Terrell’s post office opened in 1873, and 6 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 51% of U.S. towns · #125 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Most of Terrell was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: the first Terrell post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1874.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Terrell’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Terrell is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns, #125 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Terrell’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 Terrell’s 3.4 sits above most of its state (79% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 7 historic buildings outnumber those of 73% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. The pre-1940 share (±2.8 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1874 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 Terrell’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.
Terrell developed as a railroad town, beginning in 1873 with the construction of the Texas and Pacific Railroad line. The town was named for Robert A. Terrell, a pioneer European-American settler whose farm lay on its western edge. He built an octagonal house on his property, called "Round House", to provide better defense against attacks by Native Americans. His house was later fitted with the first glass windows in the county. The community was incorporated in 1875. The first automobile appeared in 1899.
In 1892, Terrell was a sundown town that largely prohibited African Americans from living there.
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 Terrell post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1874.
How does Terrell rank for history?
Terrell is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns, #125 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 Terrell?
6 listings: 5 buildings and 1 site. 7 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Terrell?
7% of Terrell’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1984.
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), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (6), 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.
★ Landmark
1968
2014
2011
