Tigard dates to 1852, and 4 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 27% of U.S. towns · #89 of 142 in Oregon. What drives it
Most of Tigard was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1988. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1916 on, and the census since 1970.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1852.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Tigard’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Tigard is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #89 of 142 in Oregon. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Tigard’s 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 Tigard’s 0.7 sits near the middle of its state (37% of Oregon towns have fewer) while its 4 listings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1852.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 points) is firm at this size.
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 Tigard’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Tigard had its own post office from 1908 to 1957. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Mount Sylvania
1852–1858
Tigardville
1887–1906
Tigard
1908–1957
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BonitaBradley Corner
Gone or out of use
Bonita StationlocaleCanterbury Square Post Officepost officeFowler Junior High SchoolschoolGreenburg StationlocaleIronhilllocaleMount Sylvania Post Officepost officeNileslocalePhil Lewis SchoolschoolTigardville Post Officepost office
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Tigard
Crescent GroveSaint AnthonysTigard Evangelical
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Tigard on the map, 1916 to 1984
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Tigard. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1916Tualatin 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 Tigard.
Before colonization by European settlers, the Atfalati inhabited the Tualatin Valley in several hunter-gatherer villages including Chachimahiyuk ("Place of aromatic herbs"), near present-day Tigard. Primary food stuffs included deer, camas root, fish, berries, elk, and various nuts. To encourage the growth of the camas plant and maintain a habitat beneficial to deer and elk, the group regularly burned the valley floor to discourage the growth of forests, a common practice among the Kalapuya. The Atfalati spoke the Tualatin-Yamhill (Northern Kalapuya) language, which was one of the three Kalapuyan languages. Prior to contact with white explorers, traders, and missionaries, the Kalapuya population is believed to have numbered as many as 15,000 people.
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 1852, according to Wikidata. Tigard’s post office opened in 1852, and the census of 1970 counted 6,499 people here.
How does Tigard rank for history?
Tigard is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #89 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 Tigard?
4 listings: 4 buildings, among them the John W. Tigard House (listed 1979, the first).
How old are the homes in Tigard?
2% of Tigard’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 5.3% for an Oregon town; the median home was built in 1988.
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 (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) 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.
1968
2005
2004
