Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Pullman

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
BHistory
History · Pullman

Pullman’s post office opened in 1881, and 12 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 56% of U.S. towns · #50 of 285 in Washington. What drives it

Most of Pullman was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. 12 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 81 buildings. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1890.

1881first post office
12on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
29famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Pullman’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Pullman began

When was Pullman founded?

1881

The Pullman post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Lincoln (1877), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 868 in 18902020 census: 32,901145 years

How historic is Pullman?

B

More historic than 56% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Pullman’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pullman is more historic than 56% of U.S. towns, #50 of 285 in Washington. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pullman’s overall grade.
Founding era1881, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19405.5% of homes (±1.3) · typical WA town 4.3% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register12 listings, 91 historic buildings, 28.2 per 10,000 residents · typical WA town 0.1 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 56%
NewerOlder
Washington towns of 2,500+ (285)Ahead of 83%

Few Washington towns list much on the Register (a typical Washington town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Pullman’s 28.2 sits above most of its state (92% of Washington towns have fewer) while its 91 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% 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 (±1.3 points) is firm at this size. 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 Pullman’s past

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

A historic districtThe College Hill Historic District takes in 81 historic buildings.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1889 to 1908, drew every building in Pullman.Landmarks on the Register12 places on the National Register.A town in postcards12 old photos, postcards and papers, 1892–1909.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

12 listings protect 91 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
12
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
91
each building in a district counts
first listed
1973
Albert W. Thompson Hall
Albert W. Thompson HallStevens HallT. A. Leonard Barn, built 1917United Presbyterian ChurchWilliam Swain HouseU.S. Post Office-Pullman, built 1930Cordova TheaterNorthern Pacific Railway Depot - PullmanPullman High School, built 1890College Hill Historic DistrictStar Route and Palouse Street Brick RoadInterstate Telephone Co. - Pullman
BuildingsDistrictsStructures

Architectural styles listings

French Revival1
Neo-Colonial1
Romanesque Revival1
Craftsman1
Late 19th and Early 20th Century Revival1
Spanish Colonial Revival1
Albert W. Thompson HallFrench Revival
Stevens HallNeo-Colonial
T. A. Leonard BarnBuilt 1917
United Presbyterian ChurchRomanesque Revival
William Swain HouseCraftsman
U.S. Post Office-PullmanLate 19th and Early 20th Century Revival · Built 1930
Cordova TheaterSpanish Colonial Revival
Northern Pacific Railway Depot - PullmanBuilding
All 12 listings
Pullman High SchoolBuilding · listed 1998College Hill Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2006Star Route and Palouse Street Brick RoadStructure · listed 2014Interstate Telephone Co. - PullmanBuilding · listed 2026

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Every building

Pullman, building by building, 1889–1908

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.

Pullman fire insurance map, 1889, sheet 11889Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Pullman came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Pullman.

Read it all →

In 1876, about five years after European-American settlers established Whitman County on November 29, 1871, Bolin Farr arrived in Pullman. He camped at the confluence of Dry Flat Creek and Missouri Flat Creek on the bank of the Palouse River. Within the year, Dan McKenzie and William Ellsworth arrived to stake claims for adjoining land. The location was called Three Forks although this was never an official name for the town. In the spring of 1881, Orville Stewart opened a general store and Bolin Farr platted about 10 acres (4.0 ha) of his land for a town. Daniel McKenzie, Bolin Farr, and Orville Stewart held a session one day to decide upon a name for their trading post, and after a lively discussion, the decision was made unanimous that it should be Pullman, which had been suggested by Orville Stewart. On September 30, 1881, Orville Stewart applied for a Post Office using the name …

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Pullman, 1877 to 1975

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1877Post officeThe Lincoln post office opens
  3. 1881Post officeThe Pullman post office opens
  4. 1882Post officeThe Lincoln post office closes
  5. 1890BuiltPullman High School is built
  6. 1892In the archivePullman School buildings, Pullman, Washington, circa 1892 - DPLA - 9a3b6bed4f2a06bd7331c5…
  7. 20th century
  8. 1905In the archiveGaar-Scott steam engine, Albion, Washington, circa 1905 - DPLA - 7b992292d4dcb9edbdb3d8e6…
  9. 1917BuiltT. A. Leonard Barn is built
  10. 1926Born hereRobert W. Clower is born here
  11. 1930BuiltU.S. Post Office-Pullman is built
  12. 1950Born hereJim Mattis is born here
  13. 1964On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  14. 1966Born hereBrian Quinnett is born here
  15. 1975Born hereMichael Baumgartner is born here
By decade

