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History · Hartley

Hartley’s post office opened in 1888, and 19% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1973 on and the census since 2000.

1888first post office
0on the National Register
19%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: brewbooks from near Seattle, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0
Quick answers

How Hartley began

When was Hartley founded?

1888

The Hartley post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 441 in 20002020 census: 382138 years
Founding year: the first Hartley post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Hartley’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Hartley are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 540 in 2010; 382 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Hartley’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Hartley’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
People over time

Hartley, census by census

010020030040050060020002020Peak: 540

Peaked at 540 in 2010; 382 people lived here in 2020.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

The story

How Hartley came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hartley.

Read it all →

In 1832, John Charles Beales and Jose Manuel Royella were granted the section where Hartley is now located under colonization laws of Mexico and Texas. They represented the Arkansas and Texas Land Company, but they failed to colonize this territory and they forfeited their rights.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Hartley, 1888 to 2010

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888Post officeThe Hartley post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1973On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 21st century
  6. 2010CensusPopulation peaks at 540
By decade

Hartley, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Southeast of Harley, Texas2008Southeast of Harley, TexasSoutheast of Harley, Texas2008Southeast of Harley, TexasSoutheast of Harley, Texas2008Southeast of Harley, TexasHartley, Texas2006Hartley, TexasTXMap-doton-Hartley2004TXMap-doton-Hartley
On the map

Hartley on the map, 1973 to 1985

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

Hartley on the 1973 USGS mapHartley on the 1985 USGS map1973Hartley 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 Hartley.

Famous people

Famous people close to Hartley

Nobody well known was born in Hartley itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
C
Carl McAdamsAmerican football player · b. 1944
E
Elizabeth A. DavisTheatre actor · b. 1980
Frank NoelPhotographer from the United States · b. 1905
Marilyn HickeyAmerican televangelist, faith healer, and missi… · b. 1931
Eduardo MartinezAmerican politician · b. 1949
H
Hugh WillinghamMajor League Baseball infielder · b. 1906

Questions about Hartley’s history

What year was Hartley founded?

The Hartley post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (5), Wikipedia, 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.