More historic than 13% of U.S. towns · #615 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Shasta Lake was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1982. Below: maps from 1944 on and the census since 2000.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1863.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Shasta Lake’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Shasta Lake is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #615 of 847 in California. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Shasta Lake’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 Shasta Lake’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 range from D− to C. The pre-1940 share (±2.9 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1993.
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 Shasta Lake’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Shasta Lake City started out as five small communities named Central Valley, Toyon, Project City, Pine Grove, and Summit City, all of which came about with the beginning of construction of Shasta Dam in 1938. Project City was built at the intersection of U.S. Route 99 and Shasta Dam Boulevard; a larger Central Valley at a midpoint on Shasta Dam Boulevard; Summit City at the intersection of Shasta Dam and Lake boulevards; and Pine Grove at what today is the intersection of Interstate 5 and Pine Grove Avenue.
In 1993, according to Wikidata. Shasta Lake’s post office opened in 1863, and the census of 2000 counted 9,008 people here.
How does Shasta Lake rank for history?
Shasta Lake is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #615 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 Shasta Lake?
8% of Shasta Lake’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.9 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1982.
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 (3), Wikipedia, 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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