On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Brokenstraw Township is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Brokenstraw Township’s overall grade.
Pennsylvania towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Pennsylvania town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Brokenstraw Township’s 6.1 sits above most of its state (70% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.9 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Brokenstraw Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1797, 22-year-old Callender Irvine, the United States Army's Commissary General, and son of General William Irvine, settled in Brokenstraw Township. He "reported that there were more Indians in the area then than whites."
Callender built a "stately white mansion ... on the banks of the Allegheny in 1822," overlooking Crull's Island. "Callender Irvine's brother, Dr. John W. Irvine shared in the management of the [general] store, along with Robinson R. Moore, until 1820, after which he practiced medicine in Brokenstraw."
William A. Irvine, M.D., another son of Callender's, settled in Brokenstraw in 1825, and
What they wrote about Brokenstraw Township in 1887
Passages that mention Brokenstraw Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Warren County, Pennsylvania1887 · page 417Read the page →
Read the text
Scliools of Brokenstraw Township. — The first school taught in this township was under the management and instruction of Mathew Young. The next teacher was probably Edward Jones. One of the earliest school-houses stood on the brink of the hill in Irvineton, near the site of the present union school at that place. Another early teacher was John Lee Williams. After the organization of Youngsville borough in 1850, twp school-houses were built in the borough, and for eight or ten years these seemed to answer every purpose.
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.
Timeline
Brokenstraw Township, 1826 to 1926
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Brokenstraw Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1926Youngsville sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Brokenstraw Township.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Brokenstraw Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Brokenstraw Township is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns. 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 Brokenstraw Township?
One place: the Irvine United Presbyterian Church (listed 1976).
How old are the homes in Brokenstraw Township?
25% of Brokenstraw Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.9 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1967.
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 (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
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