More historic than 11% of U.S. towns · #664 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Good Hope was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. Below: maps from 1901 on and old-book passages.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Good Hope is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #664 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Good Hope’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 Good Hope’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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.7 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Good Hope’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Good Hope. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1901Riverside 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 Good Hope.
The story so far
Good Hope, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Good Hope yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Good Hope is a census-designated place in the Inland Empire region of Riverside County, California. Good Hope sits at an elevation of 1,624 feet (495 m). The 2020 United States census reported Good Hope's population was 9,468.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 9,192 to 9,468 (+3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Good Hope in 1897
Passages that mention Good Hope, cut from the printed page as they were published.
There was an apprehension in England soon after the arrival of the settlers that the new Settlement at the Cape of Good Hope would become tainted with slavery. The want of labour among the settlers themselves, the fact that their fellow colonists of Dutch extraction were slave-holders, and the knowledge that slaves were bought and sold openly without restriction, were not unlikely to create this apprehension among the anti-slavery party in England that was now exerting its influence to extinguish the slave trade all over the world, especially throughout the British Colonies. On July 27, 1822, Mr. Wilberforce, in the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Good Hope is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #664 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 Good Hope?
1% of Good Hope’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.7 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1983.
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), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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