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DHistory
History · Friendswood

Friendswood dates to 1895

More historic than 6% of U.S. towns · #512 of 642 in Texas. What drives it

Most of Friendswood was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1991. Below: maps from 1916 on and the census since 1970.

1895founded
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
8famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Friendswood began

When was Friendswood founded?

1895

Friendswood dates its founding to 1895 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1970.

First census: 5,675 in 19702020 census: 41,213131 years

How historic is Friendswood?

D

More historic than 6% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1899.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Friendswood’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Friendswood is more historic than 6% of U.S. towns, #512 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Friendswood’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 19400.0% of homes (±0.2) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%D−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 6%
NewerOlder
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 20%

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 Friendswood’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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1895.

Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Friendswood’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages63 hamlets and corners are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Friendswood are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19167 editions of the USGS map, 1916 to 1995. Watch Friendswood change.Famous sons and daughtersRonnie Price, Katie Rose Clarke and 6 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Friendswood’s post office has been open since 1899.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Analea White HallBaker EditionsBradley MeadowsBrook MeadowsBrown AcresCarmel VillageCentury Oaks EstatesClover AcresEagle LakesEagles PointEl DoradoEnchanted WoodsFalcon RidgeFieldcrest ForestForest GreenForestwoodFox MeadowsFrenchmans CreekFriendswood CrossingFriendswood EstatesFriendswood GardensGlenshannonGoldman AcresGreenbriar
1cemetery inside Friendswood
Whitcomb

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Friendswood’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Friendswood’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Friendswood on the map, 1916 to 1995

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Friendswood. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Friendswood on the 1916 USGS mapFriendswood on the 1929 USGS mapFriendswood on the 1932 USGS mapFriendswood on the 1955 USGS mapFriendswood on the 1969 USGS mapFriendswood on the 1982 USGS mapFriendswood on the 1995 USGS map1916Genoa 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 Friendswood.

The story

How Friendswood came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Friendswood.

Read it all →

Friendswood, situated in the northwestern corner of Galveston County, has the distinction of being the only permanent town in Texas that started as a Quaker colony. It was established in 1895 by a group of Quakers led by T. Hadley Lewis and Frank J. Brown. They were looking for a "promised land" to start a colony of the people who belonged to the religious denomination called Friends or Quakers.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Friendswood, 1895 to 1985

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1895
    FoundingFriendswood is established
  3. 1899Post officeThe Friendswood post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1916On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1973Born hereRobin Coleman is born here
  7. 1983Born hereRonnie Price is born here
  8. 1984Born hereKatie Rose Clarke is born here
  9. 1985Born hereAnthony Hill is born here
By decade

Friendswood, decade by decade

Today12 recent
Kvvv2013KvvvRed Posts2012Red PostsRandolph Park Bench2012Randolph Park BenchRaindrops on Clover2012Raindrops on CloverClear Creek HDR2012Clear Creek HDRWanna be a Jedi Master?2011Wanna be a Jedi Master?Great Egret in Dickinson Bayou Headwaters2011Great Egret in Dickinson Bayou HeadwatersFriendswood Street Scene2011Friendswood Street SceneGuardian of the Friendswood Water District2010Guardian of the Friendswood Water DistrictFriendswood Texas City Hall 775462010Friendswood Texas City Hall 77546Friendswood TX PO 775462010Friendswood TX PO 77546Moss Point2007Moss Point
People over time

Friendswood, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,00019802000202041,213

Grew from 5,675 people in 1970 to 41,213 in 2020, 7 times over.

6 censuses, 1970–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Friendswood’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

8 famous people were born in Friendswood

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Ronnie PriceAmerican basketball player · b. 1983
K
Katie Rose ClarkeAmerican actress · b. 1984
Robin ColemanAmerican actress and figure competitor · b. 1973
A
Anthony HillAmerican football tight end · b. 1985
Haley CarterAmerican soccer player · b. 1984
Suzanna HuppAmerican politician in Texas · b. 1959
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

League City1 historic placeC+PearlandIts storyDWebsterIts storyDAlvin1 historic placeCHouston292 historic placesA−

Questions about Friendswood’s history

What year was Friendswood founded?

In 1895, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Friendswood’s post office opened in 1899, and the census of 1970 counted 5,675 people here.

How does Friendswood rank for history?

Friendswood is more historic than 6% of U.S. towns, #512 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 Friendswood?

0.0% of Friendswood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1991.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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 (12), 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.