More historic than 18% of U.S. towns · #51 of 61 in West Virginia. What drives it
Most of Sissonville was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1976. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1906 on, and the census since 2000.
From Sissonville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
Where Sissonville’s name came from
How did Sissonville get its name?
Sissonville was named after an early settler by the name of John Sisson.
More on the name
History shows the first known settler north of Fort Lee (now known as Charleston) was a man named Johnson who built a log cabin near the mouth of Tuppers Creek in 1802 and later built a grist mill in the area. The community was named for John Sisson, who owned the original townsite.
How historic is Sissonville?
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More historic than 18% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sissonville is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #51 of 61 in West Virginia. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Sissonville’s overall grade.
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 Sissonville’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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.5 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Sissonville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Sissonville is located in Kanawha County, West Virginia. It was named after an early settler by the name of John Sisson. History shows the first known settler north of Fort Lee (now known as Charleston) was a man named Johnson who built a log cabin near the mouth of Tuppers Creek in 1802 and later built a grist mill in the area. The community was named for John Sisson, who owned the original townsite.
Passages that mention Sissonville, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Charleston and Kanawha County, West Virginia1911 · page 368Read the page →
Read the text
milling and surveying, and for the past ten years has been concerned, with his son, in a planing, sawand grist-mill on Poca River, near Sissonville. After marriage he settled first on a farm across the river from the one now occupied, where he remained for four years and then came to his present property where he has made many improvements. In addition to
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Sissonville, 1828 to 1948
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Between 4,028 and 4,399 people in every census since 2000.
3 censuses, 2000–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Sissonville’s Wikipedia page.
Questions about Sissonville’s history
How does Sissonville rank for history?
Sissonville is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #51 of 61 in West Virginia. 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 Sissonville?
6% of Sissonville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.5 points), against a typical 13% for a West Virginia town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 the Library of Congress (4), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1921
1921![Frank Burditt and family. They rent this dilapidated shank [i.e., shack] and are trying to make a living off the meagre…](https://images.townratings.com/story/47879/b30303817af43780f22c-s.jpg)
1921