More historic than 14% of U.S. towns · #414 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of Converse was built recently: 0.1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2003. Below: maps from 1953 on and the census since 1970.
The Converse post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name.
First census: 1,383 in 19702020 census: 27,466148 years
How did Converse get its name?
Converse was named for the chief engineer of the Southern Pacific Railroad, a Major Converse, who in 1877 bought a tract of land including the townsite.
How historic is Converse?
D
More historic than 14% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Converse is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #414 of 642 in Texas. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Converse’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 Converse’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 D to C. The pre-1940 share (±0.2 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 Converse’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Converse is on Farm to Market Road 1976, thirteen miles northeast of downtown San Antonio in northeastern Bexar County. It was named for the chief engineer of the Southern Pacific Railroad, a Major Converse, who in 1877 bought a tract of land including the townsite. A post office was established in 1878, and by 1885 a population of thirty was reported. In 1896 the town had a saloon, two cotton gins, and a grocery. In 1990, the community, originally settled by German farmers, reportedly had the oldest 4-H Club in Texas. A singing society, the Salatrillo Liederkranz, had been active for many years. The population in 1946 was 175; by 1965 the town had twenty-two businesses and 900 residents. Over time, Converse has become a suburb of San Antonio. In the 1980s, an influx of middle-class African Americans most of them first-time homeowners were attracted to developing communities northeast o…
The Converse post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Converse rank for history?
Converse is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #414 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 Converse?
0.1% of Converse’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 2003.
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 (2), 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.
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