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B+History
History · Grass Valley

Grass Valley’s post office opened in 1852, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns · #68 of 847 in California. What drives it

4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 15 buildings. Below: 8 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1900.

1852first post office
4on the National Register
14%homes built before 1940
8old photos & papers
22famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Grass Valley’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Grass Valley began

When was Grass Valley founded?

1852

The Grass Valley post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Centreville (1851) and Boston Ravine (1889), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 4,719 in 19002020 census: 14,016174 years

How historic is Grass Valley?

B+

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Grass Valley post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Grass Valley’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Grass Valley is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #68 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Grass Valley’s overall grade.
Founding era1852, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194014.1% of homes (±3.5) · typical CA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register4 listings, 18 historic buildings, 12.8 per 10,000 residents · typical CA town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 67%
NewerOlder
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 92%

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 Grass Valley’s 12.8 sits above most of its state (93% of California towns have fewer) while its 18 historic buildings outnumber those of 79% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.5 points). 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 Grass Valley’s past

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

Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Grass Valley, and 6 old place names are still on the map.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1891 to 1912, drew every building in Grass Valley.Mystery photos8 old photos have no date. Neighbors can guess the decade.Famous sons and daughtersJoanna Newsom, Christopher Stevens and 20 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

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

Grass Valley’s post office has been open since 1852. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Centreville
1851–1852
Grass Valley
1852–today
Boston Ravine
1889–1890
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Boston RavineCypress HillGlenbrookHills FlatOlympia GladeSpring Hill
Gone or out of use
Alpha MinemineCoe MinemineCrown Point MinemineGold Hill MinemineGranite Hill MinemineGrant Public SchoolschoolIdaho-Maryland MinemineLarimer MinemineMaslin ShaftmineNew Eureka MineminePeabody MineminePennsylvania MinemineSaint John MinemineScotia MinemineSpring Hill MinemineW G Jones Memorial HospitalhospitalWashington Public SchoolschoolWyoming Minemine
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Grass Valley
Elm RidgeOld Grass Valley CityOld Saint Patrick's Catholic

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

Every building

Grass Valley, building by building, 1891–1912

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 year, then a sheet.

Grass Valley fire insurance map, 1891, sheet 31891Sheet 3 of 5
Edition
BrickWoodStone

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

Help out

Start Grass Valley’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo8 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewIron Stove: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Grass Valley came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Grass Valley.

Read it all →

Grass Valley, which was originally known as Boston Ravine and later named Centerville, dates from the California Gold Rush, as does nearby Nevada City. Gold was discovered at Gold Hill in October 1850 and population grew around the mine. When a post office was established in 1851, it was renamed Grass Valley the next year for unknown reasons. The town was incorporated in 1860.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Grass Valley, 1867–1880

Passages that mention Grass Valley, cut from the printed page as they were published.

By an Act of the Legi lature, approved April 15, 1861, the Town of Grass Valley was incorporated. The area wa twelve hundred yards square, lying north and south, of which th northwest corner of the Congregational church was the cent r.
History of Nevada County, California1880Read the page →
Read the text

By an Act of the Legi lature, approved April 15, 1861, the Town of Grass Valley was incorporated. The area wa twelve hundred yards square, lying north and south, of which th northwest corner of the Congregational church was the cent r.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The township of Grass Valley embraces Grass Valley proper, Boston Ravine, Allison Ranch, Massachusetts Hill, New York Hill, Forest Springs, Union Hill, Ophir Hill, Hucston Hill, Eureka Hill, Buena Vista, Sebastopol Hill, Osborne and countless other hills, as well as a host of prefixed ravines, at a…
Bean's history and directory of Nevada County, California. Containing a complete history of the county, with sketches of the various towns and mining camps ... also, full statistics of mining and all other industrial resources1867 · page 189Read the page →
Read the text

The township of Grass Valley embraces Grass Valley proper, Boston Ravine, Allison Ranch, Massachusetts Hill, New York Hill, Forest Springs, Union Hill, Ophir Hill, Hucston Hill, Eureka Hill, Buena Vista, Sebastopol Hill, Osborne and countless other hills, as well as a host of prefixed ravines, at all of which localities quartz mining is conducted, and, in most instances, vrith highly satisfactory results.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
1864, when he came to Graas Valley. He kept the Empire Stables from 1864 to 18C6 and the Fashion Stables until 1869. He then spent two years in the East, and returned to Grass Valley, Tie kept the Half Way House, between Nevada City and Grass Valley until 1875. He lived then a year in Nevada City a…
History of Nevada County, California1880 · page 218Read the page →
Read the text

1864, when he came to Graas Valley. He kept the Empire Stables from 1864 to 18C6 and the Fashion Stables until 1869. He then spent two years in the East, and returned to Grass Valley, Tie kept the Half Way House, between Nevada City and Grass Valley until 1875. He lived then a year in Nevada City and a short time in Grass Valley, when he purchased the old Wheeler

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
This mine, the situation of which, on the west side of Wolf Creek, about three miles below the town of Grass Valley, has already been alluded to, has obtained probably a more wide-spread fame than any other gold mine in California. The vein was discovered in 1851, by one of the present owners, in t…
Bean's history and directory of Nevada County, California. Containing a complete history of the county, with sketches of the various towns and mining camps ... also, full statistics of mining and all other industrial resources1867 · page 245Read the page →
Read the text

This mine, the situation of which, on the west side of Wolf Creek, about three miles below the town of Grass Valley, has already been alluded to, has obtained probably a more wide-spread fame than any other gold mine in California. The vein was discovered in 1851, by one of the present owners, in the bed of the creek, while washing for gold. The quartz was so rich in gold near the surface that it furnished all the means required to fully explore the mine and erect the mill.

