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C−History
History · Berkeley

Berkeley’s post office opened in 1938

More historic than 15% of U.S. towns · #222 of 247 in Missouri. What drives it

Most of Berkeley was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1957. Below: maps from 1935 on and the census since 1940.

1938first post office
0on the National Register
8%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Berkeley began

When was Berkeley founded?

1938

The Berkeley post office opened in 1938, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Nuroad (1924), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 2,577 in 19402020 census: 8,22888 years

How historic is Berkeley?

C−

More historic than 15% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Berkeley post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Berkeley’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Berkeley is more historic than 15% of U.S. towns, #222 of 247 in Missouri. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Berkeley’s overall grade.
Founding era1938, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19408.4% of homes (±5.4) · typical MO town 8.4% · U.S. 8.4%C+National RegisterNo listings counted · typical MO town 2.4 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 15%
NewerOlder
Missouri towns of 2,500+ (247)Ahead of 10%

Missouri towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Missouri town has 2.4 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Berkeley’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of Missouri 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 D− to C−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.4 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 Berkeley’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Berkeley are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 19,743 in 1970; 8,228 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Berkeley’s homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Berkeley’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Berkeley’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Berkeley, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00019401960198020002020Peak: 19,743

Peaked at 19,743 in 1970; 8,228 people lived here in 2020.

9 censuses, 1940–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Berkeley’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Berkeley came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Berkeley.

Read it all →

Berkeley incorporated in 1937. The community was named after Berkeley Acres, a planned community.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Berkeley, 1924 to 1970

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 20th century
  2. 1924Post officeThe Nuroad post office opens
  3. 1935On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 1938Post officeThe Nuroad post office closes
  5. 1938Post officeThe Berkeley post office opens
  6. 1950Post officeThe Berkeley post office closes
  7. 1966Born hereMarianne Markowitz is born here
  8. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 19,743
By decade

Berkeley, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Interstate 170 North at Exit 6, Route 115, Natural Bridge Rd exit (1990)2021Interstate 170 North at Exit 6, Route 115, Natural Br…Express Scripts2013Express ScriptsTornado - Berkeley, Mo. , May 11, 2011 -- Blue roofs and clean driveways show the recovery is progressing for some in S…2011Tornado - Berkeley, Mo. , May 11, 2011 -- Blue roofs …Flooding - Berkeley, Mo. , May 12, 2011 -- This home was severely damaged during the April 22 tornado that hit St Louis…2011Flooding - Berkeley, Mo. , May 12, 2011 -- This home …MOMap-doton-Berkeley2004MOMap-doton-Berkeley
On the map

Berkeley on the map, 1935 to 1994

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Berkeley. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Berkeley on the 1935 USGS mapBerkeley on the 1954 USGS mapBerkeley on the 1968 USGS mapBerkeley on the 1974 USGS mapBerkeley on the 1994 USGS map1935Florissant sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Berkeley.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Berkeley had its own post office from 1938 to 1950. Another post office, Nuroad, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Nuroad
1924–1938
Berkeley
1938–1950
19201970today
1cemetery inside Berkeley
Washington Park

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

KinlochIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHazelwood2 historic placesDWoodson TerraceIts storyC−St. JohnIts storyB−Ferguson5 historic placesB+Bel-Ridge1 historic placeA+Cool ValleyIts storyC

Questions about Berkeley’s history

What year was Berkeley founded?

The Berkeley post office opened in 1938, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Berkeley rank for history?

Berkeley is more historic than 15% of U.S. towns, #222 of 247 in Missouri. 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 Berkeley?

8% of Berkeley’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.4 points), against a typical 8.4% for a Missouri town; the median home was built in 1957.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (5), 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.