More historic than 18% of U.S. towns · #509 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Hemet was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1953 on, and the census since 1910.
The Hemet post office opened in 1892, the earliest record of the town by name.
First census: 992 in 19102020 census: 89,833134 years
How did Hemet get its name?
Hemet was named by the land development company that founded the town, The Lake Hemet Land Company.
More on the name
The company drew its name from Hemet Valley, now called Garner Valley, located in the San Jacinto Mountains. Initially, the company referred to the area as South San Jacinto, but changed the name to Hemet when the land company filed a plat map on November 11, 1893.
How historic is Hemet?
C−
More historic than 18% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hemet is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #509 of 847 in California. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hemet’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 Hemet’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 range from D to C−. The pre-1940 share (±0.7 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 Hemet’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
This had long been the territory of the indigenous Soboba people and Cahuilla tribe prior to Spanish colonization. During the early 19th century, Mission San Luis Rey used the land for cattle ranching. The area was known as Rancho San Jacinto.
Following Mexico gaining independence from Spain, in 1842, settler José Antonio Estudillo received the Rancho San Jacinto Viejo Mexican land grant.
Passages that mention Hemet, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Riverside County, California1912 · page 600Read the page →
Read the text
fully conducting the business until 1894, when he moved the yard to San Jacinto. In 1908 he purchased three acres in Hemet, moving his buildings to the new site, and later erecting additional sheds and a convenient office. He also built a comfortable home in Hemet, where he has since resided with his family.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Riverside County, California1912 · page 495Read the page →
Read the text
in mining in the southern part of California and in Arizona. He continued in that field, however, despite attendant hardships, working at various occupations during a low run of luck and for six years was employed as stage driver between Hemet and Idyllwild. In 1909 he purchased in Hemet two and one-half acres upon which he erected a commodious residence beautified by a large lawn and an abundance of flowers and surrounded by shade and fruit trees. In addition to his other interests, he owns four valuable mining prop-
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
Hemet, 1890 to 1987
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
The Hemet post office opened in 1892, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Hemet rank for history?
Hemet is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #509 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 Hemet?
2% of Hemet’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1984.
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 (6), 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 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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