The Wallis post office opened in 1911, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Wallis Station (1886), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
2020 census: 1,292115 years
How historic is Wallis?
B−
More historic than 50% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Wallis post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Wallis’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wallis is more historic than 50% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wallis’ 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 Wallis’ 5.9 sits above most of its state (83% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±12.5 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 →
What stands out about Wallis’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1830 the first Anglo-Americans made their homes in the area between the Brazos and San Bernard rivers. When the settlement got a post office in 1873, its name was Bovine Bend. Sometime after 1880, the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway was constructed through the community from Galveston to Brenham. At that time, the town was renamed Wallis Station after J. E. Wallis, the director of the railroad. In 1887 the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway, being built east toward Houston, reached Wallis. Starting in about 1890, Czech immigrants began moving into the area. By 1904 there were 631 souls living in Wallis. In 1911, the town dropped "Station" from its name to become Wallis. Seven years later its school had 100 students. Between 1925 and 1943 the population grew from 800 to 900. By the latter year the town boasted 39 businesses. After declining to 690 in 1949, the number of inhabita…
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices
Wallis’s post office has been open since 1911. Another post office, Wallis Station, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Wallis Station
1886–1911
Wallis
1911–today
18801950today
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Wallis’ history
What year was Wallis founded?
The Wallis post office opened in 1911, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Wallis rank for history?
Wallis is more historic than 50% 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.
What is on the National Register in Wallis?
One place: the Church of the Guardian Angel (listed 1983).
How old are the homes in Wallis?
21% of Wallis’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±12.5 points), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1981.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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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