Waimea’s post office opened in 1900, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 35% of U.S. towns · #20 of 93 in Hawaii. What drives it
Most of Waimea was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1994. 3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 4 buildings. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1916 on, and the census since 2000.
Founding year: the first Waimea post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Waimea’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Waimea is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #20 of 93 in Hawaii. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Waimea’s overall grade.
Few Hawaii towns list much on the Register (a typical Hawaii town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Waimea’s 6.5 sits above most of its state (83% of Hawaii towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% 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 (±2.6 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 Waimea’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
It is believed that the watershed area of the Kohala mountains once supported several thousand native Hawaiians, who practiced subsistence agriculture, made kapa, and thatched dwellings. As the Europeans arrived in the area, most of the sandalwood (Santalum ellipticum) forests were harvested and the land became ideal for grazing animals. California longhorn cattle were given as a gift to Hawaiian King Kamehameha I by British Captain George Vancouver in 1793. In 1809, John Palmer Parker arrived to the area after jumping ship and over time became employed by the king to hunt and tame the population of cattle, which at this point had grown out of control. In 1815 Parker married Kipikane, the daughter of a high-ranking chief, and as a family developed what is now Parker Ranch, the largest ranch in the area.
The Waimea post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Waimea rank for history?
Waimea is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #20 of 93 in Hawaii. 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 Waimea?
Three places: the Imiola Church (listed 1975), the Waimea Elementary School (2005) and the Anna Ranch (2008).
How old are the homes in Waimea?
6% of Waimea’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.6 points), against a typical 1.7% for a Hawaii town; the median home was built in 1994.
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 the Library of Congress (11), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.
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