More historic than 9% of U.S. towns · #479 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of La Joya was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1996. Below: maps from 1963 on and the census since 1970.
The La Joya post office opened in 1931, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1965.
First census: 1,217 in 19702020 census: 4,45795 years
How did La Joya get its name?
La Joya’s name, meaning "the jewel", was inspired by a small natural lake west of the city; early settlers were said to observe that the lake shined in the sun like a jewel.
How historic is La Joya?
D
More historic than 9% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, La Joya 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 La Joya’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 Joya’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 (±2.9 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1965.
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 La Joya’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Its name, meaning "the jewel", was inspired by a small natural lake west of the city; early settlers were said to observe that the lake shined in the sun like a jewel. The site on which La Joya was founded was part of what was known as "Los Ejidos de Reynosa Viejo". The ejidos were the shared grazing lands used for the livestock of the settlers of Reynosa Viejo ("Old Reynosa"). During the early 1800s, at the site of what is now La Joya, Francisco de la Garza, a descendant of the early colonizers of the area who soon decided to change his last name from de la Garza to Garza, founded a community, called "Tabasco", adjacent to the northern bank of the Rio Grande. It was a prosperous community that died out after floods in 1908 and 1909. The settlers moved their belongings just north to higher and less flood-prone ground, present-day La Joya.
The La Joya post office opened in 1931, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1965.
How does La Joya rank for history?
La Joya 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 La Joya?
2% of La Joya’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.9 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1996.
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 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) 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.
