More historic than 7% of U.S. towns · #758 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Carmichael was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1972. Below: maps from 1902 on and the census since 1950.
Founding year: the first Carmichael post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Carmichael’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Carmichael is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns, #758 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Carmichael’s overall grade.
Few California towns list much on the Register (a typical California town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Carmichael’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (31% of California 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 still be D. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 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 Carmichael’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Daniel W. Carmichael (born 1867) came to California in 1885. In 1909, he developed Carmichael Colony No. I, 2,000 acres (8 km2) of what was once part of the Rancho San Juan Mexican land grant. He later bought another 1,000 acres (4 km2), previously part of the Rancho Del Paso Mexican land grant, that he called Carmichael Colony No. 2. It bordered the first colony to the east and Walnut Avenue to the west; the southern boundary was Arden Way with Sutter Avenue to the north.
Casa de los Gobernadores was built in 1974, to serve as the official residence of the Governor of California. However, the residence was never occupied and was sold to private citizens in 1983.
Grew from 4,499 people in 1950 to 79,793 in 2020, more than tenfold.
8 censuses, 1950–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Carmichael’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Places now gone and burying grounds
Carmichael’s post office has been open since 1921.
Gone or out of use
American River HospitalhospitalKenneth Avenue SchoolschoolLa Sierra High SchoolschoolLeighton Littlejohn Elementary SchoolschoolMercy High SchoolschoolMorning Star Christian SchoolschoolSacramento Union AcademyschoolTwelvemile HousebuildingVictory Christian Elementary SchoolschoolWesterner Drive-Inlocale
1cemetery inside Carmichael
East Lawn Sierra Hills Memorial Park
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Carmichael post office opened in 1921, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Carmichael rank for history?
Carmichael is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns, #758 of 847 in California. 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 Carmichael?
1% of Carmichael’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1972.
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), 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) 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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