More historic than 7% of U.S. towns · #173 of 177 in Tennessee. What drives it
Most of Lakeland was built recently: 0.9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2000. Below: maps from 1965 on and the census since 1980.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lakeland is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns, #173 of 177 in Tennessee. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lakeland’s overall grade.
Tennessee towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Tennessee town has 6.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Lakeland’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (16% of Tennessee towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.8 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Lakeland’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The city was the location of the now defunct Lakeland Amusement Park. The Lakeland Factory Outlet Mall closed around 2011 and the property was subsequently targeted for redevelopment. The city was originally themed around the Lake now called Garner Lake. It had two railroads within the park property, including the 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge Huff 'n' Puff Railroad and a separate 16 in (406 mm) miniature railway railroad made by the Allan Herschell Company.
Lakeland is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns, #173 of 177 in Tennessee. 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 Lakeland?
0.9% of Lakeland’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 4.9% for a Tennessee town; the median home was built in 2000.
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 (1), 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.
2019
