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D−History
History · Ladson

Ladson’s post office opened in 1900

More historic than 3% of U.S. towns · #152 of 169 in South Carolina. What drives it

Most of Ladson was built recently: 0.3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1990. Below: maps from 1920 on and the census since 2000.

1900first post office
0on the National Register
0.3%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Ladson began

When was Ladson founded?

1900

The Ladson post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 13,264 in 20002020 census: 15,550126 years

How historic is Ladson?

D−

More historic than 3% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Ladson’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ladson is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #152 of 169 in South Carolina. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Ladson’s overall grade.
Founding era1900, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19400.3% of homes (±0.5) · typical SC town 3.5% · U.S. 8.4%DNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical SC town 3.2 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 3%
NewerOlder
South Carolina towns of 2,500+ (169)Ahead of 10%

South Carolina towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical South Carolina town has 3.2 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Ladson’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of South Carolina towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be D−. The pre-1940 share (±0.5 points) is firm at this size. 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 →

What stands out about Ladson’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 Ladson are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages6 hamlets and corners are still on the map.On the map since 19204 editions of the USGS map, 1920 to 1971. Watch Ladson change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ladson’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Ladson’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
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Ladson had its own post office from 1900 to 1921.

Ladson
1900–1921
19001960today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Caromi VillageCollege ParkGailmoorLadson VillageTall PInesWoodside Manor
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Ladson
Cherry HillPear

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

On the map

Ladson on the map, 1920 to 1971

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

Ladson on the 1920 USGS mapLadson on the 1943 USGS mapLadson on the 1958 USGS mapLadson on the 1971 USGS map1920Ravenels 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 Ladson.

The story so far

Ladson, in brief

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

Ladson is a census-designated place (CDP) in Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 13,790 at the 2010 census. It is named in honor of the Ladson family, one of the oldest planter and merchant families in the Charleston area; one of its members was lieutenant governor James Ladson.

Its first post office opened in 1900. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 13,790 to 15,550 (+13%).

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

Timeline

Ladson, 1900 to 1990

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1900Post officeThe Ladson post office opens
  3. 1920On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 1921Post officeThe Ladson post office closes
  5. 1967Born hereAnthony Jenkins is born here
  6. 1968Born hereHarold Green is born here
  7. 1990Born hereRobert Quinn is born here
By decade

Ladson, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Threat Management Group HQ2012Threat Management Group HQSeating at Ladsdon Fairgrounds2012Seating at Ladsdon FairgroundsSC Coastal Fair aerial2012SC Coastal Fair aerialDefense.gov photo essay 080118-D-7203T-0532008Defense.gov photo essay 080118-D-7203T-053Defense.gov photo essay 080118-D-7203T-0442008Defense.gov photo essay 080118-D-7203T-044Defense.gov photo essay 080118-D-7203T-0382008Defense.gov photo essay 080118-D-7203T-038
People over time

Ladson, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00020002020Peak: 15,550

Between 13,264 and 15,550 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Ladson

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

See all →
Robert QuinnAmerican football player · b. 1990
H
Harold GreenAmerican football player · b. 1968
A
Anthony JenkinsCollege baseball and football player · b. 1967
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

North Charleston8 historic placesC−Goose Creek2 historic placesDSangareeIts storyD−

Questions about Ladson’s history

What year was Ladson founded?

The Ladson post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Ladson rank for history?

Ladson is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #152 of 169 in South 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.

How old are the homes in Ladson?

0.3% of Ladson’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.5% for a South Carolina town; the median home was built in 1990.

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 (6), 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.