On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lake Royale is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #261 of 290 in North Carolina. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lake Royale’s overall grade.
North Carolina towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical North Carolina town has 12.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Lake Royale’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (19% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Lake Royale’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Lake Royale yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Lake Royale is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Franklin County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,392 at the 2020 census. It is a gated resort community which surrounds a man-made lake with the same name. The main entrance to Lake Royale is off Sledge Road (SR 1611), 3 miles (5 km) east of Bunn.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,506 to 3,392 (+35%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Lake Royale is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #261 of 290 in North Carolina. 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 Lake Royale?
0.0% of Lake Royale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 2000.
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) and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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