More historic than 2% of U.S. towns · #89 of 93 in Hawaii. What drives it
Most of Mountain View was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1992. Below: maps from 1917 on and the census since 2000.
The Mountain View post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Glenwood (1919), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,799 in 20002020 census: 4,215126 years
How historic is Mountain View?
D−
More historic than 2% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Mountain View post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Mountain View’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Mountain View is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #89 of 93 in Hawaii. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Mountain View’s overall grade.
Few Hawaii towns list much on the Register (a typical Hawaii town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Mountain View’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Hawaii 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 D. The pre-1940 share (±0.8 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 Mountain View’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone
Another post office, Glenwood, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Mountainview
1900–today
Glenwood
1919–1933
19001960today
Hamlets and corners on the map
GlenwoodKukuiLehuaPulu
Gone or out of use
Eighteenmile StationlocaleFourteen and Onehalf Mile Storelocale
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Mountain View on the map, 1917 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Mountain View. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1917Hilo 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 Mountain View.
The story so far
Mountain View, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Mountain View yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Mountain View is a census-designated place (CDP) in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States located in the District of Puna. As of the 2020 census, Mountain View had a population of 4,215.
Its first post office opened in 1900. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 3,924 to 4,215 (+7%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Mountain View, 1900 to 1933
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Mountain View post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Mountain View rank for history?
Mountain View is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #89 of 93 in Hawaii. 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 Mountain View?
0.0% of Mountain View’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.7% for a Hawaii town; the median home was built in 1992.
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 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.
