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Idaho City, IdahoPhoto: Public domain · Public domain
–Not graded
History · Idaho City

Idaho City dates to 1862, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 15 buildings. Below: maps from 1900 on and the census since 1880.

1862founded
1on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
2famous people
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Quick answers

How Idaho City began

When was Idaho City founded?

1862

Idaho City dates its founding to 1862 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 672 in 18802020 census: 466164 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1864.The full story ↓

What stands out about Idaho 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 Idaho City are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1880 and 1920, then grew 4-fold.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Idaho City’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Idaho City, census by census

010020030040050060070018801900192019401960198020002020672 in 1880Low: 104

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1880 and 1920, then grew 4-fold.

14 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Idaho City’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Idaho City came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Idaho City.

Read it all →

Idaho City was founded in December 1862 as “Bannock” (sometimes given as “West Bannock”), amidst the Boise Basin gold rush during the Civil War, the largest since the California gold rush a dozen years earlier. Near the confluence of Elk and Mores Creeks, its plentiful water supply allowed it to outgrow the other nearby camps in the basin, such as Placerville, Pioneerville, and Centerville. As its population swelled, the new Idaho Territorial legislature changed the town's name to “Idaho City,” to avoid confusion with Bannack, in present-day Beaverhead County, the southwestern corner of Montana.

ChaptersChineseHistoric district

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Idaho City, 1862 to 1957

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1862
    FoundingIdaho City is established
  3. 1862BuiltIdaho City is built
  4. 1864Born hereClarence D. Van Duzer is born here
  5. 1864Post officeThe Idaho City post office opens
  6. 1867Born herePermeal J. French is born here
  7. 1880CensusPopulation peaks at 672
  8. 20th century
  9. 1957On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
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.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your album
On the map

Idaho City on the map, 1957 to 1998

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

Idaho City on the 1957 USGS mapIdaho City on the 1998 USGS map1957Idaho City sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Idaho City.

Every building

Idaho City, building by building, 1900–1914

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Idaho City fire insurance map, 1900, sheet 11900Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

On the National Register

1 listing protects 15 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
15
each building in a district counts
first listed
1975
Idaho City
Idaho City, built 1862
Districts
Idaho CityBuilt 1862

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Idaho City

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Clarence D. Van DuzerAmerican politician · b. 1864
Permeal J. FrenchIdaho politician · b. 1867

Questions about Idaho City’s history

What year was Idaho City founded?

In 1862, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Idaho City’s post office opened in 1864, and the census of 1880 counted 672 people here.

What is on the National Register in Idaho City?

One place: the Idaho City (listed 1975).

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
Start a conversation
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 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.