Purcell’s post office opened in 1887, and 10% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 45% of U.S. towns · #61 of 131 in Oklahoma. What drives it
Its Register listings are the McClain County Courthouse, the Hotel Love and the United States Post Office Purcell. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 1900.
Founding year: the first Purcell post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Purcell’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Purcell is more historic than 45% of U.S. towns, #61 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 Purcell’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 Purcell’s 4.4 sits near the middle of its state (49% 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 B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.9 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 Purcell’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Purcell. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1893Norman 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 Purcell.
Every building
Purcell, building by building, 1894–1914
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.
Purcell was at the north end of the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway, owned by the AT&SF. Today, Amtrak serves the town with the Heartland Flyer at the station near the old AT&SF depot.
Purcell was the only town on the border of the Unassigned Lands, and began attracting hopeful settlers even before the Land Rush of 1889. Town lots went on sale April 5, 1887, and a post office was established 16 days later. The Purcell Register, the town's oldest newspaper, was established in 1887, and continued operating into the 21st Century. Residents elected the town's first mayor, James Taylor Bradley, on August 13, 1895. The town was incorporated on October 3, 1898.
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.
The Purcell post office opened in 1887, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Purcell rank for history?
Purcell is more historic than 45% of U.S. towns, #61 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 Purcell?
Three places: the McClain County Courthouse (listed 1984), the Hotel Love (1995) and the United States Post Office Purcell (2018).
How old are the homes in Purcell?
10% of Purcell’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.9 points), against a typical 7.0% for an Oklahoma town; the median home was built in 1983.
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 (5), Wikidata (1), 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.
1891
1891