More historic than 3% of U.S. towns · #591 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of Shady Shores was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2002. Below: maps from 1960 on and the census since 1970.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Shady Shores is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #591 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Shady Shores’ 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 Shady Shores’ 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.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1932.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to D. The pre-1940 share (±1.5 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Shady Shores’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
There was a Shady Shores Independent School in 1912. In the mid-1920s, John William Franck, a Dallas contractor, built a fishing camp with about ten wood-shingle cabins on the northern shores of Lake Dallas. He had this in mind as a weekend retreat for Dallas residents. In the 1930s, many of the fishing camps were torn down and replaced by permanent homes, a number of which are still standing.
In 1932, according to Wikidata. the census of 1970 counted 543 people here.
How does Shady Shores rank for history?
Shady Shores is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #591 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 Shady Shores?
0.0% of Shady Shores’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.5 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 2002.
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, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