Pullman, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1900s12 items
Pullman School buildings, Pullman, Washington, circa 1892 - DPLA - 9a3b6bed4f2a06bd7331c549f21c7389c. 1892Pullman School buildings, Pullman, Washington, circa …PostcardGaar-Scott steam engine, Albion, Washington, circa 1905 - DPLA - 7b992292d4dcb9edbdb3d8e6a3d2cbe7c. 1905Gaar-Scott steam engine, Albion, Washington, circa 19…PostcardState College of Washington dairy barn and stock pavilion, Pullman, Washington, circa 1905 - DPLA - 748a60d941ef9a25fce…c. 1905State College of Washington dairy barn and stock pavi…PostcardAlder Street, looking north, Pullman, Washington, circa 1908 - DPLA - b681b1ead5886652c9be2dd5518748fcc. 1908Alder Street, looking north, Pullman, Washington, cir…PostcardPublic school, Pullman, Washington, circa 1908 - DPLA - 8ac87541fcbd44254d1f01fae04b0433c. 1908Public school, Pullman, Washington, circa 1908 - DPLA…PostcardW.S.C. [Washington State College] from top of the Totem Pole1908W.S.C. [Washington State College] from top of the Tot…Pullman Christian Church, Pullman, Washington, circa 1909 - DPLA - 202a298e185cf77ac49dc4a8b3daa5f7c. 1909Pullman Christian Church, Pullman, Washington, circa …PostcardState College of Washington1909State College of WashingtonPostcardState College of Washington1909State College of WashingtonPostcardState College of Washington1909State College of WashingtonW.S.C. [Washington State College] campus1909W.S.C. [Washington State College] campusW.S.C. [Washington State College] in winter1909W.S.C. [Washington State College] in winter
1910s–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
On the map

Pullman on the map, 1964 to 1975

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

Pullman on the 1964 USGS mapPullman on the 1975 USGS map1964Pullman sheet · 1:24,000

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

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.

Pullman School buildings, Pullman, Washington, circa 1892 - DPLA - 9a3b6bed4f2a06bd7331c549f21c7389
Retake this viewPullman School buildings, Pullman, Washington, circa 1892 - DPLA - 9a3b6bed4f2a06bd7331c549f21c7389, c. 1892

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Pullman, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,000190019201940196019802000202032,901

Grew from 868 people in 1890 to 32,901 in 2020, more than tenfold.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

29 famous people were born in Pullman

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

See all →
Jim MattisUnited States 26th Secretary of Defense · b. 1950
R
Robert W. ClowerAmerican economist · b. 1926
Michael BaumgartnerAmerican politician · b. 1975
B
Brian QuinnettAmerican basketball player · b. 1966
Dana SimpsonAmerican artist and writer · b. 1977
Tamara GrigsbyAmerican politician · b. 1974
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Pullman’s post office has been open since 1881. Another post office, Lincoln, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Lincoln
1877–1882
Pullman
1881–today
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Pullman Junction
Gone or out of use
Rogers Fieldpark
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Pullman
FarrPullman City

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

Help out

Finish Pullman’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPullman School buildings, Pullman, Wash…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Pullman’s history

What year was Pullman founded?

The Pullman post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Pullman rank for history?

Pullman is more historic than 56% of U.S. towns, #50 of 285 in Washington. 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 Pullman?

12 listings: 10 buildings, among them the Albert W. Thompson Hall (listed 1973, the first), 1 historic district, the College Hill Historic District, with 81 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 91 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Pullman?

6% of Pullman’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.3 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington town; the median home was built in 1984.

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 (8), the Library of Congress (4), the National Register of Historic Places (12), 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.