More historic than 3% of U.S. towns · #824 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Kings Beach was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1973. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1955 on, and the census since 1980.
From Kings Beach’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Kings Beach began
When was Kings Beach founded?
1937
The Kings Beach post office opened in 1937, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Hot Springs (1888) and Brockway (1901), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,942 in 19802020 census: 3,56389 years
How historic is Kings Beach?
D−
More historic than 3% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Kings Beach post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Kings Beach’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kings Beach is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #824 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kings 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 Kings Beach’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 D. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 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 Kings Beach’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone
Kings Beach’s post office has been open since 1937. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Hot Springs
1888–1891
Brockway
1901–1966
Kings Beach
1937–today
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BrockwayBrockway Vista
Gone or out of use
Brockaway Post Officepost office
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Kings Beach, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Kings Beach yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Kings Beach is a census-designated place (CDP) in Placer County, California, United States, on the north shore of Lake Tahoe. The population was 3,563 at the 2020 census. The town's post office was erected in 1937. The area is named after its first postmaster, Joe King.
Its first post office opened in 1937. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 3,796 to 3,563 (-6%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Kings Beach, 1888 to 1972
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 Kings Beach post office opened in 1937, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Kings Beach rank for history?
Kings Beach is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #824 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 Kings Beach?
0.0% of Kings Beach’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1973.
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), 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.
1972
2011
2011
2010
2010
