Spring Valley’s post office opened in 1909, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 20% of U.S. towns · #460 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Spring Valley was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. Below: maps from 1904 on and the census since 1970.
Founding year: the first Spring Valley post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Spring Valley’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Spring Valley is more historic than 20% of U.S. towns, #460 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Spring Valley’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 Spring Valley’s 0.3 sits above most of its state (67% of California towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 (±1.1 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Spring Valley’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Spring Valley is named for the natural spring located there. It was long the home of the Kumeyaay people, who called it Neti or Meti. Spanish conquerors drove off the natives and used the area for cattle, calling it El aguaje de San Jorge (St. George's Spring).
In 1863, Judge A. S. Ensworth of San Diego filed a claim for a 160-acre (65 ha) ranch that included the spring. The ranch, and the small adobe house he built there, were sold to Rufus King Porter and later to historian Hubert Howe Bancroft. The adobe is now a National Historic Landmark.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Spring Valley. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1904Southern California Sheet No 2 sheet · 1:250,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Spring Valley.
Famous people
3 famous people were born in Spring Valley
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
The Spring Valley post office opened in 1909, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Spring Valley rank for history?
Spring Valley is more historic than 20% of U.S. towns, #460 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 Spring Valley?
One place: the Bancroft, Hubert H., Ranchhouse (listed 1966).
How old are the homes in Spring Valley?
2% of Spring Valley’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.1 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1977.
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 National Register of Historic Places (1), 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) 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.
★ Landmark
