Most of Vaughn was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. 1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 3 buildings. Below: maps from 1949 on.
The Vaughn post office opened in 1911, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Ida (1888) and Sunnyside (1893), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 737115 years
How historic is Vaughn?
C+
More historic than 35% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Vaughn post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Vaughn’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Vaughn is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Vaughn’s overall grade.
Montana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Montana town has 12.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Vaughn’s 29.9 sits above most of its state (67% of Montana towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.5 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 Vaughn’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
While trying to make his fortune gold mining in Nelson Gulch near what is now Helena, Montana, Welsh American immigrant Robert Vaughn became convinced that Montana was excellent ranching and farming country. In the fall of 1869, he traveled into Chouteau County, Montana, which at the time covered nearly a sixth of the state. About 9 miles (14 km) upstream from where the Sun River joined the Missouri River, he decided to homestead. He returned to Helena and filed paperwork to claim the land, and learned he was the first individual to formally file for a homestead in Chouteau County. Although Vaughn started out farming, he quickly turned to ranching. He imported a large number of pure-bred cattle and horses, and his horses were some of the best in the state.
The Vaughn post office opened in 1911, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Vaughn rank for history?
Vaughn is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns. 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 Vaughn?
One place: the Robert Vaughn Homestead (listed 1982).
How old are the homes in Vaughn?
10% of Vaughn’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.5 points), against a typical 13% for a Montana town; the median home was built in 1978.
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 National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
