Most of Santa Maria was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1987. Below: maps from 1929 on and the census since 2000.
The community known as Santa Maria was first established in the 1750s by José de Escandón's colonists. In 1777, the land of Santa Maria would be granted from Spain to Rosa María Hinojosa de Ballí, a known rancher in Spanish Texas, now apart of the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico.
It is likely that the community was named after Saint Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikipedia, 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.
