Imperial Beach dates to 1887, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 37% of U.S. towns · #262 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Imperial Beach was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1971. Its Register listing is the Initial Point of Boundary Between U.S. and Mexico. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1960.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1888.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Imperial Beach’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Imperial Beach is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns, #262 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Imperial Beach’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 Imperial Beach’s 0.4 sits above most of its state (69% of California towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C+. The pre-1940 share (±2.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1887.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Imperial Beach’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 Imperial Beach. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1904San Diego 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 Imperial Beach.
Imperial Beach sits on the traditional territory of the Kumeyaay people, who had established the village of Alyshuwii. Founded in June 1887, the city takes its name from Imperial County, California, a desert climate 100 miles (161 km) east. Farmers and land owners from the Imperial Valley came to the area in the late 1880s seeking cooler weather during summer months. In March 1887, over 2,000 laborers descended upon nearby Coronado, California to construct the Hotel del Coronado, the largest resort in the world at the time. A large number of the workers stayed in Imperial Beach and some would later make it their permanent homestead. The city would incorporate in 1956, operating its own mayor–council government providing city fire department service and policing by the formation of its own police department but eventually, years later, through the contracting of services through the San …
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.
In 1887, according to Wikidata. Imperial Beach’s post office opened in 1888, and the census of 1960 counted 17,773 people here.
How does Imperial Beach rank for history?
Imperial Beach is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns, #262 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 Imperial Beach?
One place: the Initial Point of Boundary Between U.S. and Mexico (listed 1974).
How old are the homes in Imperial Beach?
5% of Imperial Beach’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.2 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1971.
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 (18), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, 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.
2017
2017
2017
2017
2017
2016
2016
2016
2016
2015
2015
2015
2014
2011
2008
2007