Rancho Cordova’s post office opened in 1955, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 13% of U.S. towns · #625 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Rancho Cordova was built recently: 0.4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979. Its Register listing is the American River Grange Hall No. 172. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1902 on, and the census since 1960.
The Rancho Cordova post office opened in 1955, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 2003. Four smaller post offices, Salsbury (1858), Routier Station (1873) and Mills (1898), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 7,429 in 19602020 census: 79,33271 years
How historic is Rancho Cordova?
D
More historic than 13% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Rancho Cordova post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 2003.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Rancho Cordova’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rancho Cordova is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #625 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 Rancho Cordova’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 Rancho Cordova’s 0.1 sits near the middle of its state (64% of California towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 (±0.2 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 2003 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Rancho Cordova’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Rancho Cordova. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1902Fairoaks 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 Rancho Cordova.
In 1844, the Mexican governor of California, Manuel Micheltorena, granted 35,000 acres on the south bank of the American River to the American entrepreneur William Leidesdorff. He died in 1848 and the property, which he called Rancho Río de los Americanos, passed to his mother, Anne Marie Spark, who later sold it to Captain Joseph Folsom. A portion of the land would become Folsom, California while the Cordova Vineyard, which gave Rancho Cordova its name, was also located within the land grant.
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 Rancho Cordova post office opened in 1955, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 2003.
How does Rancho Cordova rank for history?
Rancho Cordova is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #625 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 Rancho Cordova?
One place: the American River Grange Hall No. 172 (listed 1996).
How old are the homes in Rancho Cordova?
0.4% of Rancho Cordova’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1979.
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 (23), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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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