More historic than 2% of U.S. towns · #38 of 42 in Nevada. What drives it
Most of Spring Valley was built recently: 0.3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1999. Below: maps from 1952 on and the census since 1990.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Spring Valley is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #38 of 42 in Nevada. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Spring Valley’s overall grade.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Spring Valley ranks #394 on History.
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 Spring Valley’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.
Newer cities are common at Spring Valley’s size: in the typical U.S. city of 100,000 or more, 5% of homes predate 1940.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1981.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to D. The pre-1940 share (±0.2 points) is firm at this size.
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 Spring Valley’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1965, the Stardust International Raceway was built by the Stardust Resort and Casino. In 1969, the Stardust was sold to the Parvin-Dohrmann Corporation, which had little interest in the raceway and then leased it until 1970, when Pardee Homes purchased the land. They began developing a master-planned housing community called Spring Valley. The community was named by Doug Pardee and sales manager Jack Whiteman, in reference to its views of the Spring Mountains and its location in the Las Vegas Valley. In 1981, residents grouped together to solicit the Clark County Commission to create an unincorporated town, which it did that May. The residents wanted to create the town due to hypothetical annexations into other communities in the Las Vegas Valley, and because they claimed they did not pay their taxes fairly for county services. The town originally encompassed 1 square mile (3 km2), b…
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Spring Valley. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1952Las Vegas 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 Spring Valley.
People over time
Spring Valley, census by census
Grew from 51,726 people in 1990 to 215,597 in 2020, 4 times over.
4 censuses, 1990–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Spring Valley’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
Famous people close to Spring Valley
Nobody well known was born in Spring Valley itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
In 1981, according to Wikidata. the census of 1990 counted 51,726 people here.
How does Spring Valley rank for history?
Spring Valley is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #38 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 Spring Valley?
0.3% of Spring Valley’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 0.3% for a Nevada town; the median home was built in 1999.
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 (3), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
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