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B+History
History · Pinole

Pinole dates to 1772, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 68% of U.S. towns · #60 of 847 in California. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Bernardo Fernandez House and the Bank of Pinole. Most of Pinole was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1970. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1910 on, and the census since 1890.

1772founded
2on the National Register
2%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Pinole’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Pinole began

When was Pinole founded?

1772

Pinole dates its founding to 1772 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 340 in 18902020 census: 19,022254 years

How historic is Pinole?

B+

More historic than 68% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1878.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Pinole’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pinole is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns, #60 of 847 in California. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pinole’s overall grade.
Founding era1772, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 19401.9% of homes (±1.1) · typical CA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register2 listings, 1.1 per 10,000 residents · typical CA town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 68%
NewerOlder
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 93%

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 Pinole’s 1.1 sits above most of its state (76% of California towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1772.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share (±1.1 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Pinole’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Older than the countryEstablished in 1772, 4 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Pinole’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Pinole’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPostcardPinoleCAcirca1909 (cropped): stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Timeline

Pinole, 1772 to 1986

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1772
    FoundingPinole is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1878Post officeThe Pinole post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1909In the archivePostcardPinoleCAcirca1909 (cropped)
  7. 1949On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1963Born hereTodd Huth is born here
  9. 1970Born hereGino Torretta is born here
  10. 1978In the archiveSanta Fe Leasing Norfolk Western Power -- 3 Photos
  11. 1986In the archiveAT&SF Pinole Local in Collier, CA on November 11, 1986
The story

How Pinole came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Pinole.

Read it all →

The Huchiun tribe lived in the region. In 1823, Ygnacio Martínez, commandant of the Presidio of San Francisco, received a land grant of Rancho El Pinole from the Mexican government. Martinez built a hacienda in Pinole Valley; this is land encompassed by Pinole Valley Park. During the 1850s, Bernardo Fernandez, a Portuguese immigrant, started a trading facility on the shores of San Pablo Bay. He built Fernandez Mansion, a historic building that still stands today at the end of Tennent Avenue. From these early beginnings, a small but thriving community developed into the city of Pinole.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Pinole, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s2 items
PostcardPinoleCAcirca1909 (cropped)c. 1909PostcardPinoleCAcirca1909 (cropped)PostcardPostcardPinoleCAcirca1909c. 1909PostcardPinoleCAcirca1909Postcard
1910s–1960snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
1970s–1980s2 items
Santa Fe Leasing Norfolk Western Power -- 3 Photos1978Santa Fe Leasing Norfolk Western Power -- 3 PhotosAT&SF Pinole Local in Collier, CA on November 11, 19861986AT&SF Pinole Local in Collier, CA on November 11, 1986
1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today8 recent
Cpu screenshot2019Cpu screenshotPinole, CA2018Pinole, CAAmerican Kestrel (f)2018American Kestrel (f)Pinole Creek Fish Passage Project2016Pinole Creek Fish Passage ProjectATSF Pinole, CA November 11, 19862015ATSF Pinole, CA November 11, 1986ATSF Collier, CA November 25, 19862015ATSF Collier, CA November 25, 1986Capitol Corridor2011Capitol CorridorMarine layer on 802010Marine layer on 80
On the map

Pinole on the map, 1949 to 1980

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pinole. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Pinole on the 1949 USGS mapPinole on the 1951 USGS mapPinole on the 1980 USGS map1949Mare Island 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 Pinole.

Every building

Pinole, building by building, 1910

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 sheet.

Pinole fire insurance map, 1910, sheet 11910Sheet 1 of 3
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

PostcardPinoleCAcirca1909 (cropped)
Retake this viewPostcardPinoleCAcirca1909 (cropped), c. 1909

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Pinole’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in Pinole

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1973
Bernardo Fernandez House
Bernardo Fernandez HouseBank of Pinole
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Second Empire1
Queen Anne1
Eastlake1
Classical Revival1
Bernardo Fernandez HouseSecond Empire
Bank of PinoleClassical Revival

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Pinole, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 19,039

Between 340 and 19,039 people in every census since 1890.

13 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Pinole’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Pinole

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
T
Todd HuthAmerican musician · b. 1963
Gino TorrettaAmerican football player · b. 1970
Places that used to be

Old corners

Pinole’s post office has been open since 1878.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Gateley

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

El SobranteIts storyC−Hercules1 historic placeCTara HillsIts storyDBayviewIts storyC−Richmond12 historic placesB−

Questions about Pinole’s history

What year was Pinole founded?

In 1772, according to Wikidata. Pinole’s post office opened in 1878, and the census of 1890 counted 340 people here.

How does Pinole rank for history?

Pinole is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns, #60 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.

What is on the National Register in Pinole?

Two places: the Bernardo Fernandez House (listed 1973) and the Bank of Pinole (1996).

How old are the homes in Pinole?

2% of Pinole’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.1 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1970.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (12), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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 and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.