More historic than 10% of U.S. towns · #688 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Mecca was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1996. Below: maps from 1941 on and the census since 1980.
The Mecca post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Walters (1896), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,698 in 19802020 census: 8,219123 years
How historic is Mecca?
D
More historic than 10% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Mecca post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Mecca’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Mecca is more historic than 10% of U.S. towns, #688 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Mecca’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 Mecca’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 (±2.8 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 Mecca’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
For many eras, the Desert Cahuilla's native home was the Coachella Valley. The Cahuillas would travel from their village in Martinez to Dos Palmas Spring via an ancient Native American trail known as the Cocomaricopa/Halchidoma Trail. This trail traversed just south of the town of Mecca.
Spanish Explorer Melchior Diaz is the first non-indigenous person to set foot and explore inland California in December 1540 near the Yuma Crossing and Imperial Valley (95 miles southeast from Mecca).
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Mecca. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1941Coachella 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 Mecca.
People over time
Mecca, census by census
Between 1,698 and 8,577 people in every census since 1980.
5 censuses, 1980–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Mecca’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices
Mecca’s post office has been open since 1903. Another post office, Walters, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Walters
1896–1903
Mecca
1903–today
18901960today
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Mecca’s history
What year was Mecca founded?
The Mecca post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Mecca rank for history?
Mecca is more historic than 10% of U.S. towns, #688 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 Mecca?
3% of Mecca’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1996.
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) 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.
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