El Paso dates to 1680, and 44 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 86% of U.S. towns · #10 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of El Paso was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1883 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1852.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives El Paso’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, El Paso is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #10 of 642 in Texas. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of El Paso’s overall grade.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, El Paso ranks #93 on History.
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 El Paso’s 30.6 sits above most of its state (92% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 2,082 historic buildings outnumber those of 99% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1680.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A+. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size.
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 El Paso’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
El Paso’s post office has been open since 1852. Seven other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
El Paso
1852–today
Magoffinsville
1852–1853
Isleta
1857–1868
Ysleta
1874–1959
Belen
1890–1918
Sanjose
1896–1899
Newman
1923–1971
Smeltertown
1939–1943
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
AlfalfaBelenBorderlandBritton DavisBuena VistaCielo VistaCoronado HillsCorpus Christi de la IsletaCourchesneDel Norte AcresDel Norte HeightsGreen Acres ColoniaHacienda HeightsLa GunaLakesideLas Palmas ColoniaLas Palmas Number 2 ColoniaLoma TerraceMission HillsMontoyaMountain ViewNewmanPlaneportSan Jose
Gone or out of use
El Paso Army Air Fieldmilitary
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside El Paso
ConcordiaEvergreenRest Lawn
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The El Paso region has had human settlement for thousands of years, as evidenced by Folsom points from hunter-gatherers found at Hueco Tanks. This suggests 10,000 to 12,000 years of human habitation. The earliest known cultures in the region were maize farmers. When the Spanish arrived, the Manso, Suma, and Jumano tribes populated the area. These were subsequently incorporated into the mestizo culture, along with immigrants from central Mexico, captives from Comanchería, and genízaros of various ethnic groups. The Mescalero Apache were also present.
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 El Paso. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1948El Paso 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 El Paso.
Every building
El Paso, building by building, 1883–1908
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.
In 1680, according to Wikidata. El Paso’s post office opened in 1852, and the census of 1850 counted 200 people here.
How does El Paso rank for history?
El Paso is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #10 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 El Paso?
44 listings: 34 buildings, among them the Magoffin Homestead (listed 1971, the first), 10 historic districts with 2,042 contributing buildings, and 1 site. 2,082 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in El Paso?
5% of El Paso’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1984.
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 (4), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (45), 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.
c. 1853
