Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The Scranton post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name.
Scranton was named after Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Scranton’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of Scranton.
Scranton was founded in 1871 as a coal town. It was named after Scranton, Pennsylvania.
The first post office in Scranton was established in September 1872.
As of 1890, Scranton was reported to be one of many Kansas coal mining towns that were sundown towns, meaning that African Americans were not allowed to live there.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Nobody well known was born in Scranton itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Scranton post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (3), 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.
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