Plano’s post office opened in 1852, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 33% of U.S. towns · #222 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of Plano was built recently: 0.2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. Its Register listings are the Ammie Wilson House, the Saigling House and the Texas Pool. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1870.
The Plano post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1873. Two smaller post offices, Viney (1890) and Shepton (1894), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 155 in 18702020 census: 285,494174 years
How historic is Plano?
C
More historic than 33% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Plano post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1873.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Plano’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Plano is more historic than 33% of U.S. towns, #222 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Plano’s overall grade.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Plano ranks #294 on History.
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 Plano’s 0.4 sits above most of its state (70% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 11 historic buildings outnumber those of 76% of U.S. towns.
Newer cities are common at Plano’s size: in the typical U.S. city of 100,000 or more, 5% of homes predate 1940.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B. The pre-1940 share (±0.1 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1873 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Plano’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Plano’s post office has been open since 1852. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Plano
1852–today
Viney
1890–1891
Shepton
1894–1903
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
CowleyShepton
Gone or out of use
C C Flyers Airportairport
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Plano
BaccusBethanyPlano Mutual
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Several Native American tribes have passed through what is now Plano, including the Comanche, Caddo, and Wichita. Settlers came to the area near present-day Plano in the early 1840s. Facilities such as a sawmill, a gristmill, and a store soon brought more people to the area. A mail service was established, and after rejecting several names for the nascent town (including naming it in honor of then-President Millard Fillmore), residents suggested the name Plano (from the Spanish word for "flat") in reference to the local terrain. The post office accepted the name.
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.
The Plano post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1873.
How does Plano rank for history?
Plano is more historic than 33% of U.S. towns, #222 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 Plano?
Three places: the Ammie Wilson House (listed 1978), the Saigling House (2018) and the Texas Pool (2019).
How old are the homes in Plano?
0.2% of Plano’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1993.
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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.
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