[7] The border town resort community of Jackpot, Nevada, 50 mi (80 km) south at the state line, is unofficially considered part of the greater Twin Falls area.

Excavations at Wilson Butte Cave near Twin Falls in 1959 revealed evidence of human activity, including arrowheads, that rank among the oldest dated artifacts in North America.

[10] The first people of European ancestry to visit the Twin Falls area are believed to be members of a group led by American Wilson Price Hunt, who attempted to blaze an all-water trail westward from St. Louis, Missouri, to Astoria, Oregon, in 1811 and 1812.

[11] In 1812 and 1813, Robert Stuart successfully led an overland expedition eastward from Astoria to St. Louis, which passed through the Twin Falls area.

B. Perrine founded the Twin Falls Land and Water Company, largely to build an irrigation canal system for the area.

After an August 1900 area survey of 244,025 acres (98,753 ha) in October 1900, the company was granted the necessary water rights to begin construction of the irrigation system.

These lots eventually became the settlements of Twin Falls, Kimberly, Buhl, Filer, Hansen, and Murtaugh.

In 1902, the project nearly failed, as most of the original investors pulled out, with only Salt Lake City businessman Stanley Milner maintaining a stake in the company.

Completed in 1905, Milner Dam and its accompanying canals made commercial irrigation outside the Snake River Canyon practical for the first time.

[14] Twin Falls city was founded in 1904 as a planned community, designed by celebrated Franco-American architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray, with proceeds from sales of townsite lots going toward construction of irrigation canals.

[14] Twin Falls became a major regional economic center serving the agriculture industry, a role which it has sustained to the present day.

Twin Falls became the center of national attention 51 years ago in September 1974, when daredevil Evel Knievel attempted to jump the Snake River Canyon in a specially modified rocket cycle.

Watched by millions on closed-circuit television on a Sunday afternoon, the attempt ultimately failed due to high winds and a premature deployment of Knievel's parachute.

During the last quarter of the 20th century, gradual diversification of the agriculture-based economy allowed the city to continue to grow.

[43] Creating 40-50 new jobs, Magic Valley Cinema 13 constructed a new theater equipped with D-BOX seating.

[47] In 2012, Twin Falls hosted the Idaho Republican Party convention, which was expected to create more positive economic activity.

A number of radio stations broadcast in the Twin Falls area, including: Twin Falls is the largest city in Idaho that is not directly on the Interstate Highway System; it is served by several major highways, including U.S. Route 30 and U.S. Route 93.

Access to nearby Interstate 84 is across the canyon via the Perrine Bridge (U.S. 93); the junction is about 5 mi (8 km) north, in Jerome County.

State Highway 74 provides direct access from downtown Twin Falls to southbound locations on U.S. 93, including Hollister and Rogerson, then crosses into Nevada at Jackpot and continues to a junction with Interstate 80 at Wells.

Limited commercial air service is provided at Magic Valley Regional Airport, also known as Joslin Field.

As of August 2017, daily flights to Salt Lake City are available from Delta Connection (fulfilled by SkyWest Airlines) using the Canadair CRJ200.

[51] Twice-weekly service to Las Vegas was previously operated by Allegiant Air, but the airline discontinued the route in January 2012, citing insufficient ticket prices.

[52] When Twin Falls surpassed a population of 50,000, it became federally required to provide a public transportation system for its citizens.

[54] The Snake River Canyon forms the city's northern limits, separating it from Jerome County.

The Perrine Bridge, which spans the Snake River Canyon immediately north of the city, is one of only a handful of artificial structures worldwide where BASE jumping is legal.

In September 2005, Miles Daisher of Twin Falls set a BASE-jumping world record by jumping off Perrine Bridge 57 times in a 24-hour period.

In July 2006, Dan Schilling jumped off the bridge 201 times in 21 hours to raise money for charity.

Notable musicians who spent parts of their childhood in the Twin Falls area include Gary Puckett, Paul Durham of Black Lab, Nikki Sixx of Mötley Crüe, and Doug Martsch of Built to Spill.