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History · Coldiron

Coldiron’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Coldiron. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Coldiron is a census-designated place and unincorporated community in Harlan County, Kentucky, United States. Its population was 222 as of the 2020 census.

Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 223 people in 2010, 222 in 2020. Half of its homes were built before 1997.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Coldiron yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Coldiron’s collection

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

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from ColdironWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Coldiron.Meet them →
By decade

Coldiron, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Coldiron is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Coldiron has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Harlan Commercial District in Harlan, 7.3 miles away.

Coldiron and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Coldiron. Tap a dot.
Harlan Commercial DistrictBelfield-Emporia Historic DistrictHicksford-Emporia Historic DistrictHensley SettlementJohn Shell CabinPineville Courthouse Square Historic District

Closest to Coldiron

Harlan Commercial DistrictHarlan · Classical Revival7.3miBelfield-Emporia Historic DistrictEwing · District10.5miHicksford-Emporia Historic DistrictEwing · Commercial Style11miHensley SettlementPathfork · District11.8miJohn Shell CabinLoyall · Building12.5mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Harlan Commercial District’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Coldiron?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Coldiron’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Loyall📜 Harlan📜 Evarts📜 Pineville
The coffee’s on

Where to, neighbor?

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/19 · 2025-01-01
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