Pulaski dates to 1809, and 16 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 79% of U.S. towns · #18 of 177 in Tennessee. What drives it
Most of Pulaski was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. 16 places in town are on the National Register, among them four historic districts with 174 buildings between them. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1811. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Pulaski’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pulaski is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns, #18 of 177 in Tennessee. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pulaski’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 Pulaski’s 227 sits above most of its state (96% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 188 historic buildings outnumber those of 93% 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 (±2.3 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1809.
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 Pulaski’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Pulaski was founded in 1809. During the Civil War, after the Union took control of Tennessee in 1862, thousands of African Americans left plantations and farms to join their lines for refuge. The Army set up a contraband camp in Pulaski to help house the freedmen and their families, feed them, and put them to work. In addition, education classes were started. The vicinity of Pulaski was the site of a number of skirmishes during the Franklin–Nashville Campaign. Union troops occupied the state from 1862, and hundreds of African Americans left plantations even before the Emancipation Proclamation to join their lines.
In 1863, Confederate courier Sam Davis was hanged in Pulaski by the Union Army as a spy.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pulaski. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1936Pulaski 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 Pulaski.
Every building
Pulaski, building by building, 1888–1916
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.
Giles Memorial GardensKellumMaplewoodOld Graveyard Memorial ParkPatterson
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Pulaski’s history
What year was Pulaski founded?
In 1809, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Pulaski’s post office opened in 1811, and the census of 1850 counted 1,137 people here.
How does Pulaski rank for history?
Pulaski is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns, #18 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 Pulaski?
16 listings: 12 buildings, among them the Brown-Daly-Horne House (listed 1979, the first), and 4 historic districts with 174 contributing buildings. 188 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Pulaski?
6% of Pulaski’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.3 points), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 1977.
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 (2), the National Register of Historic Places (16), 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.
1880
1880
