Harrisonville’s post office opened in 1837, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns · #51 of 247 in Missouri. What drives it
Most of Harrisonville was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1976. 3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 34 buildings. Below: maps from 1885 on and the census since 1860.
Founding year: the first Harrisonville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Harrisonville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Harrisonville is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #51 of 247 in Missouri. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Harrisonville’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 Harrisonville’s 38.1 sits above most of its state (86% of Missouri towns have fewer) while its 38 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share (±2.6 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 Harrisonville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Harrisonville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1887Harrisonville sheet · 1:125,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Harrisonville.
Every building
Harrisonville, building by building, 1885–1918
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.
Harrisonville was founded in 1837 upon land donated to Cass County by Congress for county purposes, and was named for Congressman Albert G. Harrison, who was instrumental in obtaining the land grant. The area suffered greatly during the American Civil War, though Harrisonville was one of the few places exempted in Union General Thomas Ewing's General Order No. 11 (1863), which ordered the depopulation of three entire Missouri counties and part of a fourth.
Passages that mention Harrisonville, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Cass County, Missouri1917 · page 177Read the page →
Read the text
membership of eleven. A great missionary move was made at this meet¬ ing for work among the Indians. In 1836 “Hopewell,” now Harrisonville, was received into the association. This church was formed about two miles southwest of Harrisonville, probably in 1833 and afterwards erected a meeting house and moved to Harrisonville. The pleasant Garden church was most probably organized prior to the Hopewell church. At a point near the present site of Lone jack. It is not cer¬ tain whether within the limits of Cass or Jackson Counties. In 1838
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Cass County, Missouri1917 · page 353Read the page →
Read the text
In 1895, Mr. Haynes began the practice of law in Harrisonville, and in 1912 was elected prosecuting attorney of Cass County, in 1914 was re-elected to that office, serving until January 1, 1917, when he resumed his private practice in Harrisonville. Mr. Haynes is a capable lawyer and has had a broad experience of practice in his profession in both the State and Federal courts.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Harrisonville, 1837 to 1973
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Harrisonville post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Harrisonville rank for history?
Harrisonville is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #51 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.
What is on the National Register in Harrisonville?
Three places: the Harrisonville Courthouse Square Historic District (listed 1994), the Robert A. Brown House (1970) and the St. Peter's Episcopal Church (1982).
How old are the homes in Harrisonville?
7% of Harrisonville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.6 points), against a typical 8.4% for a Missouri town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 (3), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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