More historic than 11% of U.S. towns · #722 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Most of Palos Heights was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1976. Below: maps from 1890 on and the census since 1960.
The Palos Heights post office opened in 1940, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1959. Another post office, Palos (1850), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 3,775 in 19602020 census: 12,06886 years
How historic is Palos Heights?
D
More historic than 11% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Palos Heights post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1959.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Palos Heights’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Palos Heights is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #722 of 768 in Illinois. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Palos Heights’ overall grade.
Few Illinois towns list much on the Register (a typical Illinois town has 0.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Palos Heights’ 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% 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 (±1.5 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1959.
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 Palos Heights’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Palos Heights. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1890Des Plaines sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Palos Heights.
Palos Heights was incorporated on April 11, 1959, on its fourth attempt at the ballot with the results 850 to 684. It officially became a city on April 16, 1959. Shortly thereafter, Z. Erol Smith was elected its first mayor and was re-elected three times, serving until 1973. The city’s name derives from the surrounding Palos Township, which was renamed in 1850—on the recommendation of early postmaster Melanchan A. Powell—after Palos de la Frontera, Spain.
In 1965, a group of scholars met in Palos Heights to discuss the need for a contemporary translation of the Bible. The necessity of the project was agreed upon, and shortly thereafter, the New International Version (NIV) was initiated in Palos Heights.
The Palos Heights post office opened in 1940, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1959.
How does Palos Heights rank for history?
Palos Heights is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #722 of 768 in Illinois. 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 Palos Heights?
4% of Palos Heights’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.5 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1976.
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), 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.
