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C−History
History · Sunray

Sunray’s post office opened in 1931, and 13% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 22% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: 6 old photos and papers from 1939 on.

1931first post office
0on the National Register
13%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Sunray’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Sunray began

When was Sunray founded?

1931

The Sunray post office opened in 1931, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 1,70795 years

How historic is Sunray?

C−

More historic than 22% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Sunray post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Sunray’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sunray is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Sunray’s overall grade.
Founding era1931, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194013.4% of homes (±7.5) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%BNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical TX town 0.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 22%
NewerOlder

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 Sunray’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 range from D to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.5 points). 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 →

The story

How Sunray came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Sunray.

Read it all →

Sunray, Texas, was founded by Jack Clarence Collins. He was born in Hartley, Texas, in 1893, and in 1902 moved to Channing with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. E.S. Collins. Jack graduated from Channing High School and later, in 1916, from Texas A&M, where he was class valedictorian and class president in his senior year. Later, he served for several years as cashier of the First National Bank of Channing while extending his family's ranch holdings. Mr. Collins was well-known and respected in ranching and financial circles and was a ranking member of the Republican Party for several years.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Sunray, 1931 to 1942

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 20th century
  2. 1931Post officeThe Sunray post office opens
  3. 1939In the archiveWorker at carbon black plant
  4. 1942In the archiveSunray, Texas. Carbon black plant
By decade

Sunray, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1930s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s–1940s6 items
Worker at carbon black plant1939Worker at carbon black plantSunray, Texas. Carbon black plant1942Sunray, Texas. Carbon black plantSunray, Texas. Worker at carbon black plant1942Sunray, Texas. Worker at carbon black plantSunray, Texas. Worker at carbon black plant1942Sunray, Texas. Worker at carbon black plantSunray, Texas. Worker at carbon black plant1942Sunray, Texas. Worker at carbon black plantSunray, Texas (vicinity). Well on the pump1942Sunray, Texas (vicinity). Well on the pump
1950s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Worker at carbon black plant
Retake this viewWorker at carbon black plant, 1939

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Sunray’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Sunray

Nobody well known was born in Sunray itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
D
Darlene CatesAmerican actress · b. 1947
Ron WhiteAmerican comedian · b. 1956
Mike ConawayFormer U.S. Representative from Texas · b. 1948
Lucretia LoveAmerican actress · b. 1941
D
Donny AndersonPlayer of American football · b. 1943
C
Carl McAdamsAmerican football player · b. 1944
Help out

Finish Sunray’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewWorker at carbon black plant: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Sunray’s history

What year was Sunray founded?

The Sunray post office opened in 1931, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Sunray rank for history?

Sunray is more historic than 22% 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.

How old are the homes in Sunray?

13% of Sunray’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.5 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1972.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 the Library of Congress (6), 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.