Suquamish’s post office opened in 1908, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 30% of U.S. towns · #133 of 285 in Washington. What drives it
Most of Suquamish was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. Its Register listing is the Agate Pass Bridge. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1937 on, and the census since 1980.
The Suquamish post office opened in 1908, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Bartow (1900), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,498 in 19802020 census: 4,266118 years
How historic is Suquamish?
C
More historic than 30% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Suquamish post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Suquamish’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Suquamish is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns, #133 of 285 in Washington. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Suquamish’s overall grade.
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 Suquamish’s 2.4 sits above most of its state (67% of Washington 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 B−. The pre-1940 share (±2.3 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 Suquamish’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The Suquamish people have lived in the Puget Sound, including the area around the current town of Suquamish, Washington, for thousands of years. When Europeans began moving to the Americas, diseases spread to the Suquamish and killed many people.
In 1855, members of the Suquamish Tribe signed the Treaty of Point Elliott, which created the Port Madison Reservation. Its land included dxʷsəq’ʷəb (the place of the clear salt water), a winter village around the Old Man House. The longhouse's residents had included Chief Seattle and Chief Kitsap. When Chief Seattle died in 1866, he was buried in a cemetery, now called the Suquamish Cemetery, near the village.
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 Suquamish post office opened in 1908, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Suquamish rank for history?
Suquamish is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns, #133 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 Suquamish?
One place: the Agate Pass Bridge (listed 1995).
How old are the homes in Suquamish?
9% of Suquamish’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.3 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington 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 (9), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, 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.
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