Dallas dates to 1845, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 81% of U.S. towns · #11 of 142 in Oregon. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 33 buildings. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1852.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Dallas’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Dallas is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #11 of 142 in Oregon. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Dallas’ overall grade.
Oregon towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Oregon town has 2.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Dallas’ 20.5 sits above most of its state (80% of Oregon towns have fewer) while its 36 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A−. The pre-1940 share (±2.4 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1845.
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 Dallas’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
1884Sheet 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.
On the National Register
4 listings protect 36 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Pioneers in the 1840s started the settlement on the north side of Rickreall Creek. It was originally named "Cynthian" or "Cynthiana". A 1947 Itemizer-Observer article states: "[T]he town was called Cynthiana after Cynthiana, Ky., so named by Mrs. Thos. Lovelady." According to the county historical society in 1987, Mrs. Thomas J. Lovelady named the new settlement after her home town of Cynthiana, Kentucky.
Another source claims that Cynthia Ann, wife of early pioneer Jesse Applegate, named the settlement. But they lived in the Salt Creek area of northern Polk County and, according to the 1850 Federal Census, she was not living in Polk County then.
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.
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.
Academy Junior High SchoolschoolDallas High School Morrison CampusschoolF C Branch CrossinglocaleJoe Cards AirparkairportPartridgelocaleThurstonlocale
1cemetery inside Dallas
Dallas
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Dallas’ history
What year was Dallas founded?
In 1845, according to Wikidata. Dallas’ post office opened in 1852, and the census of 1880 counted 670 people here.
How does Dallas rank for history?
Dallas is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #11 of 142 in Oregon. 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 Dallas?
4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Dallas Tannery (listed 1980, the first), and 1 historic district, the Dallas Downtown Historic District, with 33 contributing buildings. 36 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Dallas?
11% of Dallas’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.4 points), against a typical 5.3% for an Oregon town; the median home was built in 1990.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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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