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Wickenberg -Frontier StreetPhoto: Tony the Marine · CC BY-SA 3.0
C+History
History · Wickenburg

Wickenburg dates to 1863, and 24 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 43% of U.S. towns · #28 of 140 in Arizona. What drives it

Most of Wickenburg was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. 24 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 6 buildings. Below: maps from 1915 on and the census since 1870.

1863founded
24on the National Register
2%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Wickenburg began

When was Wickenburg founded?

1863

Wickenburg dates its founding to 1863 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 174 in 18702020 census: 7,474163 years

How historic is Wickenburg?

C+

More historic than 43% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1878.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Wickenburg’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wickenburg is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #28 of 140 in Arizona. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wickenburg’s overall grade.
Founding era1863, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19401.6% of homes (±1.9) · typical AZ town 0.4% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register24 listings, 30 historic buildings, 37.2 per 10,000 residents · typical AZ town 0.1 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 43%
NewerOlder
Arizona towns of 2,500+ (140)Ahead of 81%

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 Wickenburg’s 37.2 sits above most of its state (86% of Arizona towns have fewer) while its 30 historic buildings outnumber those of 82% 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 (±1.9 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1863.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Wickenburg’s past

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

Landmarks on the Register24 places on the National Register.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Wickenburg are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1870 and 1880, then grew more than tenfold.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Wickenburg, and 5 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

24 historic places in Wickenburg

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

places listed
24
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
30
each building in a district counts
first listed
1978
Kay-El-Bar Ranch
Garcia SchoolCactus InnCity Hall and JailGeorge B. Upton HouseHouse at 160 ApacheHouse at 170 CenterHouse at 185 WashingtonOld Barber ShopOld Brick Post OfficeSafeway Pay 'n TakitSanta Fe Railroad DepotVernetta HotelWickenburg High School and AnnexWickenburg High School GymnasiumWickenburg-Boetto HouseKay-El-Bar RanchJacobs HouseMasonic HallMunicipal Light PlantStorms HouseWickenburg Ice and Cold StorageShride HouseWisdom HouseWickenburg, Henry, Pioneer Cemetery
BuildingsDistrictsSites

Architectural styles listings

Neo-Colonial5
Bungalow5
Commercial3
Period Revival: English1
Railroad Vernacular1
Period Revival: Colonial1
Garcia SchoolNeo-Colonial
Cactus InnBungalow
City Hall and JailNeo-Colonial
George B. Upton HouseNeo-Colonial
House at 160 ApachePeriod Revival: English
House at 170 CenterBungalow
House at 185 WashingtonBungalow
Old Barber ShopCommercial
All 24 listings
Old Brick Post OfficeBuilding · listed 1986Safeway Pay 'n TakitBuilding · listed 1986Santa Fe Railroad DepotBuilding · listed 1986Vernetta HotelBuilding · listed 1986Wickenburg High School and AnnexBuilding · listed 1986Wickenburg High School GymnasiumBuilding · listed 1986Wickenburg-Boetto HouseBuilding · listed 2006Kay-El-Bar RanchDistrict · listed 1978Jacobs HouseBuilding · listed 1986Masonic HallBuilding · listed 1986Municipal Light PlantBuilding · listed 1986Storms HouseBuilding · listed 1986Wickenburg Ice and Cold StorageBuilding · listed 1986Shride HouseBuilding · listed 1986Wisdom HouseBuilding · listed 1987Wickenburg, Henry, Pioneer CemeterySite · listed 2011

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

Help out

Start Wickenburg’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Wickenburg’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Wickenburg, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00018801900192019401960198020002020174 in 1870Low: 104

Lost a third of its people between 1870 and 1880, then grew more than tenfold.

14 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

The story

How Wickenburg came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Wickenburg.

