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CHistory
History · Paden City

Paden City’s post office opened in 1903, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 27% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: maps from 1906 on and the census since 1920.

1903first post office
0on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Paden City began

When was Paden City founded?

1903

The Paden City post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Paden Valley (1877), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 1,705 in 19202020 census: 2,541123 years

How historic is Paden City?

C

More historic than 27% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Paden City post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Paden City’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Paden City is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Paden City’s overall grade.
Founding era1903, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194023.5% of homes (±8.7) · typical WV town 13.0% · U.S. 8.4%A−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical WV town 29.6 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 27%
NewerOlder

West Virginia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical West Virginia town has 29.6 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Paden City’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (17% of West Virginia towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.7 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (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 Paden City’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 Paden City are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 3,674 in 1970; 2,541 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19066 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 2002. Watch Paden City change.Old housesHalf of Paden City’s homes were built before 1955.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Paden City’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Paden City’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
People over time

Paden City, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,000192019401960198020002020Peak: 3,674

Peaked at 3,674 in 1970; 2,541 people lived here in 2020.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

On the map

Paden City on the map, 1906 to 2002

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

Paden City on the 1906 USGS mapPaden City on the 1924 USGS mapPaden City on the 1960 USGS mapPaden City on the 1972 USGS mapPaden City on the 1994 USGS mapPaden City on the 2002 USGS map1906New Martinsville 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 Paden City.

The story

How Paden City came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Paden City.

Read it all →

The town was named for Pennsylvania-born Obediah Paden (1755-1822), a local landowner. Nearby Paden Island and Paden Fork were also named for this individual, and the entire region, when owned by Paden, was known as Paden's Bottom.

The Paden City Pottery Company was established in 1911 by a European, John Lessel. He started his company there because Paden City had large clay deposits. At one time the company employed over 400 people. It made beautiful pottery and quality sets of dishes. It closed in 1950 but its products are still available for sale on many websites selling vintage dishware.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Paden City, 1877 to 1970

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1877Post officeThe Paden Valley post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1903Post officeThe Paden Valley post office closes
  5. 1903Post officeThe Paden City post office opens
  6. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1949Born hereMark Funkhouser is born here
  8. 1962Born hereJeff Casteel is born here
  9. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 3,674
By decade

Paden City, decade by decade

Today3 recent
The Paden City, West Virginia, Public Library2015The Paden City, West Virginia, Public LibraryPaden City High School2005Paden City High SchoolWVMap-doton-PadenCity2004WVMap-doton-PadenCity
Famous people

2 famous people were born in Paden City

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

See all →
Mark FunkhouserAmerican mayor · b. 1949
J
Jeff CasteelAmerican football coach · b. 1962
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

Paden City’s post office has been open since 1903. Another post office, Paden Valley, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Paden Valley
1877–1903
Paden City
1903–today
18701950today
Gone or out of use
Christ Methodist Episcopal ChurchchurchPaden City Middle Schoolschool

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

Questions about Paden City’s history

What year was Paden City founded?

The Paden City post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Paden City rank for history?

Paden City is more historic than 27% 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.

How old are the homes in Paden City?

24% of Paden City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.7 points), against a typical 13% for a West Virginia town; the median home was built in 1955.

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 (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.