Copperas Cove dates to 1879, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 28% of U.S. towns · #267 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of Copperas Cove was built recently: 0.5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Its Register listing is the Copperas Cove Stagestop and Post Office. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1947 on, and the census since 1900.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1879.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Copperas Cove’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Copperas Cove is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #267 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Copperas Cove’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 Copperas Cove’s 0.3 sits above most of its state (70% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 (±0.5 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1879.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Copperas Cove’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first evidence of human habitation in the Five Hills area dates back to at least 4,000 BC. Artifacts, such as skeletal remains, arrowheads, and other stone tools, have been found along local creek beds and valley floors. These first residents were nomadic hunters, traveling in small groups following migrating buffalo herds. When the Spanish came to Texas, a small Plains tribe known as the Tonkawa inhabited the area. The powerful Comanche controlled a vast stretch of land to the north and west, making now-Coryell County a hostile battleground as settlers moved into the area.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Copperas Cove. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1947Fort Hood 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 Copperas Cove.
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.
Retake this viewCopperas Cove Avenue E School, c. 1900
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Copperas Cove’s page.
In 1879, according to Wikidata. Copperas Cove’s post office opened in 1879, and the census of 1900 counted 475 people here.
How does Copperas Cove rank for history?
Copperas Cove is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #267 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 Copperas Cove?
One place: the Copperas Cove Stagestop and Post Office (listed 1979).
How old are the homes in Copperas Cove?
0.5% of Copperas Cove’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1989.
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 National Register of Historic Places (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.
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1905
2009
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