Sierra Madre’s post office opened in 1882, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 62% of U.S. towns · #85 of 847 in California. What drives it
2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 1 buildings. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1896 on, and the census since 1910.
Founding year: the first Sierra Madre post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1907.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Sierra Madre’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sierra Madre is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #85 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 Sierra Madre’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 Sierra Madre’s 1.8 sits above most of its state (79% 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 B− to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.1 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1907.
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 Sierra Madre’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In approximately 500 CE, Tongva Indians, the native people migrated from the Mojave area to what would become Los Angeles County (including the San Gabriel Valley). Their name means "People of the Earth". Their primary language was Uto-Aztecan Shoshonean. In the 16th century, there were about 25 Tongva villages, with a population of approximately 400 people. By 1769, the first Spanish settlers arrived in the region, finding an estimated 5,000 Tongva living in 31 villages. Sierra Madre was the site of a settlement named Sonayna. Two years later, Mission San Gabriel Arcangel was founded in present-day Montebello. The mission was later moved to San Gabriel because of severe flooding from the Rio Hondo River, which ruined their crops. The original mission site is now marked by a California Historical Landmark. Tongvas were integrated into the culture of the mission, and the tribe were renam…
Passages that mention Sierra Madre, cut from the printed page as they were published.
An illustrated history of Los Angeles County, California. Containing a history of Los Angeles County from the earliest period of its occupancy to the present time, together with glimpses of its prospective future ... and biographical mention of many of it1889Read the page →
Read the text
ward from Los Angeles over this road, the traveler soon reaches Santa Anita, the first station in El Monte Township. This is the nearest station to the village of Sierra Madre, and it is also the nearest to the celebrated Santa Anita Ranch, the home of E. J. Baldwin, better known as '•Lucky" Baldwin. Here, at Mr. Baldwin's home, fourteen miles from Los
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
An illustrated history of Los Angeles County, California1889Read the page →
Read the text
ward from Los Angeles over this road, the traveler soon reaches Santa Anita, the tirst station in El Monte Township. This is the nearest station to the village of Sierra Madre, and it is also tiie nearest to the celebrated Santa Anita Ranch, the home of E. .1. ]'>aldwin, better known as "Lucky" Baldwin. Here, at Mr. Baldwin's home, fourteen miles from Los
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
An illustrated history of Los Angeles County, California. Containing a history of Los Angeles County from the earliest period of its occupancy to the present time, together with glimpses of its prospective future ... and biographical mention of many of it1889Read the page →
Read the text
One of the most prosperous and picturesque mountain resorts in Southern California is Monte Vista, situated in a beautiful, fertile valley, between the Verdugo and Sierra Madre Mountains. Monte Vista is twenty miles north of Los Angeles, and four miles east of Monte Vista Station, on the Southern Pacific Railroad.
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
Sierra Madre, 1882 to 1982
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.
The Sierra Madre post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1907.
How does Sierra Madre rank for history?
Sierra Madre is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #85 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 Sierra Madre?
Two places: the Episcopal Church of the Ascension (listed 1977) and the John Carlton Pegler House (1988).
How old are the homes in Sierra Madre?
18% of Sierra Madre’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.1 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1959.
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), the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (1), 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.
![ward from Los Angeles over this road, the traveler soon reaches Santa Anita, the tirst station in El Monte Township. This is the nearest station to the village of Sierra Madre, and it is also tiie nearest to the celebrated Santa Anita Ranch, the home of E. .1. ]'>aldwin, better known as "Lucky" Bal…](https://images.townratings.com/story/1290/bk-13b2b775c4d39ffb-l.jpg)
Date?
Date?
2020
2014
