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B−History
History · Germantown

Germantown dates to 1825, and 4 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 49% of U.S. towns · #84 of 177 in Tennessee. What drives it

Most of Germantown was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. 4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 10 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1965 on and the census since 1850.

1825founded
4on the National Register
1%homes built before 1940
11famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Germantown began

When was Germantown founded?

1825

Germantown dates its founding to 1825 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1850.

First census: 245 in 18502020 census: 41,333201 years

How historic is Germantown?

B−

More historic than 49% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1836.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Germantown’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Germantown is more historic than 49% of U.S. towns, #84 of 177 in Tennessee. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Germantown’s overall grade.
Founding era1825, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19401.0% of homes (±0.6) · typical TN town 4.9% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register4 listings, 11 historic buildings, 2.7 per 10,000 residents · typical TN town 6.1 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 49%
NewerOlder
Tennessee towns of 2,500+ (177)Ahead of 53%

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 Germantown’s 2.7 sits near the middle of its state (41% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 11 historic buildings outnumber those of 76% 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 (±0.6 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1825.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Germantown’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 Germantown are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Germantown, and 2 old place names are still on the map.Deep rootsEstablished in 1825: 201 years of Germantown.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Germantown’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Germantown’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, places now gone and burying grounds

Germantown had its own post office from 1836 to 1971. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Germantown
1836–1971
Forest Hill
1874–1964
Ricedale
1887–1888
Neshoba
1918–1922
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BoothForest Hill
Gone or out of use
Forest Hill Schoolschool
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Germantown
GermantownWest Tennessee State Veterans

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

Timeline

Germantown, 1825 to 1997

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1825
    FoundingGermantown is established
  3. 1836Post officeThe Germantown post office opens
  4. 1871BuiltGermantown Baptist Church is built
  5. 1874Post officeThe Forest Hill post office opens
  6. 1887Post officeThe Ricedale post office opens
  7. 1888Post officeThe Ricedale post office closes
  8. 20th century
  9. 1964Post officeThe Forest Hill post office closes
  10. 1965On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1971Post officeThe Germantown post office closes
  12. 1987Born herePhil Irwin is born here
  13. 1994Born hereBrent Rooker is born here
  14. 1997Born hereOlivia Holt is born here
  15. 1997Born hereSeth Rider is born here
The story

How Germantown came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Germantown.

Read it all →

Germantown was founded along the Chickasaw Trace on a ridge between the Wolf River and Nonconnah Creek, about 16 miles (26 km) east of the Mississippi River.

The first settlers arrived in Germantown about 1825. Between 1825 and 1830, Miss Frances Wright established Nashoba Plantation, a utopian community intended to educate emancipated slaves and teach them a trade. By 1830, the first store was opened as more settlers moved into the area.

The community became known as Pea Ridge in 1833. Town lots were laid out in 1834 by surveyor N. T. German. The name was changed to Germantown in 1836. This coincidentally also reflected the settling of German families.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Germantown, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Barrier Germantown TN 0012012Barrier Germantown TN 001Tennessee cities by population2009Tennessee cities by populationGermantownTNart-class2006GermantownTNart-classDeath Sundial2004Death Sundial
On the map

Germantown on the map, 1965 to 1993

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

Germantown on the 1965 USGS mapGermantown on the 1973 USGS mapGermantown on the 1983 USGS mapGermantown on the 1993 USGS map1965Germantown 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 Germantown.

On the National Register

4 historic places in Germantown

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
11
each building in a district counts
first listed
1975
Germantown Baptist Church
Germantown Baptist Church, built 1871Germantown RedoubtWildwood FarmsOaklawn Garden
BuildingsDistrictsSites
Germantown Baptist ChurchBuilt 1871
All 4 listings
Germantown RedoubtSite · listed 1991Wildwood FarmsDistrict · listed 2017Oaklawn GardenDistrict · listed 2018

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Germantown, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,000185019001950200041,333

Grew from 245 people in 1850 to 41,333 in 2020, more than tenfold.

17 censuses, 1850–2020.

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

Famous people

11 famous people were born in Germantown

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

See all →
Olivia HoltAmerican actress and singer-songwriter · b. 1997
Seth RiderAmerican triathlete · b. 1997
Phil IrwinAmerican baseball player · b. 1987
Brent RookerAmerican baseball player · b. 1994
T
Tony WilliamsAmerican football player · b. 1975
Jeremy PadawerAmerican businessman · b. 1973
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Memphis177 historic placesA−Collierville10 historic placesB

Questions about Germantown’s history

What year was Germantown founded?

In 1825, according to Wikidata. Germantown’s post office opened in 1836, and the census of 1850 counted 245 people here.

How does Germantown rank for history?

Germantown is more historic than 49% of U.S. towns, #84 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 Germantown?

4 listings: 1 building, among them the Germantown Baptist Church (listed 1975, the first), 2 historic districts, the Wildwood Farms and the Oaklawn Garden, with 10 contributing buildings, and 1 site. 11 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Germantown?

1% of Germantown’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 1983.

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 (4), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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) 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.