More historic than 17% of U.S. towns · #209 of 247 in Missouri. What drives it
Most of Clever was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2005. Below: maps from 1917 on and the census since 1910.
Founding year: the first Clever post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Clever’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Clever is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #209 of 247 in Missouri. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Clever’s overall grade.
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 Clever’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 (±2.8 points) is firm at this size. 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 Clever’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lincoln Township and the land that would eventually become the town of Clever remained largely unsettled for many years after Missouri became a state in 1821. A U.S. Government land survey was not conducted until 1834, and the first land transaction was not registered until 1845. More settlers came to southwest Missouri by the Old Wire Road. Following a portion of the Great Osage Trail, the road extended from St. Louis, Missouri southwest to Fort Smith, Arkansas, passing through Springfield, Missouri and on through Christian County. Supply trains and settlers headed for Fort Smith arrived. The Butterfield Overland Mail Route 1858–1861 period passed through after a change of horses at Ashmore Station. A telegraph line ran along the same route as well, giving rise to its name.
The Clever post office opened in 1892, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Clever rank for history?
Clever is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #209 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 Clever?
3% of Clever’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 8.4% for a Missouri town; the median home was built in 2005.
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 (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.
2004
