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A−History
History · Jefferson

Jefferson dates to 1841, and 18 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 81% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Most of Jefferson was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979. 18 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 11 buildings. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1860.

1841founded
18on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
11famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Jefferson’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Jefferson began

When was Jefferson founded?

1841

Jefferson dates its founding to 1841 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1860.

First census: 988 in 18602020 census: 1,875185 years

How historic is Jefferson?

A−

More historic than 81% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1843.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Jefferson’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jefferson is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns. 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 Jefferson’s overall grade.
Founding era1841, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19408.9% of homes (±3.4) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register18 listings, 28 historic buildings, 131 per 10,000 residents · typical TX town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 81%
NewerOlder

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 Jefferson’s 131 sits above most of its state (97% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 28 historic buildings outnumber those of 81% 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 (±3.4 points). Two sources give 1841.

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 Jefferson’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Landmarks on the Register18 places on the National Register.Mapped building by building6 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1911, drew every building in Jefferson.Boom and bustPeaked at 4,190 in 1870; 1,875 people lived here in 2020.A town in old photos12 old photos, postcards and papers, 1872–1939.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

18 historic places in Jefferson

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

places listed
18
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
28
each building in a district counts
first listed
1969
Alley-Carlson House
Alley-Carlson HouseEpperson-McNutt HouseExcelsior HotelOld U.S. Post Office and Courts BuildingPresbyterian ManseFreeman Plantation HouseSedberry HouseJefferson Historic DistrictMagnolias, TheJefferson Ordnance MagazineHodge-Taylor HouseStilley-Young HouseJefferson PlayhouseBirge-Beard HouseCapt. William E. Singleton HouseCapt. William Perry HousePlanters Bank BuildingPerry M. Woods House
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival12
Victorian5
Romanesque Revival2
Classical Revival1
Italianate1
Vernacular1
Alley-Carlson HouseGreek Revival
Epperson-McNutt HouseGreek Revival
Excelsior HotelClassical Revival
Old U.S. Post Office and Courts BuildingRomanesque Revival
Presbyterian ManseGreek Revival
Freeman Plantation HouseGreek Revival
Sedberry HouseVictorian
Jefferson Historic DistrictGreek Revival
All 18 listings
Magnolias, TheBuilding · listed 1971Jefferson Ordnance MagazineBuilding · listed 1995Hodge-Taylor HouseBuilding · listed 1997Stilley-Young HouseBuilding · listed 2005Jefferson PlayhouseBuilding · listed 1969Birge-Beard HouseBuilding · listed 1970Capt. William E. Singleton HouseBuilding · listed 1970Capt. William Perry HouseBuilding · listed 1970Planters Bank BuildingBuilding · listed 1971Perry M. Woods HouseBuilding · listed 1971

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

Every building

Jefferson, building by building, 1885–1911

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.

Jefferson fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 4
Edition
BrickWoodStone

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

People over time

Jefferson, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,500190019502000Peak: 4,190

Peaked at 4,190 in 1870; 1,875 people lived here in 2020.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

The story

How Jefferson came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Jefferson.

Read it all →

Almost every commercial building and house on the main arterial road in Jefferson has a historic marker.

Early records indicate that Jefferson was founded around 1841 on land ceded from the Caddo Indians. At that time, a log jam more than 100 miles long existed on the Red River north of present Natchitoches, Louisiana. The Indians said that this log jam, known as the Great Red River Raft, had always existed.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Jefferson, 1841 to 1976

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1841
    FoundingJefferson is established
  3. 1843Post officeThe Jefferson post office opens
  4. 1870CensusPopulation peaks at 4,190
  5. 1872In the archiveJefferson, Texas in 1872
  6. 1883Born hereVernon Dalhart is born here
  7. 1897Born hereBetty Mary Goetting is born here
  8. 20th century
  9. 1903Born hereRoy Hawkins is born here
  10. 1939In the archive[African American Mother and Child on Bed in their Cabin near Jefferson, Texas]
  11. 1962On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  12. 1976Born hereBobbie Williams is born here
By decade

Jefferson, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s1 item
Jefferson, Texas in 18721872Jefferson, Texas in 1872
1930s11 items
[African American Mother and Child on Bed in their Cabin near Jefferson, Texas]1939[African American Mother and Child on Bed in their Ca…Covered well near Jefferson, Texas1939Covered well near Jefferson, TexasSawmill for making shingles near Jefferson, Texas1939Sawmill for making shingles near Jefferson, TexasSon of relief client near Jefferson, Texas1939Son of relief client near Jefferson, TexasLog shed and privy near Jefferson, Texas1939Log shed and privy near Jefferson, TexasLog shed and privy near Jefferson, Texas1939Log shed and privy near Jefferson, TexasMigrant keymaker's children with homemade scooter1939Migrant keymaker's children with homemade scooterShingles made at small mill near Jefferson, Texas1939Shingles made at small mill near Jefferson, TexasSon of itinerant keymaker living near Jefferson, Texas1939Son of itinerant keymaker living near Jefferson, TexasQuilts of family on relief near Jefferson, Texas1939Quilts of family on relief near Jefferson, TexasTrailer home of migrant keymaker near Jefferson, Texas1939Trailer home of migrant keymaker near Jefferson, Texas
1940s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
On the map

Jefferson on the map, 1962 to 1986

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

Jefferson on the 1962 USGS mapJefferson on the 1986 USGS map1962Jefferson 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 Jefferson.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Jefferson, Texas in 1872
Retake this viewJefferson, Texas in 1872, 1872

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Jefferson’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

11 famous people were born in Jefferson

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

See all →
Vernon DalhartAmerican country music singer · b. 1883
R
Roy HawkinsAmerican musician · b. 1903
B
Betty Mary GoettingLibrarian, women's rights activist in El Paso, … · b. 1897
Bobbie WilliamsAmerican football player · b. 1976
J
John WattsAmerican judoka · b. 1944
R
Ron CookAmerican baseball player · b. 1947
Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

Jefferson’s post office has been open since 1843.

3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jefferson
Cedar GroveMount SinaiOakwood

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Jefferson’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewJefferson, Texas in 1872: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Jefferson’s history

What year was Jefferson founded?

In 1841, according to Wikidata. Jefferson’s post office opened in 1843, and the census of 1860 counted 988 people here.

How does Jefferson rank for history?

Jefferson is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns. 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 Jefferson?

18 listings: 17 buildings, among them the Alley-Carlson House (listed 1969, the first), and 1 historic district, the Jefferson Historic District, with 11 contributing buildings. 28 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Jefferson?

9% of Jefferson’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.4 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1979.

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 (2), the Library of Congress (10), the National Register of Historic Places (18), 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.