Half of Kensington Park’s homes were built after 1963
More historic than 14% of U.S. towns · #299 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Most of Kensington Park was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1963. Below: maps from 1956 on and the census since 1960.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kensington Park is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #299 of 638 in Florida. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kensington Park’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 Kensington Park’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.
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 is a Census survey estimate (±3.3 points).
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 Kensington Park’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
During the post-World War II economic boom a number of new subdivisions developed up in the area surrounding Sarasota. In 1955, the Paver Construction Company, purchased over 400 acres from Charles Schmid, a local dairy farmer. Previously, the company built the Paver Park Estates subdivision. Paver Construction was started when Martin Paver, a native of New York state, along with his wife, visited Sarasota in 1949 and liked it so much that he decided to move there and get into real estate development. He also got his two sons involved. Construction would begin in 1956 and had 1,400 homes in it when fully completed. The name of the subdivision comes from where the Pavers had lived at in Great Neck, New York.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Kensington Park. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1956Tampa sheet · 1:250,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Kensington Park.
People over time
Kensington Park, census by census
Between 2,887 and 3,901 people in every census since 1960.
7 censuses, 1960–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Kensington Park’s Wikipedia page.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Kensington Park is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #299 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 Kensington Park?
2% of Kensington Park’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.3 points), against a typical 0.6% for a Florida town; the median home was built in 1963.
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 Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