Read it all →

The Wickenburg area, along with much of the Southwest, became part of the United States by the 1848 treaty that ended the Mexican–American War. An expedition into the area took place on January 7, 1860, when the Gila Rangers led by Jack Swilling, entered an unexplored part of central Arizona while pursuing Tonto Apache raiders who had stolen stock from miners and the Overland Mail Company.

In 1862, a gold strike on the Colorado River near present-day Yuma brought American prospectors, who searched for minerals throughout central Arizona. Many of the geographic landmarks now bear the names of these pioneers, including the Weaver Mountains, named after mountain man Pauline Weaver, and Peeples Valley, named after a settler.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Wickenburg, 1863 to 2020

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1863
    FoundingWickenburg is established
  3. 1878Post officeThe Wickenburgh post office opens
  4. 1894Post officeThe Wickenburgh post office closes
  5. 1894Post officeThe Wickenburg post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1964On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 21st century
  9. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 7,474
By decade

Wickenburg, decade by decade

Today12 recent
Turkey Vulture, Arizona 042017Turkey Vulture, Arizona 04Turkey Vulture, Arizona 022017Turkey Vulture, Arizona 02Turkey Vulture, Arizona 012017Turkey Vulture, Arizona 01Historic cemetery car2015Historic cemetery carU.S. Route 93 and Vulture Mine Road2012U.S. Route 93 and Vulture Mine RoadNorthbound on U.S. Route 93 near2012Northbound on U.S. Route 93 nearMobil gas station at Intersection of U.S. Route 93 and Vulture Mine Road2012Mobil gas station at Intersection of U.S. Route 93 an…Looking South at Wickenburg, Arizona as seen from intersection of U.S. Route 93 and Vulture Mine Road2012Looking South at Wickenburg, Arizona as seen from int…Highway sign North of U.S. Route 93 and Vulture Mine Road, near2012Highway sign North of U.S. Route 93 and Vulture Mine …WickenburgCountryside2009WickenburgCountrysidePalm Lake at Hassayampa River Preserve2009Palm Lake at Hassayampa River Preservepanoramio (1758)2006panoramio (1758)
On the map

Wickenburg on the map, 1964 to 1978

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

Wickenburg on the 1964 USGS mapWickenburg on the 1978 USGS map1964Wickenburg 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 Wickenburg.

Every building

Wickenburg, building by building, 1915

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 sheet.

Wickenburg fire insurance map, 1915, sheet 11915Sheet 1 of 1
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Wickenburg

Nobody well known was born in Wickenburg itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Mary PetersUnited States Secretary of Transportation · b. 1948
B
Bryce DukeAmerican soccer player · b. 2001
L
Lauren HaegerAmerican professional softball player · b. 1992
Matthew LiberatoreAmerican baseball player · b. 1999
C
Colleen PlanetaAmerican basketball player · b. 1988
Places that used to be

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

Wickenburg’s post office has been open since 1894. Another post office, Wickenburgh, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Wickenburgh
1878–1894
Wickenburg
1894–today
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Aztec Mobile Home ParkDesert Cypress Trailer RanchPalm Drive Trailer RanchValle Vista Trailer ParkWestpark Mobile Home Park
Gone or out of use
Flying E Guest Ranch Airportairport
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Wickenburg
GarciaHenry Wickenburg PioneerSaint Alban's Episcopal Church Memorial GardenSaint Anthony de Padua Catholic Church ColumbariumWickenburg

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

Questions about Wickenburg’s history

What year was Wickenburg founded?

In 1863, according to Wikidata. Wickenburg’s post office opened in 1878, and the census of 1870 counted 174 people here.

How does Wickenburg rank for history?

Wickenburg is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #28 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.

What is on the National Register in Wickenburg?

24 listings: 22 buildings, 1 historic district, the Kay-El-Bar Ranch, with 6 contributing buildings, and 1 site. 30 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Wickenburg?

2% of Wickenburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.9 points), against a typical 0.4% for an Arizona town; the median home was built in 1993.

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 (12), the National Register of Historic Places (24), Wikipedia, 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.