Most of Basin City was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1973. Below: maps from 1925 on and the census since 2000.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Basin City is more historic than 4% of U.S. towns. 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 Basin City’s overall grade.
Few Washington towns list much on the Register (a typical Washington town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Basin City’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (27% of Washington 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 is a Census survey estimate (±4.9 points).
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 Basin City’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The town of Basin City was laid out in the 1950s on land owned by dry-land farmer Loen Bailie. The town was established to support the local agricultural community which was being opened to irrigation through the Columbia Basin Project. The new settlers to the area consisted primarily of young farmers from Idaho and southwestern Oregon and World War II veterans, who received preferential status on the purchase of federal lands that were sold as part of the project. Early crops included sugar beets, alfalfa, corn, asparagus, wheat and barley. Later, potatoes, beans, carrots, and onions also became important, while sugar beet production stopped due to closure of a local sugar beet plant. A large number of orchards were planted, and the area is now a major supplier of the famous Washington apples. Cherries and other fruits are also produced locally.
Basin City is more historic than 4% of U.S. towns. 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 Basin City?
0.0% of Basin City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.9 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington town; the median home was built in 1973.
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 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.
