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History · Silver City

The history of Silver City

Below: maps from 1956 on.

0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Silver City’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Silver City are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Silver City’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Silver City’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Silver City came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Silver City.

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Archaeological evidence indicates that the area surrounding Silver City has supported indigenous peoples for thousands of years. A Yokuts tribe called Wukchumni established permanent campsites along the Kaweah River in the lower elevations below Silver City. During the hot summers, these people moved to the higher elevations, thus becoming the first users of the Silver City area. They traded with the Monache and the Numic peoples who came over the Sierras from the eastern side in hunting and foraging movements.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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On the map

Silver City on the map, 1956 to 1993

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Silver City. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Silver City on the 1956 USGS mapSilver City on the 1967 USGS mapSilver City on the 1988 USGS mapSilver City on the 1993 USGS map1956Mineral King 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 Silver City.

Famous people

Famous people close to Silver City

Nobody well known was born in Silver City itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
R
Robben FordAmerican guitarist · b. 1951
P
Pamela WallaceAmerican writer · b. 1949
Keaton EllerbyCanadian ice hockey player · b. 1988
Walter McCall Hoover, Jr.American rower · b. 1934
Brad MillsAmerican baseball player and coach · b. 1957
Chad BassenCanadian ice hockey player · b. 1983

Questions about Silver City’s history

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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Sources

Where this page comes from

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.