More historic than 17% of U.S. towns · #208 of 247 in Missouri. What drives it
Most of Gray Summit was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1988. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1947 on, and the census since 1990.
From Gray Summit’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Gray Summit began
When was Gray Summit founded?
1859
The Gray Summit post office opened in 1859, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Point Labaddie (1824) and Port William (1838), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,505 in 19902020 census: 3,055167 years
How historic is Gray Summit?
C−
More historic than 17% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Gray Summit post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Gray Summit’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Gray Summit is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #208 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 Gray Summit’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 Gray Summit’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 (±1.8 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 Gray Summit’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Gray Summit’s post office has been open since 1859. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Point Labaddie
1824–1838
Port William
1838–1859
Gray Summit
1859–today
18201920today
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Gray Summit
Brush CreekColeman
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Gray Summit, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Gray Summit yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Gray Summit is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Franklin County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2020 census, Gray Summit had a population of 3,055. Also called "Gray's Summit", it was founded by Daniel Gray of New York, who built a hotel here in 1845. It is located on Missouri Route 100 just north of Interstate 44.
Its first post office opened in 1859. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,701 to 3,055 (+13%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Gray Summit, 1824 to 1947
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Gray Summit post office opened in 1859, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Gray Summit rank for history?
Gray Summit is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #208 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 Gray Summit?
3% of Gray Summit’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 8.4% for a Missouri town; the median home was built in 1988.
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), 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.
Date?
Date?
2026
2025
2004
