Most of Martindale was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. 1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 43 buildings. Below: maps from 1964 on and the census since 1990.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1875.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Martindale’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Martindale is more historic than 63% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Martindale’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 Martindale’s 401 sits above most of its state (99% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 43 historic buildings outnumber those of 84% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.3 points). Two sources give 1855.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Martindale’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Martindale was established in 1855 by Nancy Martindale, who moved to Texas from Mississippi in 1851 and donated land for the townsite.
John Crayton, his son James Lasater Crayton and their slaves moved to the banks of the San Marcos River in what is now downtown Martindale in 1839. On January 8, 1852, John Crayton sold the land to George Martindale that Nancy Martindale later donated for the town of Martindale. John Crayton moved to the Republic of Texas from Marion County, Alabama but was born and married in Franklin County, Tennessee. He also donated the land for the Martindale City Cemetery. John Crayton lived in Martindale until his death in 1873.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Martindale. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1964Martindale 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 Martindale.
People over time
Martindale, census by census
Between 904 and 1,253 people in every census since 1990.
4 censuses, 1990–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Martindale’s Wikipedia page.
Questions about Martindale’s history
What year was Martindale founded?
In 1855, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Martindale’s post office opened in 1875, and the census of 1990 counted 904 people here.
How does Martindale rank for history?
Martindale is more historic than 63% of U.S. towns. 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 Martindale?
One place: the Martindale Central Historic District (listed 2021).
How old are the homes in Martindale?
9% of Martindale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.3 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1989.
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 (3), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
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