Glendale dates to 1887, and 22 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 46% of U.S. towns · #26 of 140 in Arizona. What drives it
Most of Glendale was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. 22 places in town are on the National Register, among them ten historic districts with 625 buildings between them. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1915 on, and the census since 1910.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1892.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Glendale’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Glendale is more historic than 46% of U.S. towns, #26 of 140 in Arizona. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Glendale’s overall grade.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Glendale ranks #255 on History.
Few Arizona towns list much on the Register (a typical Arizona town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Glendale’s 25.1 sits above most of its state (84% of Arizona towns have fewer) while its 635 historic buildings outnumber those of 98% of U.S. towns.
Newer cities are common at Glendale’s size: in the typical U.S. city of 100,000 or more, 5% of homes predate 1940.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B+. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1887.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Glendale’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Glendale’s post office has been open since 1892.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Arrowhead RanchBelaire ManorBelaire Manor Mobile Home ParkBethany Grand Mobile Home ParkBethany Villa Adult Mobile Home ParkBlue Sky Mobile EstatesBristol SquareChaparralCollege ParkFlamingo Mobile Home ResortGlendale Cascade Mobile Home ParkGrand Missouri Adult Mobile Home ParkGreenbriarIronwood TerraceLa Fontana HeightsLazy J Trailer LodgeLeisure Time Mobile ParkLexington PlaceLonghorn Ranch IIMarlborough MeadowsMaryland West Mobile Home ParkMidges CourtMontaraMountain View Meadows
In the late 1800s the area that is now Glendale was all desert. William John Murphy, a native of New Hartford, New York, who resided in the town of Flagstaff in what was then the territory of Arizona, was in charge of building the 40-mile-long (64 km) Arizona Canal from Granite Reef to New River for the Arizona Canal Company. In 1885, he completed the canal, which would bring water to the desert land. Murphy was deep in debt, since he had agreed to be paid in Arizona Canal Company stock and bonds and land instead of cash.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Glendale. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1957Glendale sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Glendale.
Every building
Glendale, building by building, 1915–1924
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
In 1887, according to Wikidata. Glendale’s post office opened in 1892, and the census of 1910 counted 1,000 people here.
How does Glendale rank for history?
Glendale is more historic than 46% of U.S. towns, #26 of 140 in Arizona. 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.
What is on the National Register in Glendale?
22 listings: 10 buildings, among them the Beet Sugar Factory (listed 1978, the first), and 12 historic districts with 625 contributing buildings. 635 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Glendale?
1% of Glendale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 0.4% for an Arizona town; the median home was built in 1986.
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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (22), Wikipedia, 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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