La Grange dates to 1837, and 20% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 88% of U.S. towns · #4 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
7 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1839.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives La Grange’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, La Grange is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #4 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 La Grange’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 La Grange’s 20.2 sits above most of its state (90% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 9 historic buildings outnumber those of 75% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.7 points). Two sources give 1837.
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 La Grange’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost a third of its people between 1900 and 1920, then more than doubled.
16 censuses, 1870–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on La Grange’s Wikipedia page.
Every building
La Grange, building by building, 1885–1921
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 year, then a sheet.
1885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
On the National Register
7 historic places in La Grange
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
La Grange was the site of an early crossing of the Colorado River along La Bahía (Lower Road) of the El Camino Real (Kings Highway), during the Spanish period. The earliest Anglo-American settlers in the area were Aylett C. Buckner and Peter Powell, who lived slightly to the west. The first Anglo-American settlement on the city's present location was by Stephen F. Austin's band of colonists in 1822. John Henry Moore built a blockhouse in 1828 (some sources cite 1826) as protection from the Comanche. The building is known as Moore's Fort and can be found today in nearby Round Top, having been moved there for restoration.
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.
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.
In 1837, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. La Grange’s post office opened in 1839, and the census of 1870 counted 1,165 people here.
How does La Grange rank for history?
La Grange is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #4 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 La Grange?
7 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Fayette County Courthouse and Jail (listed 1975, the first), 2 historic districts, the Fayette County Courthouse Square Historic District and the Mier Expedition and Dawson's Men Monument and Tomb,, and 1 structure. 9 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in La Grange?
20% of La Grange’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.7 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1972.
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 (7), 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.
1936
1936
1936
1936
1936
1936
1936
1936
2004
