More historic than 16% of U.S. towns · #102 of 159 in Colorado. What drives it
Most of Evans was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2003. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1870.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Evans’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Evans is more historic than 16% of U.S. towns, #102 of 159 in Colorado. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Evans’ 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 Evans’ 0.0 sits below most of its state (22% of Colorado 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 (±1.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1867.
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 Evans’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost a third of its people between 1880 and 1890, then grew more than tenfold.
16 censuses, 1870–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Evans’ Wikipedia page.
Every building
Evans, building by building, 1904–1921
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.
1904Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
The city was named for the second Territorial Governor of Colorado, John Evans, The town was settled in 1867, and the Evans, Colorado Territory, post office opened on May 16, 1870. Evans served as the Weld County seat from 1870 until 1874, and again from 1875 until 1877 when Greeley finally captured the honor. Legend in Evans is that the county records were stolen by night-riders from Greeley, who also burned the courthouse down with the county seat documents. The Town of Evans was incorporated on November 15, 1885.
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.
In 1867, according to Wikidata. Evans’ post office opened in 1870, and the census of 1870 counted 189 people here.
How does Evans rank for history?
Evans is more historic than 16% of U.S. towns, #102 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.
How old are the homes in Evans?
2% of Evans’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.2 points), against a typical 2.5% for a Colorado 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 Wikimedia Commons (2), the Library of Congress (1), Wikipedia, 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.
Date?
2015
