More historic than 22% of U.S. towns · #203 of 273 in Minnesota. What drives it
Most of Crystal was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1959. Below: maps from 1902 on and the census since 1860.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Crystal is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #203 of 273 in Minnesota. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Crystal’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 Crystal’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of Minnesota 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 C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1866.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Crystal’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost two-thirds of its people between 1880 and 1890, then grew more than tenfold.
17 censuses, 1860–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Crystal’s Wikipedia page.
On the map
Crystal on the map, 1902 to 1993
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Crystal. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1902Anoka 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 Crystal.
The story so far
Crystal, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Crystal yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Crystal is a suburban city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, about 5 miles (8.0 km) from downtown Minneapolis. The population was 23,330 at the 2020 census. Minnesota State Highway 100 and County Road 81 are two of Crystal's main routes.
Crystal was established in 1866. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 22,151 to 23,330 (+5%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Crystal in 1895
Passages that mention Crystal, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The above history was written in the autumn of 1891, since which time the following important additions have been made: The village of Crystal has been disorganized, and three of its sections, in, the southeast portion of its territory, have been incorporated as the village of Robbinsdale. The
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
than they are at present. Two tiers of sections were cut off from the south, in 1860, to constitute the town of Crystal Lake. Local government was organized at a town meeting held at the house of Ezra Hanscom, May 11th, 1858. At the first town meeting, one hundred twenty-eight votes were
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Crystal, 1866 to 1970
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
In 1866, according to Wikidata. Crystal’s post office opened in 1883, and the census of 1860 counted 417 people here.
How does Crystal rank for history?
Crystal is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #203 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.
How old are the homes in Crystal?
6% of Crystal’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1959.
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 (4), 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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