Reedley’s post office opened in 1888, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 43% of U.S. towns · #198 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Reedley was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. Its Register listings are the Reedley Opera House Complex and the Reedley National Bank. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1920.
Founding year: the first Reedley post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1913.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Reedley’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Reedley is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #198 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Reedley’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 Reedley’s 0.8 sits above most of its state (74% of California towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B−. The pre-1940 share (±1.9 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1913.
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 Reedley’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
In the mid-1800s, American Civil War Union veteran Thomas Law Reed settled in Reedley to grow wheat for Gold Rush miners. His donation of land for a railroad station site established the town as the center of the San Joaquin Valley's booming wheat industry. Southern Pacific Railroad officials commemorated his donation by naming the depot in his honor, which the city itself then adopted.
When gold mining fever began to fade, wheat demand slackened. Water from the Kings River was diverted for crop irrigation, and the region's agriculture diversified to include fruits, including grapes, figs, and peaches.
Passages that mention Reedley, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Fresno 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 present1919 · page 2088Read the page →
Read the text
to an advantage and in a brief time purchased a ranch which is devoted to vines and figs. It contains fifteen acres and cost him $1,725. but today one acre is worth nearly as much as he paid for the fifteen. It is situated within the corporate limits of the town of Reedley. While living in Iowa. George Ingram filled the important position of Superintendent of Schools of Iowa
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Fresno 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 present1919 · page 2226Read the page →
Read the text
the United States in 1888. He traveled West as far as Chicago and there he worked at his trade, and had a shop of his own, also was for five years in charge of the blacksmith shop of the electrical department of the City of Chicago. In 1908 he came 'West to California and soon located in Reedley where he opened a shop and carried on his business with success. He also bought a ranch of forty acres northeast of Reedley, twenty acres of which were improved, and later sold the whole place at a profit. He then bought another tract of twenty acres, made all the improvements and this he also
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
Reedley, 1880 to 1996
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
Church of the BrethrenchurchFirst United Brethren ChurchchurchReedley HospitalhospitalSmiths Ferrycrossing
1cemetery inside Reedley
Reedley
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Reedley’s history
What year was Reedley founded?
The Reedley post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1913.
How does Reedley rank for history?
Reedley is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #198 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 Reedley?
Two places: the Reedley Opera House Complex (listed 1984) and the Reedley National Bank (1985).
How old are the homes in Reedley?
5% of Reedley’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.9 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1984.
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 (10), Wikidata (2), 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, 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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