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–Not graded
History · Blanco

Blanco’s post office opened in 1901, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 3 old photos and papers and maps from 1960 on.

1901first post office
0on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Blanco’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Blanco began

When was Blanco founded?

1901

The Blanco post office opened in 1901, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 491125 years
Founding year: the first Blanco post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Blanco’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Blanco’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Blanco’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo3 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewCrow Canyon Petroglyphs, Cuervo Canyon …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Blanco, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Blanco yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Its first post office opened in 1901. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 388 to 491 (+27%).

By decade

Blanco, decade by decade

Date unknown3 to date
Crow Canyon Petroglyphs, Cuervo Canyon at junction of Canon LargoDate?Crow Canyon Petroglyphs, Cuervo Canyon at junction of…Simon Canyon Pueblito, Approximately 0.6 mile north of Simon Canyon confluence with San Juan RiverDate?Simon Canyon Pueblito, Approximately 0.6 mile north o…Pueblitos of Dinetah, South of Navajo Reservation, north of Largo Canyon, Dulce, Rio Arriba County, NMDate?Pueblitos of Dinetah, South of Navajo Reservation, no…
On the map

Blanco on the map, 1960 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Blanco. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Blanco on the 1960 USGS mapBlanco on the 1985 USGS map1960Bloomfield sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Blanco.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Crow Canyon Petroglyphs, Cuervo Canyon at junction of Canon Largo
Retake this viewCrow Canyon Petroglyphs, Cuervo Canyon at junction of Canon Largo

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Blanco’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

TurleyIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSullivanIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townAngusturaIts storyC−Navajo DamIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Blanco’s history

What year was Blanco founded?

The Blanco post office opened in 1901, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From the Library of Congress (3), 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.