New Tazewell’s post office opened in 1891, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 36% of U.S. towns · #116 of 177 in Tennessee. What drives it
Most of New Tazewell was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1987. Its Register listing is the Johnson's Mill. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1936 on, and the census since 1960.
Founding year: the first New Tazewell post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives New Tazewell’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, New Tazewell is more historic than 36% of U.S. towns, #116 of 177 in Tennessee. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of New Tazewell’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 New Tazewell’s 3.6 sits near the middle of its state (43% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.9 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 →
When the railroad line was built from Knoxville through Cumberland Gap in the late 1880s, it bypassed the city of Tazewell. It is uncertain whether the railroad was unable to obtain right of way, or whether the decision was made because of topography, but the railroad depot was built about two miles to the west of Tazewell. A new community sprang up around the depot, called Cowan City on old survey maps. The city was incorporated as New Tazewell in the 1920s, but the charter was voted down about fifteen years later. It was reincorporated in 1954.
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.
The New Tazewell post office opened in 1891, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does New Tazewell rank for history?
New Tazewell is more historic than 36% of U.S. towns, #116 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 New Tazewell?
One place: the Johnson's Mill (listed 2026).
How old are the homes in New Tazewell?
8% of New Tazewell’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.9 points), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 1987.
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 (7), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, 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.
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