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History · Empire

Empire’s post office opened in 1951

Most of Empire was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1952. Below: maps from 1964 on.

1951first post office
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Kees08 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Empire began

When was Empire founded?

1951

The Empire post office opened in 1951, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 4775 years
Founding year: the first Empire post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Empire’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 Empire are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Empire’s homes were built before 1952.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Empire’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Empire’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 Empire came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Empire.

Read it all →

In 1907, Alex Ranson discovered gypsum near what later became Empire. In late 1909, Alex Ranson, Nick Curnow, E. H. Cowles and James Raser filed a patent for a selenite placer mining claim. In 1911, the mine was sold to unnamed buyers, rumored to be the plaster or gypsum trust from the eastern U.S. The sale was for between $50,000 (equivalent to $1,730,000 in 2025) and $100,000 (equivalent to $3,460,000 in 2025). In 1922, the Pacific Portland Cement company started construction of a mill at what is now known as Empire. In 1924, the Pacific Portland Cement company completed the move of their mill to the current location of Empire from a location near Mound House, Nevada near what was then known as Empire and the Carson River mills. The company called the new plant Empire. U.S. Gypsum bought the town in 1948. Empire reached a maximum population of 750 in the early 1960s.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Empire, decade by decade

Today9 recent
Empire, Nevada2017Empire, NevadaEmpire, Nevada2013Empire, NevadaEmpire, Nevada2013Empire, NevadaEmpire, Nevada2013Empire, NevadaEmpire, Nevada2013Empire, NevadaApproaching2013ApproachingApproaching2013ApproachingAmerica's Solar Highway - panoramio (45)2013America's Solar Highway - panoramio (45)Empire Store Bat Country2006Empire Store Bat Country
On the map

Empire on the map, 1964 to 1990

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

Empire on the 1964 USGS mapEmpire on the 1990 USGS map1964Gerlach 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 Empire.

Questions about Empire’s history

What year was Empire founded?

The Empire post office opened in 1951, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

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

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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 Wikimedia Commons (9), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.