McAlester dates to 1872, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 63% of U.S. towns · #32 of 131 in Oklahoma. What drives it
18 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 38 buildings between them. Below: 7 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1900.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1873.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives McAlester’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, McAlester is more historic than 63% of U.S. towns, #32 of 131 in Oklahoma. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of McAlester’s 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 McAlester’s 29.8 sits above most of its state (84% of Oklahoma towns have fewer) while its 54 historic buildings outnumber those of 85% 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 (±2.4 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1872.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 McAlester’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
McAlester’s post office has been open since 1885. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
McAlister
1873–1885
McAlester
1885–today
South McAlester
1890–1907
North McAlester
1907–1909
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
North McAlester
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside McAlester
Central State Hospital AnnexHaileNorth McAlesterOak Hill
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Every building
McAlester, building by building, 1886–1918
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.
1886Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
The crossing of the east–west California Road with the north–south Texas Road formed a natural point of settlement. At the time of its founding, the site was located in Tobucksy County, a part of the Moshulatubbee District of the Choctaw Nation. Alyssia Young, who emigrated from Mississippi to the Indian Territory, first established a settlement at the intersection of the two roads in 1838. The town was named Perryville after James Perry, member of a Choctaw family, who established a trading post. At one time Perryville was the capital of the Choctaw Nation and County Seat of Tobucksy County. During the American Civil War, the Choctaw allied with the Confederate States of America (CSA) as the war reached Indian Territory.
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.
In 1872, according to Wikidata. McAlester’s post office opened in 1873, and the census of 1900 counted 646 people here.
How does McAlester rank for history?
McAlester is more historic than 63% of U.S. towns, #32 of 131 in Oklahoma. 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 McAlester?
18 listings: 15 buildings, among them the Busby Office Building (listed 1979, the first), 2 historic districts, the Lee, Jeff, Park Bath House and Pool and the McAlester Downtown Historic District, with 38 contributing buildings, and 1 site. 54 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in McAlester?
12% of McAlester’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.4 points), against a typical 7.0% for an Oklahoma town; the median home was built in 1971.
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 (3), Wikidata (5), the National Register of Historic Places (18), 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.
1936
1936
1939
