Artesia’s post office opened in 1903, and 14 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 40% of U.S. towns · #28 of 73 in New Mexico. What drives it
Most of Artesia was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. 14 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 205 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1905 on, and the census since 1910.
Founding year: the first Artesia post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1905.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Artesia’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Artesia is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #28 of 73 in New Mexico. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Artesia’s overall grade.
New Mexico towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical New Mexico town has 2.2 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Artesia’s 177 sits above most of its state (94% of New Mexico towns have fewer) while its 223 historic buildings outnumber those of 94% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B+. The pre-1940 share (±2.1 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1905 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Artesia’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1890, it was a route stop (named Miller) between Roswell and Carlsbad. As alivestock-shipping point on the Pecos Valley Southern Railway, it was later named Stegman.
The town assumed its present name in 1903, after the discovery of an artesian aquifer in the area; artesian wells for agriculture flourished in the area until the aquifer became significantly depleted in the 1920s. The city was officially incorporated in 1905. It is home to one of the two Strangite meeting places in the world.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Artesia. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1955Artesia sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Artesia.
Every building
Artesia, building by building, 1905–1911
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.
Artesia City Dump PitmineArtesia Light and Power CompanybuildingArtesia Water Works Pumping StationbuildingMadison HotelbuildingThe Artesia HotelbuildingWestern College Methodist Episcopal Church SouthchurchWestern College Methodist Epsicopal Church Southchurch
1cemetery inside Artesia
Woodbine
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Artesia’s history
What year was Artesia founded?
The Artesia post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1905.
How does Artesia rank for history?
Artesia is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #28 of 73 in New Mexico. 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 Artesia?
14 listings: 13 buildings, among them the Moore-Ward Cobblestone House (listed 1984, the first), and 1 historic district, the Artesia Residential Historic District, with 205 contributing buildings. 223 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Artesia?
4% of Artesia’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.1 points), against a typical 2.3% for a New Mexico town; the median home was built in 1981.
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 Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (9), the National Register of Historic Places (14), 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.
