Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 18% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Most of Old River-Winfree was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1990. Below: maps from 1961 on and the census since 1980.
More historic than 18% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Old River-Winfree is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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 Old River-Winfree’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.
Founding year: our sources. 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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Old River-Winfree’s history is told.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Old River-Winfree yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Old River-Winfree is a city in Chambers and Liberty counties, Texas, United States. The population was 1,315 at the 2020 census.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,245 to 1,315 (+6%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Old River-Winfree. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Old River-Winfree.
Between 1,058 and 1,364 people in every census since 1980.
5 censuses, 1980–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Old River-Winfree’s Wikipedia page.
Nobody well known was born in Old River-Winfree itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Another post office, Winfree, opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Old River-Winfree is more historic than 18% 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.
4% of Old River-Winfree’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.0 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1990.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 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.
