More historic than 27% of U.S. towns · #183 of 273 in Minnesota. What drives it
Most of Deephaven was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1969. Below: 18 old photos and papers, maps from 1905 on, and the census since 1910.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1862.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Deephaven’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Deephaven is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #183 of 273 in Minnesota. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Deephaven’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 Deephaven’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 is a Census survey estimate (±3.6 points). Two sources give 1876.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Deephaven’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Deephaven was settled in 1876 by Saint Louis attorney Charles Gibson. Gibson built a summer house in an area known as "Northome" and began promoting the area as a vacation destination for Southerners. In 1879 he advocated for the construction of the 150-room Hotel Saint Louis, the area's first grand hotel. The community was connected to the Minneapolis and Saint Louis Railway to serve both the hotel and local cottagers.
In 1876, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Deephaven’s post office opened in 1862, and the census of 1910 counted 234 people here.
How does Deephaven rank for history?
Deephaven is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #183 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 Deephaven?
9% of Deephaven’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1969.
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 (20), 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) 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.
c. 1885
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2007
2005
