Founding year: the first Valmeyer post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1909.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Valmeyer’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Valmeyer is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Valmeyer’s 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 Valmeyer’s 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 still be D. The pre-1940 share (±1.7 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1909 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Valmeyer’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
After the Great Flood of 1993 the residents of Valmeyer decided to relocate the town 2 miles (3 km) to the east, on land that is more than 300 feet (91 m) higher than the floodplain. The town was rebuilt with financial assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The old townsite has been described as a ghost town with few inhabitants but still an important traffic artery. Valmeyer's successful relocation is seen as a potential model for other localities retreating from sea level rise.
A documentary about Valmeyer's 1993 flood fight and subsequent rebuilding titled "Valmeyer, IL: The Documentary" was released in 2015.
The Valmeyer post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1909.
How does Valmeyer rank for history?
Valmeyer is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns. 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 Valmeyer?
1% of Valmeyer’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.7 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 2000.
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 (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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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