The Kenwood post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, South Los Guilicos (1889), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 852133 years
How historic is Kenwood?
C+
More historic than 42% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Kenwood post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Kenwood’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kenwood is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kenwood’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 Kenwood’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 C− to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±14.9 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 Kenwood’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Kenwood is located on the Rancho Los Guilicos Mexican land grant. In 1887, the Sonoma Land & Improvement Company, which owned the property on which the town now sits, laid out lots in anticipation of the railroad which would arrive the following year. The infant community tried on many names: Rohrerville, for one of the owners of the land company; Los Guilicos, and then South Los Guilicos, for the Mexican land grant.
Kenwood’s post office has been open since 1893. Another post office, South Los Guilicos, opened and closed inside today’s town.
South Los Guilicos
1889–1893
Kenwood
1893–today
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Wildwood
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Kenwood’s history
What year was Kenwood founded?
The Kenwood post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Kenwood rank for history?
Kenwood is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns. 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 Kenwood?
20% of Kenwood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±14.9 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1955.
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 (2), the Library of Congress (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
2022
2013
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