The history of Tahoe City begins in 1863 when the town was first surveyed and plotted. This was quickly followed several small dwellings and the construction of the Tahoe House Hotel by pioneer settler William Pomin in 1864. During this time, the Tahoe Basin was being logged to fuel the gold and silver rush that began in 1858 and continued until the 1890’s in Virginia City to the east.

In 1869, to address the growing tourist industry A.J. Bayley built the Tahoe City House. It was the largest hotel in town with 84-rooms and a splendid view sitting on a bluff above the Lake in the area where Christy Hill Restaurant sits today. The Tahoe City Post Office was officially opened in 1871 and in 1873 a telegraph line from Tahoe City to Truckee was installed.

In the 1950’s the town would change again, this time with the introduction of Lake Tahoe to the rest of the world. In 1949, Wayne Poulsen and Alex Cushing opened Squaw Valley Ski Resort on Thanksgiving Day. Seeing the potential of the ski resort and the region as a whole Cushing began lobbying the International Olympic Committee to host the 1960 Olympic Winter Games in Squaw Valley and his bid was successful. Tahoe City today has undergone many changes since the 1960 Winter Olympics but it is still known as one of the premiere regions in California and the world for recreation, drawing thousands of visitors each year.