Its Register listings are the Harmon County Courthouse, the Hollis City Hall and Jail and the United States Post Office Hollis. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1914 on, and the census since 1910.
Founding year: the first Hollis post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Hollis’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hollis is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hollis’ overall grade.
Oklahoma towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Oklahoma town has 5.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Hollis’ 18.0 sits above most of its state (77% of Oklahoma towns have fewer) while its 3 listings 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 A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.1 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 Hollis’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The city was named for George W. Hollis, a local businessman and member of the townsite committee that laid out the town in 1898, while the site was still in old Greer County, Texas. The original plat was lost, and after a lawsuit, the town was replatted in 1903. The original business district comprised a general store opened by George Hollis and a blacksmith shop owned by James (Jim) Maylen Prock. A post office named for Hollis was established October 31, 1901.
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 Hollis. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1961Hollis 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 Hollis.
Every building
Hollis, building by building, 1914–1924
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.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Questions about Hollis’ history
What year was Hollis founded?
The Hollis post office opened in 1901, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Hollis rank for history?
Hollis is more historic than 51% 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 Hollis?
Three places: the Harmon County Courthouse (listed 1984), the Hollis City Hall and Jail (2007) and the United States Post Office Hollis (2009).
How old are the homes in Hollis?
20% of Hollis’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.1 points), against a typical 7.0% for an Oklahoma town; the median home was built in 1960.
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 (4), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (3), 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 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.
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