Cheyenne dates to 1867, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 71% of U.S. towns · #8 of 28 in Wyoming. What drives it
48 places in town are on the National Register, among them 2 National Historic Landmarks and eight historic districts with 1,434 buildings between them. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1883 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1888.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Cheyenne’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cheyenne is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #8 of 28 in Wyoming. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cheyenne’s overall grade.
Wyoming towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Wyoming town has 25.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Cheyenne’s 231 sits above most of its state (95% of Wyoming towns have fewer) while its 1,506 historic buildings outnumber those of 99% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share (±1.3 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1867.
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 Cheyenne’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. 2 are National Historic Landmarks, the highest tier. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
At a celebration on July 4, 1867, Grenville M. Dodge of the Union Pacific Railroad announced the selection of a townsite for its mountain region headquarters adjacent to the bridge the railroad planned to build across Crow Creek in the Territory of Dakota. At the same celebration, Major General Christopher C. Augur announced the selection of a site three miles (5 km) west of Crow Creek Crossing for a U.S. Army fort to protect the railroad.
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 Cheyenne. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1950Cheyenne 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 Cheyenne.
Every building
Cheyenne, building by building, 1883–1923
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.
In 1867, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Cheyenne’s post office opened in 1888, and the census of 1870 counted 1,450 people here.
How does Cheyenne rank for history?
Cheyenne is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #8 of 28 in Wyoming. 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.
What is on the National Register in Cheyenne?
48 listings, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks: 40 buildings, among them the Wyoming State Capitol Building and Grounds WYOMING STATE CAPITOL BUILDING AND GROUNDS (a National Historic Landmark since 2024) and the Governor's Mansion (listed 1969, the first), and 8 historic districts with 1,434 contributing buildings. 1,506 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Cheyenne?
12% of Cheyenne’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.3 points), against a typical 12% for a Wyoming town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 (7), the Library of Congress (3), Wikidata (6), the National Register of Historic Places (48), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.
★ Landmark
★ Landmark
1908
1918
1933
1946–1952
