Largo’s post office opened in 1888, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 28% of U.S. towns · #177 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Most of Largo was built recently: 0.8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. Its Register listing is the Louis Johnson Building. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1917 on, and the census since 1910.
The Largo post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Pinellas (1876) and Anona (1883), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 291 in 19102020 census: 82,485138 years
How historic is Largo?
C
More historic than 28% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Largo post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Largo’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Largo is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #177 of 638 in Florida. 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 Largo’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 Largo’s 0.1 sits above most of its state (67% of Florida towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 (±0.4 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Largo’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The native inhabitants of the Largo area were the Tocobaga Indians. They are also known as the Safety Harbor culture from their archeological remains near present-day Safety Harbor. The Spanish came to Florida in the 16th century. In the 18th century, the Tocobaga had been virtually destroyed after years of exposure to European diseases, Spanish settlement efforts and warfare between Spain and England. The Largo area, like the rest of Pinellas County, was largely deserted. In 1763, Spain transferred sovereignty of Florida to the United Kingdom. In 1783, Florida fell to Spanish sovereignty once again until it was transferred to the United States in 1821. By 1845, a surveyor recorded the location of Lake Tolulu, apparently south of present-day East Bay Drive and roughly where the Largo Central Park Nature Preserve is today.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Largo. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1943Clearwater 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 Largo.
Every building
Largo, building by building, 1917–1926
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.
The Largo post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Largo rank for history?
Largo is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #177 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.
What is on the National Register in Largo?
One place: the Louis Johnson Building (listed 1987).
How old are the homes in Largo?
0.8% of Largo’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 0.6% for a Florida town; the median home was built in 1978.
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 (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.
2004
2004
2004
