Many of America’s historic towns date back further than the country itself. Founded by indigenous groups, Spanish conquistadors or English settlers, the country’s oldest towns provide a fascinating insight into America’s past.
Travel the length and breadth of the US, and in many towns and cities, the oldest building is hardly more than a century old. But the history of the land extends much further back, with towns that were established by Native American tribes a thousand years ago still in existence. The longest-surviving American towns can be visited today, and while most are only a portion of their original size, and some all but lost, others still maintain a significant role in modern-day America.
AROUND CE 700: Cahokia, Illinois
Located around eight miles (13km) from today’s St Louis, Missouri, and founded around CE 700, Cahokia, Illinois, was once the largest North American city north of Mexico. It was founded by Native American group the Mississippians, who once occupied the majority of southeastern North America.
By around 1050, Cahokia is thought to have had a population equal to that of London’s at the time, and was similarly cosmopolitan, with archeological evidence showing that people from various Native American groups lived together in the area.
Today, the many buildings that once made up Cahokia no longer stand, as it was deserted by 1350 – the reason for which remains unknown. However, its people left an immense reminder of their impressive society behind: 80 earthen mounds.
The largest mound, Monks Mound, measures 100 feet (30 meters) tall and 14 acres (six hectares) across and is still the biggest in North America. It was once topped by a building that acted as the center for meetings between Cahokia’s spiritual and political leaders.
1100: Oraibi Arizona
While some believe Oraibi was founded in 1150, other evidence suggests it dates back to before 1100. Situated in Navajo Country, Arizona, Oraibi is arguably the oldest continuously inhabited town in America. Founded by the Hopi tribe, who still live here today, its population is understood to have grown significantly in the 13th century, and it soon became the most important of the Hopi tribe’s settlements. Indeed, by the end of the 19th century, around half of the Hopi population lived in Oraibi.
The town can still be visited today, but its private community continues to practice a traditional Hopi way of life, making photography prohibited. Oraibi was recognized as a National Historic Landmark in 1964 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Just a year after the founding of St Augustine, the second-longest continually inhabited European settlement began on the banks of St Marys River in the modern-day state of Georgia. A number of 19th-century buildings dot the city today, such as the First Presbyterian Church, dating back to 1808, and the town’s oldest building, which was built around 1801 and bears the unwieldy name of Jackson-Clark-Bessent-MacDonell-Nesbitt House.
Santa Fe is still a major city in the US and the fourth-largest city in New Mexico. Established as Santa Fe de Nuevo México in 1610, it replaced Española as the capital of Nuevo México. It was renamed La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asís soon after, and this is still its official full title.
The Santa Fe area has been settled for much longer, though, and villages along the Rio Grande built by the Tanoan people have been dated back to around CE 900. While the city is still an important location, the Santa Fe River, which has provided food and water to the people in the area for thousands of years, was named the most endangered river in the US in 2007.
