Most of Summerdale was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2007. Below: maps from 1921 on and the census since 1930.
The Summerdale post office opened in 1905, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1906. Another post office, Sonora (1902), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 267 in 19302020 census: 1,468121 years
How historic is Summerdale?
D
More historic than 14% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Summerdale post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1906.
History grade
What drives Summerdale’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Summerdale is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Summerdale’s overall grade.
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 Summerdale’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.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1906 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Summerdale’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Summerdale. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1921Bon Secour 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 Summerdale.
The story so far
Summerdale, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Summerdale yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Summerdale is a rural town in south-central Baldwin County, Alabama, United States. It is the site of the Naval Outlying Landing Field Summerdale. At the 2020 census, the population was 1,468. It is part of the Daphne–Fairhope–Foley Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Its first post office opened in 1905. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 862 to 1,468 (+70%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Summerdale, 1902 to 1921
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Summerdale post office opened in 1905, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1906.
How does Summerdale rank for history?
Summerdale is more historic than 14% 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 Summerdale?
7% of Summerdale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.6 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 2007.
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 (1), the Library of Congress (2), 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.
2024
2010
2010