Carver’s post office opened in 1856, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 62% of U.S. towns · #67 of 273 in Minnesota. What drives it
Most of Carver was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2007. 1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 88 buildings. Below: maps from 1894 on and the census since 1860.
Founding year: the first Carver post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Carver’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Carver is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #67 of 273 in Minnesota. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Carver’s overall grade.
Minnesota towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Minnesota town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Carver’s 160 sits above most of its state (98% of Minnesota towns have fewer) while its 100 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.4 points). 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 Carver’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Ten thousand years ago, the Glacial River Warren flowed through the area and left deposits of clay, sand, gravel, and fine silt soils as well as the Minnesota River. Carver and the surrounding Minnesota River Valley were occupied by a Native American, pre-Columbian Woodland Culture from approximately 1200 B.C. to A.D. 1850. In 1834, there was a Wahpeton village at the present-day location of Carver, led by Chief Mazomaini; early maps indicate it was located on either side of the mouth of Carver Creek where it meets the Minnesota River.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Carver. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1905Minnetonka 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 Carver.
Every building
Carver, building by building, 1894–1911
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The Carver post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Carver rank for history?
Carver is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #67 of 273 in Minnesota. 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 Carver?
One place: the Carver Historic District (listed 1980).
How old are the homes in Carver?
8% of Carver’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.4 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 2007.
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 (6), 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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