Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Among the newest of U.S. towns. What drives it
Most of Dodson Branch was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1999. Below: maps from 1925 on.
Among the newest of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Dodson Branch is among the newest of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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 Dodson Branch’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (16% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
Founding year: our sources. 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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Dodson Branch’s history is told.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Dodson Branch yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Dodson Branch is a census-designated place and unincorporated community in Jackson County, Tennessee, United States. Its population was 1,044 as of the 2020 census.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,074 to 1,160 (+8%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Dodson Branch. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Dodson Branch.
Nobody well known was born in Dodson Branch itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Dodson Branch is among the newest 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.
0.0% of Dodson Branch’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.1 points), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 1999.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.
