1 of Grissom AFB’s places is on the National Register
More historic than 23% of U.S. towns · #527 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Most of Grissom AFB was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1960. Below: 7 old photos and papers, maps from 1951 on, and the census since 1970.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Grissom AFB is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #527 of 593 in Indiana. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Grissom AFB’s overall grade.
Indiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Indiana town has 7.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Grissom AFB’s 3.4 sits near the middle of its state (51% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±2.0 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Grissom AFB’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
On 18 March 1942, the Bureau of Yards and Docks (BuDocks) sent out a letter to the Judge Advocate General of the Navy (JAG), Rear Admiral Walter Browne Woodson, for the acquisition of land near Peru, Indiana, with the intention of constructing a Naval Reserve Aviation Base. The following day, the Shore Station Development Board sent a letter of recommendation to the US Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV), Frank Knox, estimating the cost of the project, including land acquisition, at $7,000,000. On 21 March 1942, the Chief of Naval Operations, Fleet Admiral Ernest King, concurred with BuDocks and also sent a letter to SECNAV. Secretary Knox sent a letter the same day to JAG Woodson approving the base.
Grissom AFB is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #527 of 593 in Indiana. 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 Grissom AFB?
1% of Grissom AFB’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.0 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1960.
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 (24), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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