depot, Weaverville, N.CThe depot - Weaverville, N.C1910The depot - Weaverville, N.CThe Depot1910The Depot
1920s–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
Today6 recent
WheelBug db2017WheelBug dbVance Birthplace Cabin2014Vance Birthplace CabinLake Louise Waterfall and Mill2013Lake Louise Waterfall and MillUS19B-Weaverville2011US19B-WeavervilleFoster's Log Cabin Motor Court2005Foster's Log Cabin Motor CourtNCMap-doton-Weaverville2004NCMap-doton-Weaverville
On the map

Weaverville on the map, 1936 to 1993

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

Weaverville on the 1936 USGS mapWeaverville on the 1942 USGS mapWeaverville on the 1962 USGS mapWeaverville on the 1976 USGS mapWeaverville on the 1993 USGS map1936Weaverville 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 Weaverville.

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.

1899 Weaver family reunion in
Retake this view1899 Weaver family reunion in, 1899

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 historic places in Weaverville

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
8
each building in a district counts
first listed
1996
Weaverville United Methodist Church
Weaverville United Methodist ChurchDr. John G. & Nannie H. Barrett Farm
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Classical Revival1
Gothic Revival1
I-House1
Weaverville United Methodist ChurchClassical Revival
Joseph P. Eller HouseI-House
Dr. John G. & Nannie H. Barrett FarmDistrict

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Weaverville, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,000188019001920194019601980200020204,567

Grew from 147 people in 1880 to 4,567 in 2020, more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Weaverville

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

See all →
Malcolm HolcombeAmerican guitarist, singer-songwriter and singer · b. 1955
Zebulon WeaverAmerican politician · b. 1872
J
J. E. MainerAmerican Southern old-time fiddler · b. 1898
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Weaverville’s post office has been open since 1873.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Stoney Knob
1cemetery inside Weaverville
West Memorial Park

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

Help out

Finish Weaverville’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1899 Weaver family reunion in: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Woodfin5 historic placesB+

Questions about Weaverville’s history

What year was Weaverville founded?

The Weaverville post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Weaverville rank for history?

Weaverville is more historic than 56% of U.S. towns, #119 of 290 in North Carolina. 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 Weaverville?

Three places: the Weaverville United Methodist Church (listed 1996), the Joseph P. Eller House (2004) and the Dr. John G. & Nannie H. Barrett Farm (2013).

How old are the homes in Weaverville?

14% of Weaverville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.7 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 2000.

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 (11), the Library of Congress (1), the National Register of Historic Places (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.