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History · Pound

Pound was first counted by the census in 1950, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1912 on and the census since 1950.

1950first census
0on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nyttend · Public domain
Quick answers

How Pound began

When was Pound founded?

1950

Pound first appears in the census in 1950. Another post office, Almira (1902), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 1,193 in 19502020 census: 87776 years
Founding year: the first census.The full story ↓

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

Start Pound’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Pound’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 Pound came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Pound.

Read it all →

The Pound area was explored in 1751 by Christopher Gist, and it is traditionally said to be the oldest settlement in Wise County. Also known as "The Pound," the name may derive from a family name, or from a pounding mill built in the area in 1815. The county's first post office was established there in 1848. Pound was not incorporated until 1950, the last town in Wise County to do so.

ChaptersNotable crimes

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Pound, 1902 to 1994

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1902Post officeThe Almira post office opens
  3. 1912On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 1958Post officeThe Almira post office closes
  5. 1978Born hereSean Brock is born here
  6. 1994Born hereKaitlyn Baker is born here
By decade

Pound, decade by decade

Today3 recent
FB IMG Flood2022FB IMG FloodMain Street2017Main StreetVAMap-doton-Pound2005VAMap-doton-Pound
On the map

Pound on the map in 1912

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pound.

Pound on the 1912 USGS map1912Pound 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 Pound.

People over time

Pound, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001960198020002020Peak: 1,193

Between 877 and 1,193 people in every census since 1950.

8 censuses, 1950–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Pound

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

See all →
Kaitlyn BakerCountry music singer and songwriter. · b. 1994
S
Sean BrockAmerican chef · b. 1978
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Almira, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Almira
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Pound
GilliamHillman

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

Questions about Pound’s history

What year was Pound founded?

The Pound post office opened in 1950, 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 (3), Wikidata (1), 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.