More historic than 4% of U.S. towns · #571 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Most of Apollo Beach was built recently: 0.1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2010. Below: maps from 1921 on and the census since 1970.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Apollo Beach is more historic than 4% of U.S. towns, #571 of 638 in Florida. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Apollo Beach’s overall grade.
Few Florida towns list much on the Register (a typical Florida town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Apollo Beach’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (33% of Florida towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1923.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to D. The pre-1940 share (±0.2 points) is firm at this size.
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 Apollo Beach’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The history of Apollo Beach started in 1923 on land owned by the Dickman family, then used annually for farming and grazing pasture. Much of the land was mangrove and low-elevation and was considered uninhabitable.
In the 1930s, Paul Dickman conceived the idea of a waterfront community. He felt the location was ideally located equidistant between Tampa and Bradenton along U.S. Route 41.
The Dickmans secured the services of Radar Engineering of Miami to design a subdivision including roads, canals, schools, recreation areas, and community services.
In 1923, according to Wikidata. the census of 1970 counted 1,042 people here.
How does Apollo Beach rank for history?
Apollo Beach is more historic than 4% of U.S. towns, #571 of 638 in Florida. 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 Apollo Beach?
0.1% of Apollo Beach’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 0.6% for a Florida town; the median home was built in 2010.
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) 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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