Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: maps from 1902 on and the census since 1820.
The Harrisburg post office opened in 1804, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Windecker (1883) and Bellwood (1888), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
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 Harrisburg’s history is told.
Peaked at 1,367 in 1850; 437 people lived here in 2010.
20 censuses, 1820–2010.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Harrisburg’s Wikipedia page.
Harrisburg had its own post office from 1804 to 1903. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikipedia’s history of Harrisburg.
The town of Harrisburg (originally "Harrisburgh") was formed in 1803 from the towns of Lowville, Champion (in Jefferson County), and Mexico (in Oswego County). After its formation, Harrisburg gave up land to form the town of Denmark (1807) and the town of Pinckney (1808).
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Harrisburg, cut from the printed page as they were published.
I was on guard on that eventful night all night. Early in the evening a despatch came from Harrisburg for "J- H. Hutchinson," I think, from Burns, announcing the departure. No despatches came from Harrisburg to Baltimore. Early on the morning of the 23d, a despatch was received, announcing the arrival of Mr. Lincoln in Washington, and that he was met at the depot by Hon. W. H. Seward. I then left the operating room and went home.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
formed me that a plot had been discovered in Baltimore to assassinate the President-elect on his passage through that city, and it had been arranged that Mr. Lincoln should go through from Harrisburg to Washington privately on the night of the 22d, and it was desired to prevent any possibility of the fact of the President's departure from Harrisburg being telegraphed from Harrisburg to Baltimore; that the telegraph wires on the line of the Northern Central Railroad, from Harrisburg to Balti-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
way of business as General Superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad, to arrange for the movement of Mr. Lincoln, then President-elect of the United States, by special train from Philadelphia to Harrisburg, on the 22d inst. ; it being understood that he was to proceed on the 23d from Harrisburg, by the Northern Central Railroad to Baltimore and thence to Washington. On that evening (the 21st), I met Mr. Judd in Philadelphia by appointment, in company with Mr. G. C. Franciscus, Superintend-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Among the many traits of Harrisburg that endear it to a native, who has been called to live away from it, is its charming social life. This social life derives no small part of its charm from the fact that Harrisburg, with its surrounding country, was settled not by one class of people, *Presbyterian Quarterly Review. April, 1860.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Harrisburg. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Harrisburg.
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Harrisburg post office opened in 1804, 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 Wikipedia, 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
