Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 18% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Most of Coaling was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2000. Below: maps from 1934 on and the census since 1880.
The Coaling post office opened in 1879, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Clements Depot (1871), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
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, Coaling is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
Alabama towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Alabama town has 2.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Coaling’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (26% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Coaling’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of Coaling.
On April 27, 2011, parts of Coaling were devastated by an EF-3 tornado at approximately 5:15 a.m. Three homes were completely destroyed, at least ten others were severely damaged, and twice as many more sustained light damage. Though there were no fatalities, some residents were hospitalized for injuries.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Coaling. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Coaling.
Grew from 190 people in 1880 to 2,035 in 2020, more than tenfold.
4 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Coaling’s Wikipedia page.
Nobody well known was born in Coaling itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Coaling’s post office has been open since 1879. Another post office, Clements Depot, opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The Coaling post office opened in 1879, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
Coaling is more historic than 18% 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.
3% of Coaling’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.1 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 2000.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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), Wikipedia, 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.
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