Chattanooga’s post office opened in 1838, and 13% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 87% of U.S. towns · #7 of 177 in Tennessee. What drives it
90 places in town are on the National Register, among them ten historic districts with 1,307 buildings between them. Below: 16 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1860.
From Chattanooga’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Chattanooga began
When was Chattanooga founded?
1838
The Chattanooga post office opened in 1838, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1839. Ten smaller post offices, Brainerd (1834), Lookout Valley (1834) and Ross Landing (1837), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 2,545 in 18602020 census: 181,099188 years
How historic is Chattanooga?
A
More historic than 87% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Chattanooga post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1839.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Chattanooga’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Chattanooga is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #7 of 177 in Tennessee. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Chattanooga’s overall grade.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Chattanooga ranks #90 on History.
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 Chattanooga’s 75.4 sits above most of its state (87% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 1,401 historic buildings outnumber those of 99% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share (±1.0 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1839 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Chattanooga’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Chattanooga’s post office has been open since 1838. 28 other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Brainerd
1834–1838
Lookout Valley
1834–1848
Ross Landing
1837–1838
Chattanooga
1838–today
Hickory Valley
1840–1842
Harrison
1841–today
Chickamauga
1850–1898
Tyner
1860–1972
Wauhatchie
1866–1918
Chickamauga Station
1867–1882
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Acres of Shade Mobile Home ParkAlton ParkAndrea HeightsArdis Mobile Home ParkArmstrong Trailer ParkAustin FarmAvondaleBalmoralBattery HeightsBella Vista AcresBoyceBrainerdBrainerd HillsBrainerd ParkBrentwoodBriarfieldBrynewood ParkBushtownCapital HeightsCedar HillCherokee WoodsClarks Mobile Home ParkClifton HillsCloverdale Estates
The first inhabitants of the Chattanooga area were Native Americans. Sites dating back to the Upper Paleolithic period (c. 10,000 BCE) show continuous human occupation through the Archaic, Woodland, Mississippian/Muskogean/Yuchi (900–1714 CE), and Cherokee (1776–1838) periods. The Chickamauga Mound near the mouth of the Chickamauga Creek is the oldest (c. 750 CE) remaining visible art in Chattanooga.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Chattanooga. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1936Chattanooga 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 Chattanooga.
Every building
Chattanooga, building by building, 1885–1930
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The Chattanooga post office opened in 1838, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1839.
How does Chattanooga rank for history?
Chattanooga is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #7 of 177 in Tennessee. 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 Chattanooga?
90 listings: 60 buildings, among them the Brown's Ferry Tavern (listed 1971, the first), 17 historic districts with 1,307 contributing buildings, 5 sites, and 7 structures. 1,401 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Chattanooga?
13% of Chattanooga’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.0 points), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 (5), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (89), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
c. 1860
c. 1860
1861
1861
1861
1861![Sutter's [i.e. Sutler's] Row](https://images.townratings.com/story/16509/c4e3b76130c81190e61d-s.jpg)
1861
1861
1863
1863
1863
1863
1863
