More historic than 25% of U.S. towns · #16 of 42 in Nevada. What drives it
Most of Battle Mountain was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. Below: 2 old photos and papers and maps from 1885 on.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1870.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Battle Mountain’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Battle Mountain is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #16 of 42 in Nevada. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Battle Mountain’s overall grade.
Few Nevada towns list much on the Register (a typical Nevada town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Battle Mountain’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (29% of Nevada 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 C− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.5 points). Two sources give 1866.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Battle Mountain’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
1885Sheet 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.
The Battle Mountain area was home to the Northern Paiute and Shoshone peoples. The area was noted by fur trappers in the 1820s and 1830s. It served as a waypoint for westward-bound travel on the Emigrant Trail along the Humboldt River by 1845. According to local legend, the name stems from confrontations between Native Americans and early settlers during the 1850s.
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.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Battle Mountain. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1957Battle Mountain 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 Battle Mountain.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this viewNevada Central Railroad 1883, 1883
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Battle Mountain’s page.
Battle Mountain’s post office has been open since 1870.
Gone or out of use
Argenta Post Officepost office
1cemetery inside Battle Mountain
Battle Mountain City
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Battle Mountain’s history
What year was Battle Mountain founded?
In 1866, according to Wikidata. Battle Mountain’s post office opened in 1870.
How does Battle Mountain rank for history?
Battle Mountain is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #16 of 42 in Nevada. 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 Battle Mountain?
7% of Battle Mountain’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.5 points), against a typical 0.3% for a Nevada town; the median home was built in 1984.
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 (12), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
2014
2014
2014
2013
2012
2009
2008
2008
2007
2007
