Hallettsville dates to 1831, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns · #23 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Lay-Bozka House, the Lavaca County Courthouse and the Kahn and Stanzel Building. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1849.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Hallettsville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hallettsville is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #23 of 642 in Texas. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hallettsville’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 Hallettsville’s 10.9 sits above most of its state (87% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 3 listings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.2 points). Two sources give 1831.
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 Hallettsville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
Hallettsville is named after an early founding family that colonized this area. John Hallett had received a land grant from Stephen F. Austin in 1831, and after his death in 1836, his wife, Margaret Hallett, donated the land for the town's location.
A few of the early settlers of the Hallettsville area include Collatinus Ballard, M. B. Bennett, A. W. Hicks, David Ives, Ira McDaniel, and William Smeathers.
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 Hallettsville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1962Hallettsville 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 Hallettsville.
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 viewRailroad station, 1890
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Hallettsville’s page.
In 1831, according to Wikidata. Hallettsville’s post office opened in 1849, and the census of 1870 counted 43 people here.
How does Hallettsville rank for history?
Hallettsville is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #23 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 Hallettsville?
Three places: the Lay-Bozka House (listed 1971), the Lavaca County Courthouse (1971) and the Kahn and Stanzel Building (2014).
How old are the homes in Hallettsville?
14% of Hallettsville’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 1969.
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 (9), the Library of Congress (3), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.
1912
2014
2011
2009
2008
2008
2008
2007
2004
