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CHistory
History · Whitehouse

Whitehouse dates to 1846

More historic than 28% of U.S. towns · #262 of 642 in Texas. What drives it

Most of Whitehouse was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1995. Below: maps from 1943 on and the census since 1960.

1846founded
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Whitehouse began

When was Whitehouse founded?

1846

Whitehouse dates its founding to 1846 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1960.

First census: 842 in 19602020 census: 8,257180 years

How historic is Whitehouse?

C

More historic than 28% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1873.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Whitehouse’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Whitehouse is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #262 of 642 in Texas. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Whitehouse’s overall grade.
Founding era1846, from Wikipedia: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19400.0% of homes (±0.7) · typical TX town 1.6% · U.S. 8.4%D−National 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 28%
NewerOlder
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 59%

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 Whitehouse’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.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1846.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share (±0.7 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Whitehouse’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 Whitehouse are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Deep rootsEstablished in 1846: 180 years of Whitehouse.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Whitehouse’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Whitehouse’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
Timeline

Whitehouse, 1846 to 1991

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1846
    FoundingWhitehouse is established
  3. 1873Post officeThe Whitehouse post office opens
  4. 1886Born hereHank Griffin is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1943On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1991Born hereJacob Holmen is born here
The story

How Whitehouse came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Whitehouse.

Read it all →

The community was founded long before the city was officially incorporated by James Calhoun Hill (auctioneer in 1846 for Tyler land grants). The community was named in 1845, but was not incorporated until 1953. The school district (WISD) preceded incorporated municipal government and was largely responsible for the eventual formation of the city.

Residents of Whitehouse were predominantly farmers or worked in support of agriculture until transportation innovations following World War II led to other employment options. Many streets and subdivisions in the community are named for these early agricultural and commercial leaders.

ChaptersEarly historyYesterYear Celebration

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Whitehouse, decade by decade

Today3 recent
Whitehouse Junior High School 20242024Whitehouse Junior High School 2024A Kickerz Coffee drive-through location with a distinctive Western twist in2014A Kickerz Coffee drive-through location with a distin…TXMap-doton-Whitehouse2004TXMap-doton-Whitehouse
On the map

Whitehouse on the map, 1943 to 1973

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

Whitehouse on the 1943 USGS mapWhitehouse on the 1973 USGS map1943Troup sheet · 1:62,500

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

People over time

Whitehouse, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00019601980200020208,257

Grew from 842 people in 1960 to 8,257 in 2020, 9 times over.

7 censuses, 1960–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Whitehouse

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

See all →
H
Hank GriffinMajor League Baseball pitcher · b. 1886
Jacob HolmenAmerican basketball player · b. 1991
Places that used to be

Places now gone and burying grounds

Whitehouse’s post office has been open since 1873.

Gone or out of use
Nuttall Airportairport
1cemetery inside Whitehouse
Whitehouse

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Whitehouse’s history

What year was Whitehouse founded?

In 1846, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Whitehouse’s post office opened in 1873, and the census of 1960 counted 842 people here.

How does Whitehouse rank for history?

Whitehouse is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #262 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 Whitehouse?

0.0% of Whitehouse’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 1995.

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 (3), 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.