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C−History
History · Waller

Waller’s post office opened in 1884

More historic than 24% of U.S. towns · #294 of 642 in Texas. What drives it

Most of Waller was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1988. Below: maps from 1920 on and the census since 1950.

1884first post office
0on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Larry D. Moore · CC BY 4.0
Quick answers

How Waller began

When was Waller founded?

1884

The Waller post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 715 in 19502020 census: 2,682142 years

How historic is Waller?

C−

More historic than 24% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Waller’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Waller is more historic than 24% of U.S. towns, #294 of 642 in Texas. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Waller’s overall grade.
Founding era1884, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19405.8% of homes (±3.8) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%CNational 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 24%
NewerOlder
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 54%

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 Waller’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 C− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.8 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 →

What stands out about Waller’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Waller are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19203 editions of the USGS map, 1920 to 1980. Watch Waller change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Waller’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Waller’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Waller on the map, 1920 to 1980

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Waller. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Waller on the 1920 USGS mapWaller on the 1960 USGS mapWaller on the 1980 USGS map1920Waller sheet · 1:31,680

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Waller.

The story so far

Waller, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Waller yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Waller is a city in Harris and Waller counties in Texas, United States, that is within the Houston–Cypress metropolitan area. Its population was 2,682 at the 2020 U.S. census. The Waller area is located along U.S. Route 290 (Northwest Freeway) 41 miles (66 km) northwest of downtown Houston.

Its first post office opened in 1884. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,326 to 2,682 (+15%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Waller, 1884 to 1989

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1884Post officeThe Waller post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1920On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1986Born hereJason Phillips is born here
  6. 1989Born hereDavid Hunter is born here
By decade

Waller, decade by decade

Today4 recent
(Vertical) Beautiful Sunset over2026(Vertical) Beautiful Sunset overWaller Texas City Hall 20202020Waller Texas City Hall 2020Buc-ees2019Buc-eesWaller ISD Stadium2016Waller ISD Stadium
People over time

Waller, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,00019601980200020202,682

Grew from 715 people in 1950 to 2,682 in 2020, 3 times over.

8 censuses, 1950–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Waller’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Waller

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Jason PhillipsAmerican football player · b. 1986
D
David HunterAmerican football player · b. 1989
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Prairie View6 historic placesC

Questions about Waller’s history

What year was Waller founded?

The Waller post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Waller rank for history?

Waller is more historic than 24% of U.S. towns, #294 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 Waller?

6% of Waller’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.8 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1988.

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 Wikimedia Commons (4), 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.