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BHistory
History · Evergreen

Evergreen dates to 1859, and 7 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 61% of U.S. towns · #23 of 159 in Colorado. What drives it

Most of Evergreen was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1976. 7 places in town are on the National Register, among them five historic districts with 43 buildings between them. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1957 on, and the census since 1970.

1859founded
7on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Evergreen began

When was Evergreen founded?

1859

Evergreen dates its founding to 1859 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1970.

First census: 2,321 in 19702020 census: 9,307167 years

How historic is Evergreen?

B

More historic than 61% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1876.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Evergreen’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Evergreen is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns, #23 of 159 in Colorado. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Evergreen’s overall grade.
Founding era1859, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19409.2% of homes (±5.2) · typical CO town 2.5% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register7 listings, 47 historic buildings, 54.6 per 10,000 residents · typical CO town 1.1 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 61%
NewerOlder
Colorado towns of 2,500+ (159)Ahead of 86%

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 Evergreen’s 54.6 sits above most of its state (89% of Colorado towns have fewer) while its 47 historic buildings outnumber those of 84% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.2 points). Two sources give 1859.

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 Evergreen’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Dedisse Park takes in 21 historic buildings.Lost villages4 hamlets and corners are still on the map.Landmarks on the Register7 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Evergreen’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Evergreen’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMary Neosho Williams: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

7 listings protect 47 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
7
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
47
each building in a district counts
first listed
1974
Hiwan Homestead
Hiwan HomesteadEvergreen Conference DistrictEverhardt RanchBergen ParkCorwina Park, O'Fallon Park, Pence ParkDedisse Park
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Rustic4
Western Shingle Style1
Hiwan HomesteadBuilding
Evergreen Conference DistrictWestern Shingle Style
Everhardt RanchBuilding
Bergen ParkRustic
Corwina Park, O'Fallon Park, Pence ParkRustic
Fillius ParkRustic
All 7 listings
Dedisse ParkDistrict · listed 1990

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

Evergreen’s post office has been open since 1876.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Hiwan HillsSprucedaleTroutdaleWah Keeney Park
Gone or out of use
Seven Hills-Yetter Ranch Pegmatite Quarrymine
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Evergreen
Church of the TransfigurationEvergreen

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Evergreen came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Evergreen.

Read it all →

The Evergreen area was first settled in 1859 in what was then the Territory of Kansas. The community was named for evergreen trees surrounding the town. The Colorado Blue Spruce Monument is located in the town, in honor of the Colorado state tree. The Evergreen, Colorado Territory, post office opened on July 17, 1876.

Evergreen is predominately a bedroom community, in that most people living there commute to Denver for work.

On September 10, 2025, Evergreen High School was the location of a shooting in which a gunman wounded two students before committing suicide.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Evergreen, 1859 to 2003

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1859
    FoundingEvergreen is established
  3. 1876Post officeThe Evergreen post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1914In the archiveMary Neosho Williams
  6. 1957On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1972Born hereEric Stough is born here
  8. 1989Born hereNoah Hoffman is born here
  9. 1999Born hereGriffin Dorsey is born here
  10. 21st century
  11. 2003Born hereJake Canter is born here
By decade

Evergreen, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s1 item
Mary Neosho Williams1914Mary Neosho Williams
1920s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today5 recent
Chicago Lakes, Mount Evans2009Chicago Lakes, Mount EvansWide View2008Wide ViewClear Creek County, CO, USA - panoramio - jtsmmm2008Clear Creek County, CO, USA - panoramio - jtsmmmClear Creek County, CO, USA - panoramio - jtsmmm (1)2008Clear Creek County, CO, USA - panoramio - jtsmmm (1)Lariat Loop Scenic and Historic Byway - Historic Downtown2007Lariat Loop Scenic and Historic Byway - Historic Down…
On the map

Evergreen on the map, 1957 to 1994

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Evergreen. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Evergreen on the 1957 USGS mapEvergreen on the 1960 USGS mapEvergreen on the 1971 USGS mapEvergreen on the 1994 USGS map1957Evergreen 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 Evergreen.

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.

Mary Neosho Williams
Retake this viewMary Neosho Williams, 1914

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Evergreen’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Evergreen, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,0001980200020209,307

Grew from 2,321 people in 1970 to 9,307 in 2020, 4 times over.

6 censuses, 1970–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Evergreen’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Evergreen

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
J
Jake CanterAmerican snowboarder · b. 2003
Eric StoughAmerican animator and producer · b. 1972
Noah HoffmanAmerican cross-country skier · b. 1989
Griffin DorseyAmerican soccer player · b. 1999
Tanya HaaveAmerican basketball coach · b. 1963
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

KittredgeIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Evergreen’s history

What year was Evergreen founded?

In 1859, according to Wikidata. Evergreen’s post office opened in 1876, and the census of 1970 counted 2,321 people here.

How does Evergreen rank for history?

Evergreen is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns, #23 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 Evergreen?

7 listings: 2 buildings, among them the Hiwan Homestead (listed 1974, the first), and 5 historic districts with 43 contributing buildings. 47 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Evergreen?

9% of Evergreen’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.2 points), against a typical 2.5% for a Colorado town; the median home was built in 1976.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

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 Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (7), 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) 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.