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B+History
History · Anson

Anson’s post office opened in 1881, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 65% of U.S. towns · #76 of 642 in Texas. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Jones County Courthouse. Below: maps from 1891 on and the census since 1890.

1881first post office
1on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Anson began

When was Anson founded?

1881

The Anson post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 495 in 18902020 census: 2,294145 years

How historic is Anson?

B+

More historic than 65% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Anson post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Anson’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Anson is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #76 of 642 in Texas. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Anson’s overall grade.
Founding era1881, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194022.6% of homes (±8.0) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%B+National Register1 listing, 4.0 per 10,000 residents · typical TX town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 65%
NewerOlder
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 88%

Few Texas towns list much on the Register (a typical Texas town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Anson’s 4.0 sits above most of its state (80% of Texas 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 B− to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.0 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 →

What stands out about Anson’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 Anson are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18913 editions of the USGS map, 1891 to 1985. Watch Anson change.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1908 to 1922, drew every building in Anson.Old housesHalf of Anson’s homes were built before 1959.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Anson’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Anson’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
On the map

Anson on the map, 1891 to 1985

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

Anson on the 1891 USGS mapAnson on the 1965 USGS mapAnson on the 1985 USGS map1891Anson sheet · 1:125,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Anson.

Every building

Anson, building by building, 1908–1922

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.

Anson fire insurance map, 1908, sheet 11908Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story so far

Anson, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Anson yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Anson is a city in and the county seat of Jones County, Texas, United States. Its population was 2,294 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Abilene, Texas metropolitan area. Originally named "Jones City", the town was renamed "Anson" in 1882 in honor of Anson Jones, the last president of the Republic of Texas.

Its first post office opened in 1881. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 2,430 to 2,294 (-6%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Anson, 1881 to 1938

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1881Post officeThe Anson post office opens
  3. 1891On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1906Born hereOmar Truman Burleson is born here
  6. 1938Born hereJim Welch is born here
By decade

Anson, decade by decade

Today12 recent
Drought conditions have hurt the playa lakes area in Anson, Texas2009Drought conditions have hurt the playa lakes area in …Drought conditions have hurt the playa lakes area in Anson, Texas2009Drought conditions have hurt the playa lakes area in …Drought conditions have hurt the playa lakes area in Anson, Texas2009Drought conditions have hurt the playa lakes area in …Drainage and waterways are highly importany in the playa lakes area of Anson, Texas2009Drainage and waterways are highly importany in the pl…Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment in the field2009Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment…Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment in the field2009Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment…Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment in the field2009Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment…Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment in the field2009Danny Lamberth, DC in Anson, Texas, use GPS equipment…Conservation Easement Sign on fence in a pasture at Anson, Texas2009Conservation Easement Sign on fence in a pasture at A…Close up photograph of fern in Anson, Texas2009Close up photograph of fern in Anson, TexasClose up of grass in pasture in Anson, Texas2009Close up of grass in pasture in Anson, TexasA hand pulls back grass for inspection on pastureland in Anson, Texas2009A hand pulls back grass for inspection on pastureland…
On the National Register

1 historic place in Anson

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2003
Jones County Courthouse
Jones County Courthouse
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Beaux Arts1
Jones County CourthouseBeaux Arts

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

People over time

Anson, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 2,890

Between 495 and 2,890 people in every census since 1890.

13 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Anson

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

See all →
Omar Truman BurlesonAmerican politician · b. 1906
J
Jim WelchAmerican football player · b. 1938

Questions about Anson’s history

What year was Anson founded?

The Anson post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Anson rank for history?

Anson is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #76 of 642 in Texas. 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 Anson?

One place: the Jones County Courthouse (listed 2003).

How old are the homes in Anson?

23% of Anson’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.0 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1959.

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 (12), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.