Maurice’s post office opened in 1895, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 45% of U.S. towns · #65 of 161 in Louisiana. What drives it
Most of Maurice was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2011. Its Register listing is the Dr. Joseph Angel Villien House. Below: maps from 1921 on and the census since 1930.
Founding year: the first Maurice post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Maurice’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Maurice is more historic than 45% of U.S. towns, #65 of 161 in Louisiana. 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 Maurice’s overall grade.
Louisiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Louisiana town has 3.8 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Maurice’s 27.1 sits above most of its state (78% of Louisiana towns have fewer) while its 7 historic buildings outnumber those of 73% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B. The pre-1940 share (±2.5 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 Maurice’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The village, originally called "Mauriceville", derives its name from its founder Maurice Villien. Villien, a native of Savoy, France, came to America in 1855 and sold goods in New Orleans, New Iberia and Milton. His wife had land holdings there and they established a home and grocery store. On May 29, 1889, the 10-acre (40,000 m2) site, on which the church and rectory in Maurice were to be built, was donated by Villien. The town was incorporated on December 27, 1911, and Joseph Villien, Maurice's son, became mayor until 1928. Today, Joseph Street leads to the old home.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Maurice’s history
What year was Maurice founded?
The Maurice post office opened in 1895, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Maurice rank for history?
Maurice is more historic than 45% of U.S. towns, #65 of 161 in Louisiana. 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 Maurice?
One place: the Dr. Joseph Angel Villien House (listed 2001).
How old are the homes in Maurice?
4% of Maurice’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.5 points), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana town; the median home was built in 2011.
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 (12), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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