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3, WV, USA - panoramioPhoto: Idawriter · CC BY-SA 3.0
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History · Matheny

Matheny’s post office opened in 1952

Most of Matheny was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1987. Below: maps from 1910 on.

1952first post office
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Idawriter · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Matheny began

When was Matheny founded?

1952

The Matheny post office opened in 1952, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 44674 years
Founding year: the first Matheny post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Matheny’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 Matheny are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19105 editions of the USGS map, 1910 to 1996. Watch Matheny change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Matheny’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Matheny’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
On the map

Matheny on the map, 1910 to 1996

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

Matheny on the 1910 USGS mapMatheny on the 1927 USGS mapMatheny on the 1967 USGS mapMatheny on the 1976 USGS mapMatheny on the 1996 USGS map1910Pineville 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 Matheny.

The story so far

Matheny, in brief

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

Matheny is a census-designated place (CDP) in Wyoming County, West Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 446 (down from 531 at the 2010 census). The Laurel Fork flows through the community.

Its first post office opened in 1952. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 531 to 446 (-16%).

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

Timeline

Matheny, 1883 to 1952

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1883Post officeThe Jesse post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1910On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1952Post officeThe Matheny post office opens
By decade

Matheny, decade by decade

Today1 recent
3, WV, USA20163, WV, USA
Famous people

Famous people close to Matheny

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

See all →
Steve HarveyAmerican television presenter, comedian, actor,… · b. 1957
Heath SlaterAmerican professional wrestler and actor · b. 1983
Little Jimmy DickensAmerican musician · b. 1920
Mike D'AntoniAmerican-Italian basketball player and coach · b. 1951
K
Karen AustinAmerican actress · b. 1950
Christy MartinAmerican boxer · b. 1968
Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

Matheny’s post office has been open since 1952.

Jesse
1883–today
Matheny
1952–today
18801950today
1cemetery inside Matheny
Hillcrest Memorial Gardens

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

Questions about Matheny’s history

What year was Matheny founded?

The Matheny post office opened in 1952, 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 (1), 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.