More historic than 12% of U.S. towns · #113 of 131 in Oklahoma. What drives it
Most of Roland was built recently: 0.5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. Below: maps from 1966 on and the census since 1910.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1904.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Roland’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Roland is more historic than 12% of U.S. towns, #113 of 131 in Oklahoma. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Roland’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 Roland’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (18% of Oklahoma towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to D. The pre-1940 share (±0.7 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1888.
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 Roland’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
This area was a dispersed rural community in the Cherokee Nation during the 19th century, until 1888, when the Kansas and Arkansas Valley Railway (KAVR) built a railroad line through it.
Meanwhile, the formerly-dispersed residents coalesced into a small town called either Garrison or Garrison Creek. A post office was established in the town in 1902, and the town renamed itself as Roland in 1904. The 1910 census recorded 228 residents.
In 1888, according to Wikidata. Roland’s post office opened in 1904, and the census of 1910 counted 228 people here.
How does Roland rank for history?
Roland is more historic than 12% of U.S. towns, #113 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.
How old are the homes in Roland?
0.5% of Roland’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 7.0% for an Oklahoma town; the median home was built in 1986.
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 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) 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.
