More historic than 27% of U.S. towns · #179 of 247 in Missouri. What drives it
Most of Eldon was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1974. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1900.
Founding year: the first Eldon post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Eldon’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Eldon is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #179 of 247 in Missouri. 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 Eldon’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 Eldon’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 C− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.4 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 Eldon’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Eldon was platted in 1881, and according to tradition, named after a railroad official. The railroad closed down in 1980 and is proposed to be transformed into the extension of the Rock Island Trail. A post office called Eldon has been in operation since 1881.
On the night of May 22, 2019, a tornado touched down west of Eldon. It came through Eldon damaging many homes and businesses. The same tornado struck Jefferson City later in the evening.
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.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The Eldon post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Eldon rank for history?
Eldon is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #179 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 Eldon?
10% of Eldon’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.4 points), against a typical 8.4% for a Missouri town; the median home was built in 1974.
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), 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.
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