More historic than 17% of U.S. towns · #97 of 123 in Arkansas. What drives it
Most of Brookland was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2003. Below: maps from 1939 on and the census since 1920.
Founding year: the first Brookland post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Brookland’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Brookland is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #97 of 123 in Arkansas. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Brookland’s overall grade.
Arkansas towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Arkansas town has 20.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Brookland’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (11% of Arkansas 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 (±3.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Brookland’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Brookland yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Brookland is a city in Craighead County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 4,064 at the 2020 census. (Estimated population as of 2026 is 4,854). It is included in the Jonesboro, Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Its first post office opened in 1882. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,642 to 4,064 (+148%).
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Brookland. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1939Jonesboro 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 Brookland.
People over time
Brookland, census by census
Grew from 326 people in 1920 to 4,064 in 2020, more than tenfold.
11 censuses, 1920–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Brookland’s Wikipedia page.
Questions about Brookland’s history
What year was Brookland founded?
The Brookland post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Brookland rank for history?
Brookland is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #97 of 123 in Arkansas. 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 Brookland?
4% of Brookland’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 3.1% for an Arkansas town; the median home was built in 2003.
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 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.
