San Bernardino dates to 1854, and 5 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 62% of U.S. towns · #92 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of San Bernardino was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1973. 5 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 99 buildings. Below: 16 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1852.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives San Bernardino’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, San Bernardino is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #92 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of San Bernardino’s overall grade.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, San Bernardino ranks #206 on History.
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 San Bernardino’s 5.7 sits above most of its state (89% of California towns have fewer) while its 126 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% 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 (±0.8 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1854.
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 San Bernardino’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
City Creek SchoolschoolCopia RanchlocaleDel Rosa Ranger StationlocaleHighland JunctionlocaleJefferson Elementary SchoolschoolMetcalf SchoolschoolMill SchoolschoolNorton Air Force BasemilitaryPalm Meadows Golf CourselocaleSan Bernardino County Medical CenterhospitalShandin Hills AirportairportTri-City AirportairportUrbita SchoolschoolWarm Creek Golf Courselocale
7cemeteries and burying grounds inside San Bernardino
Campo SantoGateway PetHome of EternityMountain ViewPatton State HospitalPioneer MemorialTradition
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the National Register
5 listings protect 126 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
126
each building in a district counts
first listed
1985
US Post Office-Downtown Station
BuildingsDistricts
Architectural styles listings
Late 19th and Early 20th Century Revivals2
Classical Revival1
Mission Revival1
Late 19th and Early 20th Century American Movements1
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
On the map
San Bernardino on the map, 1896 to 1980
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of San Bernardino. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1896San Bernardino 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 San Bernardino.
The city of San Bernardino, California, occupies much of the San Bernardino Valley, a valley long inhabited by the Tongva. Several of their villages dotted the San Bernardino valley prior to the arrival of Europeans in the valley. Kaawchama was perhaps the most significant in the region, being a regional center for trade that was connected to villages in Southern California and the Colorado River through the Mohave Trail, that was used by the Mohave, Serrano, Cahuilla, Payomkawichum, and others. The village was located in the eastern expanse of Tovaangar, and was established along the Santa Ana River.
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.
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 1854, according to Wikidata. San Bernardino’s post office opened in 1852, and the census of 1880 counted 1,673 people here.
How does San Bernardino rank for history?
San Bernardino is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #92 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 San Bernardino?
5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the US Post Office-Downtown Station (listed 1985, the first), and 1 historic district, the Highland Historic District, with 99 contributing buildings. 126 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in San Bernardino?
9% of San Bernardino’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1973.
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 the Library of Congress (16), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (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 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.
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