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History · Trenton

Trenton’s post office opened in 1881, and 29% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1964 on and the census since 1900.

1881first post office
0on the National Register
29%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Trenton began

When was Trenton founded?

1881

The Trenton post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Orangeville (1858), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 420 in 19002020 census: 743145 years
Founding year: the first Trenton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Trenton’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 Trenton are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Trenton’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Trenton’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
The story

How Trenton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Trenton.

Read it all →

Settlers from Tennessee arrived from their home state in 1852. At the time of their arrival, the settlement and surrounding area was known by the colorful name of "Wild Cat Thicket". With the arrival of the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad, a townsite was platted by Dr. W. C. Holmes, a pioneer physician and editor of Trenton Tribune, and known as "the father of Trenton". The name "Trenton" was submitted to the postal authorities (after Trenton, New Jersey), and the post office opened under that name in 1881.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Trenton, 1858 to 1964

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1858Post officeThe Orangeville post office opens
  3. 1881Post officeThe Trenton post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1901Born hereTex Wilson is born here
  6. 1904Post officeThe Orangeville post office closes
  7. 1914Born hereLloyd Mangrum is born here
  8. 1964On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Trenton, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Downtown Trenton Texas 3 (1 of 1)2020Downtown Trenton Texas 3 (1 of 1)TXMap-doton-Trenton2004TXMap-doton-Trenton
On the map

Trenton on the map, 1964 to 1985

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

Trenton on the 1964 USGS mapTrenton on the 1985 USGS map1964Trenton 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 Trenton.

People over time

Trenton, census by census

02004006008001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 743

Between 420 and 743 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Trenton

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

See all →
L
Lloyd MangrumAmerican golfer · b. 1914
Tex WilsonAmerican baseball player · b. 1901
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Trenton’s post office has been open since 1881. Another post office, Orangeville, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Orangeville
1858–1904
Trenton
1881–today
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Orangeville
1cemetery inside Trenton
Burns

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

LeonardIts storyC+

Questions about Trenton’s history

What year was Trenton founded?

The Trenton post office opened in 1881, 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.