Waverly’s post office opened in 1837, and 4 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 69% of U.S. towns · #43 of 177 in Tennessee. What drives it
Most of Waverly was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1972. 4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 1 buildings. Below: maps from 1936 on and the census since 1850.
Founding year: the first Waverly post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1838.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Waverly’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Waverly is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #43 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 Waverly’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 Waverly’s 16.3 sits above most of its state (69% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 7 historic buildings outnumber those of 73% 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 is a Census survey estimate (±6.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1838 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 →
What stands out about Waverly’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Waverly was established by Steven Pavatt as a stop along the stagecoach road between Nashville and Memphis in the early 19th century. Pavatt was a fan of the author Sir Walter Scott, and named the community after Scott's Waverley Novels. When Humphreys County was created in 1803, Reynoldsburg, located northwest of Waverly along the Tennessee River, was chosen as the county seat. However, when county lands on the west bank of the Tennessee split off to become part of the newly created Benton County in 1835, the Humphreys County seat was moved to Waverly, which had become the more central location in the county. A courthouse was built in 1836, and the town was officially incorporated in 1838.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Waverly’s history
What year was Waverly founded?
The Waverly post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1838.
How does Waverly rank for history?
Waverly is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #43 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 Waverly?
4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the James N. Nolan House (listed 1986, the first), and 1 historic district, the Archibald D. Fort Hill and Butterfield House, with 1 contributing buildings. 7 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Waverly?
7% of Waverly’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.3 points), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 1972.
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), Wikidata (3), 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.
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