3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 7 buildings. Most of Blaine was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1997. Below: 1 old photo or paper from 1979 on.
The Blaine post office opened in 1891, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Blain's (1820), Blaine's Cross Roads (1826) and Blainveville (1917), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
2020 census: 2,084135 years
How historic is Blaine?
C+
More historic than 44% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Blaine post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Blaine’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Blaine is more historic than 44% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Blaine’s overall grade.
Tennessee towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Tennessee town has 6.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Blaine’s 28.0 sits above most of its state (78% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 9 historic buildings outnumber those of 75% 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 (±3.3 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 →
What stands out about Blaine’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Blaine was originally known as Blaine's Crossroads (sometimes spelled "Blain"). During the early 19th century, it was located at the intersection of several important roads, including the eastern terminus of the Emory Road (present day SR 61), which traversed northern Knox County, the northern terminus of Indian Ridge Road, and the Great Indian Warpath, present-day U.S. Route 11W. Shields' Station, a popular tavern and store, had been built in Blaine by the early 1830s. Blaine later served as a stop along the Knoxville and Bristol Railroad, also known as the Peavine Railroad, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
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.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Questions about Blaine’s history
What year was Blaine founded?
The Blaine post office opened in 1891, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Blaine rank for history?
Blaine is more historic than 44% 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 Blaine?
Three places: the Shields' Station (listed 1973), the Poplar Hill (1980) and the Richland (2014).
How old are the homes in Blaine?
3% of Blaine’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.3 points), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 1997.
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 (4), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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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