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History · Garrison

Garrison’s post office opened in 1885

Most of Garrison was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979. Below: maps from 1958 on and the census since 1890.

1885first post office
0on the National Register
4%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nick81aku at en.wikipedia · Public domain
Quick answers

How Garrison began

When was Garrison founded?

1885

The Garrison post office opened in 1885, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 252 in 18902020 census: 789141 years
Founding year: the first Garrison post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Garrison’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 Garrison are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,082 in 1970; 789 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Garrison’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Garrison’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

Garrison, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,082

Peaked at 1,082 in 1970; 789 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

The story

How Garrison came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Garrison.

Read it all →

Garrison may be named for an early settler, Captain Zadock Bonner "Zed" Garrison (April 20, 1829 – January 9, 1909). Captain Garrison served as a First Lieutenant in the First Regiment, Texas Mounted Volunteers during the Civil War.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Garrison, 1885 to 1973

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1885Post officeThe Garrison post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1958On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 1,082
  6. 1973Born hereEric Thomas is born here
By decade

Garrison, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Garrison Texas CIMG62652006Garrison Texas CIMG6265TXMap-doton-Garrison2004TXMap-doton-Garrison
On the map

Garrison on the map, 1958 to 1984

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

Garrison on the 1958 USGS mapGarrison on the 1984 USGS map1958Timpson 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 Garrison.

Questions about Garrison’s history

What year was Garrison founded?

The Garrison post office opened in 1885, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (2), 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.