Toppenish dates to 1884, and 20% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 64% of U.S. towns · #37 of 285 in Washington. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Yakima Indian Agency Building, the US Post Office-Toppenish Main and the Toppenish-Zillah Bridge. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1908 on, and the census since 1910.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1890.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Toppenish’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Toppenish is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #37 of 285 in Washington. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Toppenish’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 Toppenish’s 3.4 sits above most of its state (71% of Washington towns have fewer) while its 3 listings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.9 points). Two sources give 1884.
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 Toppenish’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
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.
All territory set aside for the Yakama Indian Reservation by the Treaty of Washington was held communally in the name of the tribe. None of the land was individually owned. The treaty of 1855, between the United States government, representatives from thirteen other bands, tribes, and Chief Kamiakin, resulted in the Yakama Nation relinquishing 16,920 square miles (43,800 km2) of their homeland. Prior to their ceding the land, only Native Americans had lived in the area.
For a time they were not much disturbed, but the Northern Pacific Railway was constructed into the area in 1883. More white settlers migrated into the region, looking for farming land, and joined the ranchers in older settlements bordering the Columbia River.
In 1884, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Toppenish’s post office opened in 1890, and the census of 1910 counted 1,598 people here.
How does Toppenish rank for history?
Toppenish is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #37 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 Toppenish?
Three places: the Yakima Indian Agency Building (listed 1988), the US Post Office-Toppenish Main (1991) and the Toppenish-Zillah Bridge (1995).
How old are the homes in Toppenish?
20% of Toppenish’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.9 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington town; the median home was built in 1966.
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), the Library of Congress (8), the National Register of Historic Places (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), 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.
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