On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lexington Hills is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #106 of 847 in California. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lexington Hills’ 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 Lexington Hills’ 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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.0 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Lexington Hills’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Lexington Hills on the map, 1919 to 1980
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lexington Hills. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1919Los Gatos 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 Lexington Hills.
The story so far
Lexington Hills, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Lexington Hills yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Lexington Hills is a census-designated place and an unincorporated area in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 2,492 at the 2020 census. The area is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains, about five miles south of Los Gatos and about 14 miles (23 km) north of Santa Cruz. Lexington Hills is the name assigned by the United States Census Bureau to the area, which actually comprises several small communities, including Redwood Estates, Holy City, Chemeketa Park, and Aldercroft Heights.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,421 to 2,492 (+3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Lexington Hills, 1919 to 1983
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Lexington Hills is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #106 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 Lexington Hills?
29% of Lexington Hills’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.0 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1957.
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 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.
