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B+History
History · Grapevine

Grapevine dates to 1844, and 4 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 65% of U.S. towns · #74 of 642 in Texas. What drives it

Most of Grapevine was built recently: 0.6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. 4 places in town are on the National Register, among them four historic districts with 132 buildings between them. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1921 on, and the census since 1880.

1844founded
4on the National Register
0.6%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
11famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Grapevine’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Grapevine began

When was Grapevine founded?

1844

Grapevine dates its founding to 1844 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 199 in 18802020 census: 50,631182 years

How historic is Grapevine?

B+

More historic than 65% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1858.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Grapevine’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Grapevine is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #74 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Grapevine’s overall grade.
Founding era1844, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19400.6% of homes (±0.6) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register4 listings, 132 historic buildings, 25.8 per 10,000 residents · typical TX town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 65%
NewerOlder
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 89%

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 Grapevine’s 25.8 sits above most of its state (91% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 132 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1844.

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 Grapevine’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Original Town Residential Historic District takes in 98 historic buildings.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Grapevine, and 1 old place names are still on the map.Deep rootsEstablished in 1844: 182 years of Grapevine.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Grapevine’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMain Street: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

4 listings protect 132 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
132
each building in a district counts
first listed
1992
Grapevine Commercial Historic District
Grapevine Commercial Historic DistrictCotton Belt Railroad Industrial Historic DistrictThomas J. and Elizabeth Nash FarmOriginal Town Residential Historic District
Districts

Architectural styles listings

Commercial1
1-Part Commercial Block1
2-Part Commercial Block1
Service Station1
Vernacular L-Plan1
Queen Anne1
Grapevine Commercial Historic DistrictCommercial
Cotton Belt Railroad Industrial Historic DistrictDistrict
Thomas J. and Elizabeth Nash FarmDistrict
All 4 listings
Original Town Residential Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1998

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 and burying grounds

Grapevine’s post office has been open since 1858. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Grapevine
1858–today
Dove
1894–1904
Muriel
1899–1905
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Minters Chapel
1cemetery inside Grapevine
Parker Memorial

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

The story

How Grapevine came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Grapevine.

Read it all →

In October 1843, General Sam Houston and fellow Republic of Texas commissioners camped at Tah-Wah-Karro Creek, also known as Grape Vine Springs, to meet with leaders of 10 Indian nations. This meeting culminated in the signing of a treaty of "peace, friendship, and commerce", which opened the area for homesteaders. The settlement that emerged was named Grape Vine due to its location on the appropriately named Grape Vine Prairie near Grape Vine Springs, both names in homage to the wild grapes that grew in the area. Grapevine is the oldest settlement in Tarrant County, established in 1844, before Texas joined the Union in 1846.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Grapevine, 1844 to 2006

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1844
    FoundingGrapevine is established
  3. 1858Post officeThe Grapevine post office opens
  4. 1894Post officeThe Dove post office opens
  5. 1899Post officeThe Muriel post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1900In the archiveMain Street
  8. 1904Post officeThe Dove post office closes
  9. 1905Post officeThe Muriel post office closes
  10. 1912In the archivePublic School
  11. 1931Born hereMary L. Good is born here
  12. 1931On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  13. 1983Born hereAnnie Ilonzeh is born here
  14. 1991Born hereGreg Garza is born here
  15. 21st century
  16. 2006Born hereMckenna Grace is born here
By decade

Grapevine, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s–1910s4 items
Main Street1900–1908Main StreetBaptist Church1906Baptist ChurchGrapevine High School1909Grapevine High SchoolPublic School1912Public School
1920s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today8 recent
Grapevine Tower 32009Grapevine Tower 3Grapevine Tower 12009Grapevine Tower 1Grapevine Lake2009Grapevine Lake2009-365-29- Coffee Logic20092009-365-29- Coffee LogicBus Hwy 121 south from IH35E south2007Bus Hwy 121 south from IH35E southWagon Wheel Ranch-22006Wagon Wheel Ranch-2Wagon Wheel Ranch-12006Wagon Wheel Ranch-1Main Street Grapevine Texas by Raymond Lafourchette2004Main Street Grapevine Texas by Raymond Lafourchette
On the map

Grapevine on the map, 1931 to 1981

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

Grapevine on the 1931 USGS mapGrapevine on the 1959 USGS mapGrapevine on the 1968 USGS mapGrapevine on the 1973 USGS mapGrapevine on the 1981 USGS map1931Grapevine 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 Grapevine.

Every building

Grapevine, building by building, 1921

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 sheet.

Grapevine fire insurance map, 1921, sheet 11921Sheet 1 of 4
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

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.

Main Street
Retake this viewMain Street, 1900–1908

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Grapevine’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Grapevine, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,00050,00055,0001880190019201940196019802000202050,631

Grew from 199 people in 1880 to 50,631 in 2020, more than tenfold.

14 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

11 famous people were born in Grapevine

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

See all →
M
Mckenna GraceAmerican actress and singer · b. 2006
A
Annie IlonzehAmerican actress · b. 1983
Mary L. GoodAmerican chemist · b. 1931
Greg GarzaAmerican soccer player · b. 1991
Wingate Hezekiah LucasAmerican politician · b. 1908
L
Lexi MissimoAmerican soccer player · b. 2003
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

SouthlakeIts storyD−ColleyvilleIts storyD−LewisvilleIts storyC−Flower MoundIts storyDEulessIts storyDCoppellIts storyD

Questions about Grapevine’s history

What year was Grapevine founded?

In 1844, according to Wikidata. Grapevine’s post office opened in 1858, and the census of 1880 counted 199 people here.

How does Grapevine rank for history?

Grapevine is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #74 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 Grapevine?

4 listings: 4 historic districts with 132 contributing buildings. 132 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Grapevine?

0.6% of Grapevine’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1993.

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), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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.