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C+History
History · Athens

Athens’ post office opened in 1850, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 42% of U.S. towns · #175 of 642 in Texas. What drives it

Most of Athens was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. Its Register listing is the Faulk and Gauntt Building. Below: maps from 1885 on and the census since 1860.

1850first post office
1on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
7famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Athens began

When was Athens founded?

1850

The Athens post office opened in 1850, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 240 in 18602020 census: 12,857176 years

How historic is Athens?

C+

More historic than 42% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Athens’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Athens is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns, #175 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Athens’ overall grade.
Founding era1850, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19406.4% of homes (±3.5) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register1 listing, 0.8 per 10,000 residents · typical TX town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 42%
NewerOlder
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 73%

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 Athens’ 0.8 sits above most of its state (72% 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 C to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.5 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 Athens’ 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 Athens are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1870 and 1880, then grew more than tenfold.Mapped building by building7 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1921, drew every building in Athens.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Athens’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Athens’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
People over time

Athens, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,000190019502000545 in 1870Low: 368

Lost a third of its people between 1870 and 1880, then grew more than tenfold.

16 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Every building

Athens, building by building, 1885–1921

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.

Athens fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
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

Athens, in brief

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

Athens is a city in and the county seat of Henderson County, Texas, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 12,857. The city has called itself the "Black-Eyed Pea Capital of the World." Athens was selected as one of the first "Certified Retirement Communities" in Texas. Athens was incorporated in 1856 and was named after Athens, the capital of Greece.

Its first post office opened in 1850. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 12,710 in 2010, 12,857 in 2020.

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

Timeline

Athens, 1850 to 2020

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1850Post officeThe Athens post office opens
  3. 1891Born hereSid W. Richardson is born here
  4. 1897Born hereWes Bradshaw is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1900Born herePete Donohue is born here
  7. 1934Born hereGerald D. Griffin is born here
  8. 1949On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 21st century
  10. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 12,857
By decade

Athens, decade by decade

Today24 recent
East Texas Arboretum and Botanical Society Athens Texas 20252025East Texas Arboretum and Botanical Society Athens Tex…Athens October 2017 18 (Henderson County Judicial Complex)2017Athens October 2017 18 (Henderson County Judicial Com…Athens October 2017 17 (Athens Partnership Center)2017Athens October 2017 17 (Athens Partnership Center)Athens October 2017 14 (Athens Review)2017Athens October 2017 14 (Athens Review)Athens October 2017 13 (Central Baptist Church)2017Athens October 2017 13 (Central Baptist Church)Athens October 2017 12 (First Baptist Church)2017Athens October 2017 12 (First Baptist Church)Athens October 2017 10 (WaWa's Seafood Shack)2017Athens October 2017 10 (WaWa's Seafood Shack)Athens October 2017 09 (Henderson County Jail)2017Athens October 2017 09 (Henderson County Jail)Athens October 2017 08 (Athens Farmers Market)2017Athens October 2017 08 (Athens Farmers Market)Athens October 2017 01 (Henderson County Annex)2017Athens October 2017 01 (Henderson County Annex)Entrance to 'Cardinal Grill' located in the Student union2016Entrance to 'Cardinal Grill' located in the Student u…Dogwood Church2016Dogwood ChurchAthens, TX, welcome sign IMG 03182016Athens, TX, welcome sign IMG 0318A 2014 mural by artist Sunny DeLipsey of Athens, Texas, depicting the early days of the firefighting service in Terrell…2014A 2014 mural by artist Sunny DeLipsey of Athens, Texa…Henderson County, Athens, Texas Historical Marker2012Henderson County, Athens, Texas Historical MarkerHenderson County Pottery Industry, Athens, Texas Historical Marker2012Henderson County Pottery Industry, Athens, Texas Hist…Athens, Texas Historical Marker2012Athens, Texas Historical MarkerRon Gill, Texas AgriLife Extension livestock specialist and effective stockmanship instructor, speaking to an audience …2011Ron Gill, Texas AgriLife Extension livestock speciali…Ron Gill, Texas AgriLife Extension livestock specialist and effective stockmanship instructor, demonstrates effective s…2011Ron Gill, Texas AgriLife Extension livestock speciali…2011 Nativity20112011 NativityTime Stands Still2010Time Stands StillRevised Railroad Park picture, Athens, TX IMG 05962010Revised Railroad Park picture, Athens, TX IMG 0596Railroad Park, Athens, TX IMG 05942010Railroad Park, Athens, TX IMG 0594First Baptist Church, Athens, TX IMG 05932010First Baptist Church, Athens, TX IMG 0593
On the map

Athens on the map, 1949 to 1984

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

Athens on the 1949 USGS mapAthens on the 1950 USGS mapAthens on the 1984 USGS map1949Athens sheet · 1:62,500

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

On the National Register

1 historic place in Athens

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
1980
Faulk and Gauntt Building
Faulk and Gauntt Building
Buildings
Faulk and Gauntt BuildingBuilding

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

Famous people

7 famous people were born in Athens

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

See all →
Gerald D. GriffinAmerican flight director · b. 1934
Sid W. RichardsonAmerican businessman · b. 1891
Pete DonohueAmerican baseball player · b. 1900
W
Wes BradshawAmerican football player and coach · b. 1897
B
Barron TannerAmerican football player · b. 1973
O
Odrick RayAmerican football player · b. 1989

Questions about Athens’ history

What year was Athens founded?

The Athens post office opened in 1850, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Athens rank for history?

Athens is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns, #175 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 Athens?

One place: the Faulk and Gauntt Building (listed 1980).

How old are the homes in Athens?

6% of Athens’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.5 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1978.

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 (24), Wikidata (1), 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.