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History · Bloomfield

Bloomfield’s post office opened in 1856, and 52% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1942 on.

1856first post office
0on the National Register
52%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Bloomfield’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Bloomfield began

When was Bloomfield founded?

1856

The Bloomfield post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 338170 years
Founding year: the first Bloomfield post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Bloomfield’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Bloomfield’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bloomfield’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBloomfield, California (circa 1870): stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Bloomfield came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bloomfield.

Read it all →

Bloomfield is located on part of Rancho Cañada de Pogolimi. In 1853, William Zellhardt built a house on the site of present-day Bloomfield, which attracted other immigrants and led to plans for a town in 1856. At one point in the late 1850s, Bloomfield was the second largest town in Sonoma County, and in 1877 it had four hotels and a population of 250. However, the town never recovered from being bypassed by the railroads, and its growth tapered off.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bloomfield, 1856 to 1955

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1856Post officeThe Bloomfield post office opens
  3. 1870In the archiveBloomfield, California (circa 1870)
  4. 20th century
  5. 1942On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1955Post officeThe Bloomfield post office closes
By decade

Bloomfield, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1870s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s1 item
Bloomfield, California (circa 1870)c. 1870Bloomfield, California (circa 1870)
Today1 recent
BloomfieldEdit31752008BloomfieldEdit3175
On the map

Bloomfield on the map, 1942 to 1971

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

Bloomfield on the 1942 USGS mapBloomfield on the 1954 USGS mapBloomfield on the 1971 USGS map1942Sebastopol sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Bloomfield.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Bloomfield, California (circa 1870)
Retake this viewBloomfield, California (circa 1870), c. 1870

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Bloomfield’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Bloomfield

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

See all →
Rebecca De MornayAmerican actress · b. 1959
Julie LondonAmerican actress and singer · b. 1926
Pauline KaelAmerican film critic · b. 1919
Jussie SmollettAmerican actor · b. 1982
Nicole MannAmerican astronaut of Estonian origin · b. 1977
Chad ChanningAmerican musician · b. 1967
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Bloomfield had its own post office from 1856 to 1955.

Bloomfield
1856–1955
18501940today
1cemetery inside Bloomfield
Bloomfield

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

Questions about Bloomfield’s history

What year was Bloomfield founded?

The Bloomfield post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.