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–Not graded
History · Trimble

Trimble’s post office opened in 1839, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1903 on, and the census since 1870.

1839first post office
0on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Trimble’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Trimble began

When was Trimble founded?

1839

The Trimble post office opened in 1839, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 81 in 18702020 census: 329187 years
Founding year: the first Trimble post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Trimble’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 806 in 1920; 329 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19034 editions of the USGS map, 1903 to 2002. Watch Trimble change.Old housesHalf of Trimble’s homes were built before 1946.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Trimble’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Trimble’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo2 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Descri…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Trimble, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 806

Peaked at 806 in 1920; 329 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

On the map

Trimble on the map, 1903 to 2002

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

Trimble on the 1903 USGS mapTrimble on the 1961 USGS mapTrimble on the 1975 USGS mapTrimble on the 2002 USGS map1903Athens 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 Trimble.

The story

How Trimble came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Trimble.

Read it all →

Trimble was originally called Oxford when it was platted in the early 1800s. It was later renamed Trimble in honor of Governor Allen Trimble. A post office named Trimble has been continuously operating since 1839.

Like many nearby villages, Trimble grew as a coal-mining community during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, centered along Sunday Creek.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Trimble, 1839 to 1920

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1839Post officeThe Trimble post office opens
  3. 1850In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Ohio - Athens County - ED 5-25, ED 5-26, …
  4. 20th century
  5. 1903On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 806
By decade

Trimble, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1850s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s1 item
1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Ohio - Athens County - ED 5-25, ED 5-26, ED 5-27, ED 5-28, ED 5-2918501940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Ohio …
Date unknown2 to date
Aerial view of Trimble Brick Plant and Hisylvania No. 23 Mine, Trimble, Athens County, Ohio, circa 1890-1925 - DPLA - 9…Date?Aerial view of Trimble Brick Plant and Hisylvania No.…Aerial view of Trimble Brick Plant and Hisylvania No. 23 Mine, Trimble, Athens County, Ohio, circa 1890-1925 - DPLA - 9…Date?Aerial view of Trimble Brick Plant and Hisylvania No.…
Today5 recent
Trimble municipal building from northwest2016Trimble municipal building from northwestNorthern Trimble houses on State Route 132016Northern Trimble houses on State Route 13Map of Athens County Ohio Highlighting Trimble Village2015Map of Athens County Ohio Highlighting Trimble VillageMapTrimble ohio2010Trimble ohioOHMap-doton-Jacksonville-Trimble2004OHMap-doton-Jacksonville-Trimble
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.

1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Ohio - Athens County - ED 5-25, ED 5-26, ED 5-27, ED 5-28, ED 5-29
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Ohio - Athens County - ED 5-25, ED 5-26, ED 5-27, ED 5-28, ED 5-29, 1850

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

Retake this view · +15
Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

Trimble’s post office has been open since 1839.

3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Trimble
Queen of HeavenRussellSands

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

JacksonvilleIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGlousterIts storyB−

Questions about Trimble’s history

What year was Trimble founded?

The Trimble post office opened in 1839, 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 (8), 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.