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History · Bandera

Bandera dates to 1855, and 3 of its places are on the National Register

Most of Bandera was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. Its Register listings are the Bandera County Courthouse and Jail, the Jureczki House and the Langford, B.F., Jr. and Mary Hay, House. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1956 on, and the census since 1890.

1855founded
3on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Bandera’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Bandera began

When was Bandera founded?

1855

Bandera dates its founding to 1855 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 372 in 18902020 census: 829171 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1858.The full story ↓

What stands out about Bandera’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,325 in 1950; 829 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bandera’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Bandera’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps -…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Bandera, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,325

Peaked at 1,325 in 1950; 829 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Bandera’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Bandera came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bandera.

Read it all →

Bandera was founded in 1855 by Polish Roman Catholic immigrants from the Province of Silesia. They built St. Stanislaus Catholic Church, and many local residents are descended from them.

Bandera is the Spanish word for flag. How the town acquired the name is unknown. One theory is that the town is named after Bandera Pass.

Bandera was a staging area on the Great Western Cattle Trail, during the late 19th century.

The Cabaret Dance Hall opened in 1936. Throughout its history, the dance hall hosted Bob Wills, Doug Sahm, Ernest Tubb, and others. In 2008, the hall was listed as endangered by Preservation Texas. By at least 2013, the hall was closed, by 2015, it was demolished.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bandera, 1855 to 1956

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1855
    FoundingBandera is established
  3. 1858Post officeThe Bandera post office opens
  4. 1880In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bandera County - ED 10-1, ED 10-2, ED 10-…
  5. 20th century
  6. 1910Born hereMaurice Harper is born here
  7. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 1,325
  8. 1956On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Bandera, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s3 items
1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bandera County - ED 10-1, ED 10-2, ED 10-3, ED 10-4, ED 10-518801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bande…1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bandera County - ED 10-1, ED 10-2, ED 10-3, ED 10-4, ED 10-518801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bande…1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bandera County - ED 10-1, ED 10-2, ED 10-3, ED 10-4, ED 10-518801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bande…
1890s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today9 recent
A cigar-store Indian and a plethora of beads meet for Mardi Gras, a Cowboy Mardi Gras, in little Bandera, the "Cowboy C…2014A cigar-store Indian and a plethora of beads meet for…Cowboy Christmas2011Cowboy ChristmasBandera Parking Issues2011Bandera Parking IssuesMotorcyclists in Bandera, TX Picture 0952009Motorcyclists in Bandera, TX Picture 095Jureczki house 20092009Jureczki house 2009First Baptist Church of Bandera, TX Picture 0932009First Baptist Church of Bandera, TX Picture 093Cowboy mural in Bandera, TX Picture 0992009Cowboy mural in Bandera, TX Picture 099Medina river2008Medina riverFlag of2008Flag of
On the map

Bandera on the map, 1956 to 1982

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Bandera. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Bandera on the 1956 USGS mapBandera on the 1964 USGS mapBandera on the 1982 USGS map1956Bandera 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 Bandera.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bandera County - ED 10-1, ED 10-2, ED 10-3, ED 10-4, ED 10-5
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Texas - Bandera County - ED 10-1, ED 10-2, ED 10-3, ED 10-4, ED 10-5, 1880

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Bandera’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 historic places in Bandera

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
7
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Bandera County Courthouse and Jail
Bandera County Courthouse and JailJureczki HouseLangford, B.F., Jr. and Mary Hay, House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Second Renaissance Revival1
Alsatian1
Mixed1
Bandera County Courthouse and JailSecond Renaissance Revival
Jureczki HouseAlsatian
Langford, B.F., Jr. and Mary Hay, HouseMixed

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Questions about Bandera’s history

What year was Bandera founded?

In 1855, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Bandera’s post office opened in 1858, and the census of 1890 counted 372 people here.

What is on the National Register in Bandera?

Three places: the Bandera County Courthouse and Jail (listed 1979), the Jureczki House (1980) and the Langford, B.F., Jr. and Mary Hay, House (2004).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (12), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.