The story
Read it all →How East Bernard came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of East Bernard.
In 2000, East Bernard incorporated. As of 2007, East Bernard is one of Texas's newest cities.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
CHistory
History · East Bernard
East Bernard’s post office opened in 1874
More historic than 27% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Most of East Bernard was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Below: maps from 1956 on and the census since 1970.
1874first post office
0on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Quick answers
How East Bernard began
When was East Bernard founded?
1874
The East Bernard post office opened in 1874, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Bernard Station (1866), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 1,159 in 19702020 census: 2,218152 years
How historic is East Bernard?
C
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 27% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first East Bernard post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives East Bernard’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, East Bernard is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of East Bernard’s overall grade.
Founding era1874, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19407.4% of homes (±7.2) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%C+National RegisterNo listings counted · typical TX town 0.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 27%
NewerOlder
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 East Bernard’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 still be C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.2 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 East Bernard’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start East Bernard’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how East Bernard’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.Timeline
East Bernard, 1866 to 1976
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1866Post officeThe Bernard Station post office opens
- 1872Post officeThe Bernard Station post office closes
- 1874Post officeThe East Bernard post office opens
- 20th century
- 1936Born herePauline Gubbels is born here
- 1956
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1970Born hereMichael Bankston is born here
- 1976
Born hereShane Lechler is born here
By decade
East Bernard, decade by decade
Today16 recent
2020East Bernard TX Wharton Pct 2
2020East Bernard TX Veterans Memorial
2020East Bernard TX Stadium
2020East Bernard TX Library
2020East Bernard TX Holy Cross Marker
2020East Bernard TX Holy Cross Church
2020East Bernard TX Czech Marker
2013Nottawa TX US 90A and FM 1164
2013Nottawa TX Tennessee Gas
2013East Bernard TX US 90A Hwy 60
2013East Bernard TX UP Freight Train
2013East Bernard TX Hwy 60 and FM 1164
2013East Bernard TX FM 2919
2013East Bernard TX American Legion
2012East Bernard TX Post Office
2012East Bernard TX High SchoolOn the map
East Bernard on the map, 1956 to 1980
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of East Bernard. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1956Wallis sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of East Bernard.
People over time
East Bernard, census by census
Between 1,159 and 2,272 people in every census since 1970.
6 censuses, 1970–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on East Bernard’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →3 famous people were born in East Bernard
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices
East Bernard’s post office has been open since 1874. Another post office, Bernard Station, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Bernard Station
East Bernard
18601940today
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about East Bernard’s history
What year was East Bernard founded?
The East Bernard post office opened in 1874, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does East Bernard rank for history?
East Bernard is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns. 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 East Bernard?
7% of East Bernard’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.2 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1989.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (16), 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.