More historic than 9% of U.S. towns · #479 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of Jarrell was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2015. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 2000.
The Jarrell post office opened in 1912, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Corn Hill (1855), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 459 in 20002020 census: 1,753114 years
How historic is Jarrell?
D
More historic than 9% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Jarrell post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Jarrell’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jarrell is more historic than 9% of U.S. towns, #479 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Jarrell’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 Jarrell’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 any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be D. The pre-1940 share (±2.4 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Jarrell’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Founded in 1909 by real estate developer O.D. Jarrell, along with E. C. Haeber, the town was settled at the intersection of an old stagecoach road and the Bartlett Western Railroad that was under construction. Soon after the railroad was completed, a saloon, two stores, a post office, and a bank were built. Because of the proximity of Jarrell to the railroad, Jarrell received all of the people and most of the buildings of nearby Corn Hill, Texas, thus killing that town. The city reached a population peak of 500 residents in 1914. The closing of the railway in 1935 and the decline of the cotton industry, however, led to a long-term recession. At one point, Jarrell had only 200 residents. After this low point, the city experienced a recovery that increased its population to 410 by 1990. Over 15 new businesses opened in Jarrell in 2009.
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.
The Jarrell post office opened in 1912, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Jarrell rank for history?
Jarrell is more historic than 9% of U.S. towns, #479 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 Jarrell?
2% of Jarrell’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.4 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 2015.
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 (6), 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.
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