More historic than 31% of U.S. towns · #168 of 247 in Missouri. What drives it
Most of Cottleville was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2012. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1954 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1824.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Cottleville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cottleville is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #168 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 Cottleville’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 Cottleville’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.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1798.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C+. The pre-1940 share (±1.9 points) is firm at this size.
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 Cottleville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Cottleville is one of the oldest towns in St. Charles County. The town was first settled by Captain Warren G. Cottle in 1798 under a Spanish land grant. The area saw little development until 1810 when the John Pitman family arrived. Captain Cottle died in 1811, and his son, Dr. Warren G. Cottle Jr., inherited the farmlands. Dr. Cottle farmed extensively and occasionally practiced medicine. His son, Lorenzo, inherited 200 acres on both sides of the Dardenne River and, in 1839, parceled and named the town Cottleville after his father and grandfather. Before this, the village was known as Dardenne or Pin Hook. Early settlers included George Huffman (before 1803), Aaron Rutger (before 1809), Nathaniel Simons, and Nicholas Contz. A post office called Cottleville has been in operation since 1843. The town site was laid out in 1839.
In 1798, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Cottleville’s post office opened in 1824, and the census of 1880 counted 225 people here.
How does Cottleville rank for history?
Cottleville is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #168 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 Cottleville?
1% of Cottleville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.9 points), against a typical 8.4% for a Missouri town; the median home was built in 2012.
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 the Library of Congress (6), Wikipedia, 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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