St. James City’s post office opened in 1886, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 27% of U.S. towns · #187 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Most of St. James City was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. Its Register listing is the Fish Cabin at White Rock Shoals. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1958 on, and the census since 2000.
Founding year: the first St. James City post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives St. James City’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, St. James City is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #187 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 St. James City’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 St. James City’s 2.9 sits above most of its state (79% 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 B−. 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 St. James City’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Flamingo BayPine Island Cove Mobile Home ParkSaint James CitySaint James City Mobile Home ParkShangri La Mobile Home Park
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
St. James City, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of St. James City yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
St. James City or Saint James City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) on Pine Island in Lee County, Florida, United States. The population was 3,876 at the 2020 census, up from 3,784 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Its first post office opened in 1886. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 3,784 to 3,876 (+2%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
St. James City, 1884 to 1958
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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 St. James City. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1958Pine Island Center 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 St. James City.
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.
Retake this viewGroup taken on steps of San Carlos Hotel, St. James City, Fla, 1884
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on St. James City’s page.
The St. James City post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does St. James City rank for history?
St. James City is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #187 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 St. James City?
One place: the Fish Cabin at White Rock Shoals (listed 1991).
How old are the homes in St. James City?
0.0% of St. James City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 0.6% for a Florida town; the median home was built in 1986.
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 National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
1884
