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History · Lobelville

Lobelville’s post office opened in 1854

Most of Lobelville was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. Below: maps from 1936 on and the census since 1890.

1854first post office
0on the National Register
4%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: SBaker43 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Lobelville began

When was Lobelville founded?

1854

The Lobelville post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Beardstown (1837), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 171 in 18902020 census: 919172 years
Founding year: the first Lobelville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Lobelville’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 Lobelville are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Lobelville’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lobelville’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Lobelville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Lobelville.

Read it all →

Lobelville was established in 1854 by French trader Henri de Lobel. Originally known as Lobelsville, Lobel established a trading post on the Buffalo River in the early 19th century expecting that it would become a trading route. The proximity of the Tennessee River made this an unprofitable venture, and it never took off as a major trading point.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Lobelville, 1837 to 1979

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1837Post officeThe Beardstown post office opens
  3. 1854Post officeThe Lobelville post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1936On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1957Post officeThe Beardstown post office closes
  7. 1979Born hereKirk Haston is born here
By decade

Lobelville, decade by decade

Today5 recent
TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P40203002011TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P4020300TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P40202992011TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P4020299TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P40202982011TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P4020298TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P40202972011TN-PE-Lobelville City Hall P4020297P1000794 Bobby, Resize Wizard-42009P1000794 Bobby, Resize Wizard-4
On the map

Lobelville on the map, 1936 to 1968

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

Lobelville on the 1936 USGS mapLobelville on the 1950 USGS mapLobelville on the 1968 USGS map1936Lobelville 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 Lobelville.

People over time

Lobelville, census by census

02004006008001,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 993

Between 171 and 993 people in every census since 1890.

8 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Lobelville’s post office has been open since 1854. Another post office, Beardstown, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Beardstown
1837–1957
Lobelville
1854–today
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BeardstownDePriest Bend
Gone or out of use
Beardstown SchoolschoolDePriest Schoolschool
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Lobelville
DePriestDodson Cemeteries

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

Questions about Lobelville’s history

What year was Lobelville founded?

The Lobelville post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (5), 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.