Founding year: the first Vale post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1889.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Vale’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Vale is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Vale’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 Vale’s 25.6 sits above most of its state (85% of Oregon towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% 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 is a Census survey estimate (±5.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1889 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Vale’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area where present-day Vale sits was historically home to small groups of Native Americans. The area was also a central gathering place for Paiutes during salmon run season.
The community was the first stop in Oregon along the Oregon Trail. Journals of those who traveled the trail note a trading post in the area as early as 1853, and by 1864, Jonathan Keeney had built a cabin and a barn that he offered for lodging for passing travelers. This cabin was replaced by the Rinehart House in 1872, which still stands today.
The Vale post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1889.
How does Vale rank for history?
Vale is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns. 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 Vale?
5 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Old Stone House (listed 1972, the first). 6 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Vale?
19% of Vale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.3 points), against a typical 5.3% for an Oregon town; the median home was built in 1966.
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 (4), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
Date?
2011
2004
2004