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History · Sprague

Half of Sprague’s homes were built after 1964

Most of Sprague was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1964. Below: maps from 1913 on.

0on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Sprague’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 Sprague are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19136 editions of the USGS map, 1913 to 1989. Watch Sprague change.Old housesHalf of Sprague’s homes were built before 1964.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Sprague’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Sprague’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

Sprague on the map, 1913 to 1989

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

Sprague on the 1913 USGS mapSprague on the 1929 USGS mapSprague on the 1932 USGS mapSprague on the 1969 USGS mapSprague on the 1976 USGS mapSprague on the 1989 USGS map1913Beckley 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 Sprague.

The story so far

Sprague, in brief

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

Sprague is an unincorporated community and coal town in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States. Sprague is located on West Virginia Route 16, 1 mile (1.6 km) north of downtown Beckley. Sprague has a post office with ZIP code 25926. As of the 2020 census, Sprague had a population of 1,289. The community was named in 1902.

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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Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
Church of GodchurchSprague Consolidated Grade Schoolschool

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Sprague’s history

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 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.