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History · Helen

Helen’s post office opened in 1919

Below: maps from 1912 on.

1919first post office
0on the National Register
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Photo: Coal town guy · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Helen began

When was Helen founded?

1919

The Helen post office opened in 1919, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 137107 years
Founding year: the first Helen post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Helen’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 Helen are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19124 editions of the USGS map, 1912 to 1976. Watch Helen change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Helen’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Helen’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Helen on the map, 1912 to 1976

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

Helen on the 1912 USGS mapHelen on the 1925 USGS mapHelen on the 1967 USGS mapHelen on the 1976 USGS map1912Mullens 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 Helen.

The story so far

Helen, in brief

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

Helen is a census-designated place (CDP) in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 137 (down from 219 at the 2010 census). West Virginia Route 16, Winding Gulf and railroad tracks run right through the community. The Helen mine and coal camp was opened in the 1910s by the East Gulf Coal Company. Many years later, the mine was operated by the Koppers Coal company, which then became the Eastern Gas & Fuel - Coal Division, and even later Eastern Associated Coal Company. Eastern Associated operated the Helen mine into the 1980s.

Its first post office opened in 1919. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 219 to 137 (-37%).

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

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Famous people

Famous people close to Helen

Nobody well known was born in Helen itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Chris SarandonAmerican actor · b. 1942
Tom CarperAmerican politician · b. 1947
Heath SlaterAmerican professional wrestler and actor · b. 1983
Little Jimmy DickensAmerican musician · b. 1920
Mike D'AntoniAmerican-Italian basketball player and coach · b. 1951
Cora Sue CollinsAmerican child actress · b. 1927

Questions about Helen’s history

What year was Helen founded?

The Helen post office opened in 1919, 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 →
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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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.