Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 17% of U.S. towns · #104 of 142 in Oregon. What drives it
Most of Sublimity was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. Below: maps from 1925 on and the census since 1910.
The Sublimity post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1903.
More historic than 17% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sublimity is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #104 of 142 in Oregon. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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 Sublimity’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (18% of Oregon towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Sublimity’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Sublimity. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Sublimity.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Sublimity yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Sublimity is a city in Marion County, Oregon, United States. The population was 2,967 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Its first post office opened in 1852. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,681 to 2,967 (+11%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Grew from 138 people in 1910 to 2,967 in 2020, more than tenfold.
12 censuses, 1910–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Sublimity’s Wikipedia page.
Nobody well known was born in Sublimity itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Sublimity post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1903.
Sublimity is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #104 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.
3% of Sublimity’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.7 points), against a typical 5.3% for an Oregon town; the median home was built in 1993.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (12), 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.
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