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B−History
History · Brownwood

Brownwood’s post office opened in 1858, and 7 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 50% of U.S. towns · #135 of 642 in Texas. What drives it

Most of Brownwood was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1972. Below: 18 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1880.

1858first post office
7on the National Register
5%homes built before 1940
18old photos & papers
26famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Brownwood’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Brownwood began

When was Brownwood founded?

1858

The Brownwood post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 725 in 18802020 census: 18,862168 years

How historic is Brownwood?

B−

More historic than 50% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Brownwood post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Brownwood’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Brownwood is more historic than 50% of U.S. towns, #135 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Brownwood’s overall grade.
Founding era1858, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19405.2% of homes (±1.5) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register7 listings, 14 historic buildings, 7.5 per 10,000 residents · typical TX town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 50%
NewerOlder
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 79%

Few Texas towns list much on the Register (a typical Texas town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Brownwood’s 7.5 sits above most of its state (85% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 14 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. The pre-1940 share (±1.5 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

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 Brownwood’s past

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

Mapped building by building8 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1923, drew every building in Brownwood.A town in old photos18 old photos, postcards and papers, 1895–1969.Landmarks on the Register7 places on the National Register.Famous sons and daughtersMadylin Sweeten, Sawyer Sweeten and 24 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Every building

Brownwood, building by building, 1885–1923

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Brownwood fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Brownwood, decade by decade

5 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1960s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1910s5 items
Daniel baker collegec. 1895Daniel baker collegeFederal Building1896Federal BuildingFirst Methodist Church South1896First Methodist Church SouthTexas - Brownwood through Chisos Mountains1917Texas - Brownwood through Chisos MountainsTexas - Brownwood through Chisos Mountains1917Texas - Brownwood through Chisos Mountains
1920s–1930s12 items
Brownwood TX 1st Presby PHS10771923Brownwood TX 1st Presby PHS1077Sacks of feathers and bloody overalls 8b23460v1939Sacks of feathers and bloody overalls 8b23460vMules1939MulesSign1939SignSign1939SignFarmer's car1939Farmer's carFeed store1939Feed storeWeigher at poultry cooperative1939Weigher at poultry cooperativeSign in tractor store1939Sign in tractor storeTurkey pickers' cooperative house. Brownwood, Texas1939Turkey pickers' cooperative house. Brownwood, TexasTurkey raiser at unloading platform1939Turkey raiser at unloading platformTurkeys in pen, poultry cooperative1939Turkeys in pen, poultry cooperative
1960s1 item
Untitled photo1969Untitled photo
1970s–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
On the National Register

7 historic places in Brownwood

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

places listed
7
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
14
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Santa Fe Railroad Station
Santa Fe Railroad StationSt. John's Episcopal ChurchJ. A. Walker House and Rogers, R. B., HouseBrown County JailHardin, R.F.,High SchoolGreenleaf Fisk HouseWeakley-Watson Building
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Prairie School1
Gothic Revival1
Colonial Revival1
Romanesque Revival1
Santa Fe Railroad StationPrairie School
St. John's Episcopal ChurchGothic Revival
J. A. Walker House and Rogers, R. B., HouseColonial Revival
Brown County JailBuilding
Hardin, R.F.,High SchoolRomanesque Revival
Greenleaf Fisk HouseBuilding
All 7 listings
Weakley-Watson BuildingBuilding · listed 2020

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

The story

How Brownwood came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Brownwood.

Read it all →

The original site of the Brown County seat of Brownwood was east of Pecan Bayou. A dispute arose over land and water rights, and the settlers were forced to find a new location. Greenleaf Fisk donated 60 acres (24 ha) to relocate the county seat to the west side of the bayou, on what is now the current site of Brownwood, and 100 additional acres for county use. The town was incorporated in 1884.

During the Second World War, Brownwood was the location of U.S. Army Camp Bowie, which had a peak complement of over 80,000 soldiers. Camp Bowie serves as a training camp today at the intersection Farm-to-Market Roads 45 and 2126.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Brownwood, 1858 to 1995

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1858Post officeThe Brownwood post office opens
  3. 1895In the archiveDaniel baker college
  4. 20th century
  5. 1914Born hereGeorge Dunn is born here
  6. 1917In the archiveTexas - Brownwood through Chisos Mountains
  7. 1923In the archiveBrownwood TX 1st Presby PHS1077
  8. 1939In the archiveSacks of feathers and bloody overalls 8b23460v
  9. 1969In the archiveUntitled photo
  10. 1980On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1988Born hereCase Keenum is born here
  12. 1991Born hereMadylin Sweeten is born here
  13. 1995Born hereSawyer Sweeten is born here
On the map

Brownwood on the map, 1980 to 1996

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

Brownwood on the 1980 USGS mapBrownwood on the 1996 USGS map1980Brownwood sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Brownwood.

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.

Daniel baker college
Retake this viewDaniel baker college, c. 1895

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Brownwood, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 20,181

Between 725 and 20,181 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

26 famous people were born in Brownwood

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
M
Madylin SweetenAmerican actress · b. 1991
S
Sawyer SweetenAmerican child actor · b. 1995
Case KeenumAmerican football player · b. 1988
G
George DunnActor, humorist · b. 1914
J
Jim MorrisMajor League Baseball Player · b. 1964
Joe M. KilgoreAmerican politician · b. 1918
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Brownwood’s post office has been open since 1858.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Bluff ViewWoodland Heights
Gone or out of use
Bluff View Drive-InlocaleBrownwood Army Air Fieldmilitary
1cemetery inside Brownwood
Greenleaf

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Brownwood’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewDaniel baker college: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

EarlyIts storyD

Questions about Brownwood’s history

What year was Brownwood founded?

The Brownwood post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Brownwood rank for history?

Brownwood is more historic than 50% of U.S. towns, #135 of 642 in Texas. 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 Brownwood?

7 listings: 7 buildings, among them the Santa Fe Railroad Station (listed 1976, the first). 14 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Brownwood?

5% of Brownwood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.5 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1972.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (6), the Library of Congress (12), the National Register of Historic Places (7), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.