Rock Springs’ post office opened in 1872, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 60% of U.S. towns · #14 of 28 in Wyoming. What drives it
11 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 41 buildings between them. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1890 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: the first Rock Springs post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1888.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Rock Springs’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rock Springs is more historic than 60% of U.S. towns, #14 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 Rock Springs’ 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 Rock Springs’ 22.5 sits near the middle of its state (60% of Wyoming towns have fewer) while its 52 historic buildings outnumber those of 85% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B+. The pre-1940 share (±2.8 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1888 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Rock Springs’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
Rock Springs derives its name from a rock spring which flowed in the Number 6 district in the northern part of town. An account said that the spring was found by a lost Pony Express rider, but the spring station was known to Jim Bridger before 1860; the Overland Stage station was located nearby. The spring disappeared when the coal mine operations interrupted the underground flow.
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.
The Rock Springs post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1888.
How does Rock Springs rank for history?
Rock Springs is more historic than 60% of U.S. towns, #14 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 Rock Springs?
11 listings: 9 buildings, among them the First National Bank Building (listed 1980, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Wardell Court Historic Residential District and the Downtown Rock Springs Historic District, with 41 contributing buildings. 52 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Rock Springs?
14% of Rock Springs’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Wyoming town; the median home was built in 1981.
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), the National Register of Historic Places (11), 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.
1885
1885
1896
