The Pine Bluffs post office opened in 1923, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Pine Bluff (1869), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,172103 years
How historic is Pine Bluffs?
C
More historic than 32% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Pine Bluffs post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Pine Bluffs’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pine Bluffs is more historic than 32% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pine Bluffs’ 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 Pine Bluffs’ 7.3 sits near the middle of its state (42% of Wyoming towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±11.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Pine Bluffs’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The Union Pacific Railroad arrived at Pine Bluffs in 1868 as part of the First transcontinental railroad. Pine Bluffs was a cattle shipping station, also known as "Rock Ranch," as start point of the trip into the Wyoming Frontier, the town also was called the "Frontier Crossroads".
The first gas station in Pine Bluffs was built by politician William Henry Harrison and A. E. Carlstrum. On October 17, 1956, the Wyoming Public Service Commission authorized William Henry Harrison III to build and operate a community television system in the town.
In July 2016, Pine Bluffs was battered by a severe hailstorm, causing widespread damage. The Wyoming National Guard was called in to deal with the damage.
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.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices and burying grounds
Pine Bluffs’s post office has been open since 1923. Another post office, Pine Bluff, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Pine Bluff
1869–1923
Pine Bluffs
1923–today
18601940today
1cemetery inside Pine Bluffs
Pine Bluffs
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Pine Bluffs’ history
What year was Pine Bluffs founded?
The Pine Bluffs post office opened in 1923, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Pine Bluffs rank for history?
Pine Bluffs is more historic than 32% 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.
What is on the National Register in Pine Bluffs?
One place: the Pine Bluffs High School (listed 1996).
How old are the homes in Pine Bluffs?
15% of Pine Bluffs’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±11.3 points), against a typical 12% for a Wyoming 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 Wikimedia Commons (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, 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.
2015
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