Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Sun Valley

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
DHistory
History · Sun Valley

Half of Sun Valley’s homes were built after 1990

More historic than 8% of U.S. towns · #26 of 42 in Nevada. What drives it

Most of Sun Valley was built recently: 0.4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1990. Below: maps from 1950 on.

0on the National Register
0.4%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0
Quick answers

About Sun Valley’s history

How historic is Sun Valley?

D

More historic than 8% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
History grade

What drives Sun Valley’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sun Valley is more historic than 8% of U.S. towns, #26 of 42 in Nevada. 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 Sun Valley’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 19400.4% of homes (±0.4) · typical NV town 0.3% · U.S. 8.4%DNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical NV town 0.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 8%
NewerOlder
Nevada towns of 2,500+ (42)Ahead of 39%

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 Sun 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.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: our sources. 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 Sun Valley’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 Sun Valley are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Sun Valley’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Sun Valley’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
The story so far

Sun Valley, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Sun Valley yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Sun Valley is a census-designated place (CDP) in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The population was 21,178 at the 2020 census. It is north of Reno and is part of the Reno-Sparks metropolitan area.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 19,299 to 21,178 (+10%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Sun Valley, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Used Tires2008Used TiresNV443-SunValleyAnd6thAve2008NV443-SunValleyAnd6thAveSun Valley, Nevada2007Sun Valley, NevadaSun Valley, Nevada2007Sun Valley, NevadaSun Valley, Nevada2007Sun Valley, NevadaSun Valley, Nevada2007Sun Valley, Nevada
On the map

Sun Valley on the map, 1950 to 1982

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

Sun Valley on the 1950 USGS mapSun Valley on the 1967 USGS mapSun Valley on the 1974 USGS mapSun Valley on the 1982 USGS map1950Reno 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 Sun Valley.

Famous people

Famous people close to Sun Valley

Nobody well known was born in Sun Valley itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Mädchen AmickAmerican actress · b. 1970
Curtis HansonAmerican filmmaker · b. 1945
Julia MancusoAmerican alpine skier · b. 1984
Dawn WellsAmerican actress · b. 1938
Kristoffer PolahaAmerican actor · b. 1977
David TaylorAmerican amateur wrestler · b. 1990
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Spanish SpringsIts storyD−Golden ValleyIts storyD−Sparks5 historic placesC−Reno67 historic placesB−

Questions about Sun Valley’s history

How does Sun Valley rank for history?

Sun Valley is more historic than 8% of U.S. towns, #26 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 Sun Valley?

0.4% of Sun Valley’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 0.3% for a Nevada town; the median home was built in 1990.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (6), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.