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.

Timeline

Grass Valley, 1851 to 1982

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1851Post officeThe Centreville post office opens
  3. 1852Post officeThe Centreville post office closes
  4. 1852Post officeThe Grass Valley post office opens
  5. 1855Born hereJosiah Royce is born here
  6. 1889Post officeThe Boston Ravine post office opens
  7. 1890Post officeThe Boston Ravine post office closes
  8. 20th century
  9. 1916BuiltGrass Valley Public Library is built
  10. 1949On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1960Born hereChristopher Stevens is born here
  12. 1974Born hereJeremy Sisto is born here
  13. 1975BuiltEmpire Mine is built
  14. 1982Born hereJoanna Newsom is born here
By decade

Grass Valley, decade by decade

Date unknown8 to date
Iron StoveDate?Iron StoveMorateur's Hotel & Store, Mill StreetDate?Morateur's Hotel & Store, Mill StreetLola Montez House, 248 Mill StreetDate?Lola Montez House, 248 Mill StreetTaylor-Barker House, 653 Linden StreetDate?Taylor-Barker House, 653 Linden StreetFinney-Watt House, 506 Linden StreetDate?Finney-Watt House, 506 Linden StreetBrick Stores A & B, Mill StreetDate?Brick Stores A & B, Mill StreetThomas House, 220 North School StreetDate?Thomas House, 220 North School StreetMount St. Mary's Academy, Church & Chapel StreetDate?Mount St. Mary's Academy, Church & Chapel Street
Today14 recent
Sanks and Thomas Ice Cream Parlor2026Sanks and Thomas Ice Cream ParlorMount Saint Mary's Convent and Academy2026Mount Saint Mary's Convent and AcademyMount Saint Mary's Convent and Academy Russell Rose Garden2026Mount Saint Mary's Convent and Academy Russell Rose G…Mount Saint Mary's Academy building2026Mount Saint Mary's Academy buildingJoshua Hendy Iron Works nameplate2026Joshua Hendy Iron Works nameplateHills Flat neighborhood2026Hills Flat neighborhoodGrass Valley City Hall and Police Department2026Grass Valley City Hall and Police DepartmentGold Hill monument in2026Gold Hill monument inAfrican Methodist Episcopal Church and School Site plaque2026African Methodist Episcopal Church and School Site pl…The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state historic park2012The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state his…The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state historic park2012The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state his…The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state historic park2012The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state his…The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state historic park2012The site of the historic Empire Mine, now a state his…Public library2012Public library
On the map

Grass Valley on the map, 1949 to 1995

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

Grass Valley on the 1949 USGS mapGrass Valley on the 1950 USGS mapGrass Valley on the 1973 USGS mapGrass Valley on the 1995 USGS map1949Grass Valley 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 Grass Valley.

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.

Iron Stove
Retake this viewIron Stove

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

4 listings protect 18 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
18
each building in a district counts
first listed
1974
Mount St. Mary's Academy and Convent
Mount St. Mary's Academy and ConventEmpire Mine, built 1975Grass Valley Public Library, built 1916North Star House
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Palladian Renaissance1
Classical Revival1
Craftsman/Arts and Crafts1
Mount St. Mary's Academy and ConventPalladian Renaissance
Empire MineBuilt 1975
Grass Valley Public LibraryClassical Revival · Built 1916
North Star HouseCraftsman/Arts and Crafts

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

People over time

Grass Valley, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,000190019201940196019802000202014,016

Grew from 4,719 people in 1900 to 14,016 in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

22 famous people were born in Grass Valley

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Joanna NewsomAmerican musician (b. 1982) · b. 1982
Christopher StevensAmerican diplomat, lawyer and ambassador to Lib… · b. 1960
Josiah RoyceAmerican philosopher · b. 1855
Jeremy SistoAmerican actor · b. 1974
E
Erika FloresAmerican actress · b. 1979
Patrick BriceAmerican film director · b. 1983

Questions about Grass Valley’s history

What year was Grass Valley founded?

The Grass Valley post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Grass Valley rank for history?

Grass Valley is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #68 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.

What is on the National Register in Grass Valley?

4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Mount St. Mary's Academy and Convent (listed 1974, the first), and 1 historic district, the Empire Mine, with 15 contributing buildings. 18 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Grass Valley?

14% of Grass Valley’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.5 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1978.

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 (9), the Library of Congress (13), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.