1 of Maplewood’s places is on the National Register
More historic than 38% of U.S. towns · #140 of 273 in Minnesota. What drives it
Its Register listing is the Ramsey County Poor Farm Barn. Most of Maplewood was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979. Below: maps from 1949 on and the census since 1960.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Maplewood is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #140 of 273 in Minnesota. 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 Maplewood’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 Maplewood’s 0.2 sits near the middle of its state (47% of Minnesota 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 (±1.4 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 Maplewood’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Before European Settlement in the 1840s, multiple indigenous peoples inhabited the area around Maplewood. The area was inhabited during the Woodland period, with Dakota tribes settling in the area in the 18th century.
The Maplewood area began being settled by Europeans in the 1850s. A stagecoach line operated from Saint Paul to Duluth from 1856 to 1870, stopping in the area.This ceased operation with the linkage of the construction of the Lake Superior and Mississippi Railroad in 1870.
Maplewood is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #140 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 Maplewood?
One place: the Ramsey County Poor Farm Barn (listed 1977).
How old are the homes in Maplewood?
6% of Maplewood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.4 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1979.
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) 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.
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