More historic than 9% of U.S. towns · #486 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of South Houston was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1969. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1915 on, and the census since 1930.
Founding year: the first South Houston post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives South Houston’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, South Houston is more historic than 9% of U.S. towns, #486 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of South Houston’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 South Houston’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.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be D. The pre-1940 share (±1.4 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 South Houston’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of South Houston. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1915Deepwater 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 South Houston.
C.S. Woods of the Western Land Company founded the settlement of Dumont in 1907. A post office appeared in 1910. In 1913 Dumont was incorporated as the city of South Houston. Because of the 1913 incorporation, Houston did not incorporate South Houston's territory into its city limits, while Houston annexed surrounding areas that were unincorporated. South Houston's initial industrial activity consisted of shipping produce along the Galveston, Houston and Henderson Railroad. The hurricane of 1915 destroyed many of the local industries. The establishment of the Houston Ship Channel resulted in the establishment of manufacturing industries inland, including in South Houston. Between the 1940s and the early 1960s South Houston found rapid population growth. The city had 7,523 inhabitants in 1960. In 1980, South Houston had 11,782 inhabitants and 303 businesses. In 1990, 14,207 inhabitants l…
The South Houston post office opened in 1908, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does South Houston rank for history?
South Houston is more historic than 9% of U.S. towns, #486 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 South Houston?
2% of South Houston’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.4 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1969.
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 (4), 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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2010