More historic than 23% of U.S. towns · #302 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of Chandler was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1999. Below: maps from 1948 on and the census since 1970.
Founding year: the first Chandler post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Chandler’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Chandler is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #302 of 642 in Texas. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Chandler’s overall grade.
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 Chandler’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (34% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.7 points). 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 Chandler’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Chandler yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Chandler is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States, at the northern end of Lake Palestine. Its population was 3,275 at the 2020 census, up from 2,734 at the 2010 census.
Its first post office opened in 1880. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,734 to 3,275 (+20%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Chandler in 1929
Passages that mention Chandler, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Henderson County Texas1929 · page 266Read the page →
Read the text
Chandler is going to pick up now, just like all other towns on the new state highways now under construction. No doubt Tyler being so near, hurts the trade of Chandler, but with all that she is on rising grounds, with her beautiful, modern residences, fine flower yards, bright boys and girls and fine educational advantages.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Mr. Hicks was one of the organizers of the Citizens Guaranty Bond JAMES REGINALD HICKS Bank of Chandler which later absorbed the First State Ban] of that city. When he resigned from the Cotton Belt to become cashier uf the bank he was one of the oldest men in point of service with the road and as such had prior claim on most any station he desired. In 1920 he was made president of the bank and is at present serving in that capacity. It is due to his business acumen that the bank
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Chandler, 1880 to 1948
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Chandler. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1948Tyler 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 Chandler.
People over time
Chandler, census by census
Grew from 765 people in 1970 to 3,275 in 2020, 4 times over.
6 censuses, 1970–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Chandler’s Wikipedia page.
Questions about Chandler’s history
What year was Chandler founded?
The Chandler post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Chandler rank for history?
Chandler is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #302 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.
How old are the homes in Chandler?
5% of Chandler’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.7 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1999.
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), 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
![Mr. Hicks was one of the organizers of the Citizens Guaranty Bond JAMES REGINALD HICKS Bank of Chandler which later absorbed the First State Ban] of that city. When he resigned from the Cotton Belt to become cashier uf the bank he was one of the oldest men in point of service with the road and as s…](https://images.townratings.com/story/17415/bk-ae9bde4836ca8bb7-l.jpg)
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