More historic than 12% of U.S. towns · #81 of 140 in Arizona. What drives it
Most of San Carlos was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1966 on, and the census since 1970.
The San Carlos post office opened in 1875, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Rice (1909), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,542 in 19702020 census: 3,987151 years
How historic is San Carlos?
D
More historic than 12% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first San Carlos post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives San Carlos’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, San Carlos is more historic than 12% of U.S. towns, #81 of 140 in Arizona. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of San Carlos’ overall grade.
Few Arizona towns list much on the Register (a typical Arizona town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so San Carlos’ 0.0 sits below most of its state (29% of Arizona towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to C−. The pre-1940 share (±1.1 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 San Carlos’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of San Carlos yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
San Carlos (Western Apache: Sengaa) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Gila County, Arizona, United States. The population was 4,038 at the 2010 census, up from 3,716 in 2000. San Carlos is the largest community in and the seat of government for the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation. San Carlos' economy is underdeveloped and is based mainly on retail service industries, construction trades, and public administration.
Its first post office opened in 1875. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 4,038 in 2010, 3,987 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
San Carlos, 1875 to 1966
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
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 San Carlos post office opened in 1875, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does San Carlos rank for history?
San Carlos is more historic than 12% of U.S. towns, #81 of 140 in Arizona. 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 San Carlos?
0.0% of San Carlos’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.1 points), against a typical 0.4% for an Arizona town; the median home was built in 1989.
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 (6), 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.
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