1 of Battlement Mesa’s places is on the National Register
More historic than 18% of U.S. towns · #96 of 159 in Colorado. What drives it
Its Register listing is the Battlement Mesa Schoolhouse. Most of Battlement Mesa was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1994. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1929 on, and the census since 1990.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Battlement Mesa is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #96 of 159 in Colorado. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Battlement Mesa’s overall grade.
Few Colorado towns list much on the Register (a typical Colorado town has 1.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Battlement Mesa’s 1.7 sits near the middle of its state (53% of Colorado towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.8 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Battlement Mesa’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The community was first developed by an oil company as a residence for its workers in the expectation that the rising price of oil would make shale oil extraction economically viable. When adjusted oil prices fell, the housing estate was left as a stranded asset, and the oil company marketed it to retirees in conjunction with a real estate firm.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Battlement Mesa. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1929Grand Valley 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 Battlement Mesa.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this viewBattlement Mesa School
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Battlement Mesa’s page.
Battlement Mesa is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #96 of 159 in Colorado. 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 Battlement Mesa?
One place: the Battlement Mesa Schoolhouse (listed 1983).
How old are the homes in Battlement Mesa?
0.0% of Battlement Mesa’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 2.5% for a Colorado town; the median home was built in 1994.
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 (3), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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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2012
