Joseph City’s post office opened in 1924, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 30% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Most of Joseph City was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. Its Register listing is the St. Joseph Bridge.
How Joseph City began
When was Joseph City founded?
The Joseph City post office opened in 1924, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Saint Joseph (1878), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
How historic is Joseph City?
More historic than 30% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
What drives Joseph City’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Joseph City is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
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 Joseph City’s 4.6 sits above most of its state (72% of Arizona towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 →
1 historic place in Joseph City
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Lost post offices and old corners
Joseph City’s post office has been open since 1924. Another post office, Saint Joseph, 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).
Questions about Joseph City’s history
What year was Joseph City founded?
The Joseph City post office opened in 1924, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Joseph City rank for history?
Joseph City is more historic than 30% 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.
What is on the National Register in Joseph City?
One place: the St. Joseph Bridge (listed 1988).
How old are the homes in Joseph City?
8% of Joseph City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.6 points), against a typical 0.4% for an Arizona town; the median home was built in 1978.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
Where this page comes from
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 the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.