More historic than 21% of U.S. towns · #446 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Mojave was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. Below: maps from 1896 on and the census since 1950.
Founding year: the first Mojave post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Mojave’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Mojave is more historic than 21% of U.S. towns, #446 of 847 in California. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Mojave’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 Mojave’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 still be C−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.1 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 Mojave’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The town of Mojave began in 1876 as a construction camp on the Southern Pacific Railroad. From 1884 to 1889, the town was the western terminus of the 166-mile (267 km), twenty-mule team at Harmony Borax Works in Death Valley. It later served as headquarters for construction of the Los Angeles Aqueduct.
Located near Edwards Air Force Base, Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, and Palmdale Regional Airport, Mojave has a rich aerospace history. Besides being a general-use public airport, Mojave has three main areas of activity: flight testing, space industry development, and aircraft heavy maintenance and storage. The closest airfield to the city, formerly known as the Mojave Airport, is now part of the Mojave Air and Space Port.
Passages that mention Mojave, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Kern County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present1914 · page 193Read the page →
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Mojave The town of Mojave was established by the Southern Pacific railroad when it laid its tracks through the desert in 1876. The first store was built by a man named Moon, and Mrs. Morrissey opened the Morrissey hotel, which was the first hostelry. Robert Charlton was the first postmaster.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Kern County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present1914 · page 1045Read the page →
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Beginning in the fall of 1884 Mr. Hastings had a run between Needles and Mojave, after which he had charge of an engine from Barstow to Mojave, making his headquarters in the latter town. Nor was there any change in his location when he was given the helper engine over the Tehachapi mountains, and he still makes his home in Mojave, where he owns a cottage erected by himself. For years he has been interested in the work of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. His marriage took place in Peoria, III., and united him with Aliss Ida West, who was born in New York state
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History of Kern County California1914 · page 1063Read the page →
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street. The business continued under his management for six years and when it was sold he entered the employ of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company as a carpenter and builder. Two years later he resigned the place and entered the Santa Fe employ, being from 1892 until 1898 stationed at Mojave as car inspector. Meanwhile he built a cottage in that place. The position at that point had been sought by him with the hope that the climate might benefit the health of his. wife and in this respect the change proved most gratifying.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Mojave, 1876 to 1953
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Mojave. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1947Mojave sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Mojave.
Every building
Mojave, building by building, 1896–1907
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
1896Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
People over time
Mojave, census by census
Grew from 2,055 people in 1950 to 4,699 in 2020.
8 censuses, 1950–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Mojave’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
2 famous people were born in Mojave
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
The Mojave post office opened in 1876, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Mojave rank for history?
Mojave is more historic than 21% of U.S. towns, #446 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 Mojave?
4% of Mojave’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.1 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1981.
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 (5), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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