Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Its Register listing is the Irvin-Patchin House. Below: maps from 1906 on and the census since 1880.
The Burnside post office opened in 1838, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1874.
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 Burnside’s history is told.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Burnside yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Burnside is a borough that is located in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 188 at thetime of the 2020 census.
Its first post office opened in 1838. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 234 to 188 (-20%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Peaked at 647 in 1900; 188 people lived here in 2020.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Burnside’s Wikipedia page.
Passages that mention Burnside, cut from the printed page as they were published.
on its waters are recalled by many a sudden termination to the life of some well known raftsmen. Upon the banks of Chest Creek, near the northern boundary of the township, on the line of the Clearfield and Jefferson Railroad, and not far from New Washington, in Burnside township, is the first settlement which assumed the proportions of a town. It was first called Hurd Post-office, deriving its name from the large family of Hurds which then resided and still continue to reside in that vicinity. Mr. Henry Hurd erected the first dwelling on the site of the present town of Newburg, and indeed the Hurd family are
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
on its waters are recalled by many a sudden termination to the life of some well known raftsmen. Upon the banks of Chest Creek, near the northern boundary of the township, on the line of the Clearfield and Jefferson Railroad, and not far from New Washington, in Burnside township, is the first settlement which assumed the proportions of a town. It was first called Hurd Post-office, deriving its name from the large family of Hurds which then resided and still continue to reside in that vicinity. Mr. Henry Hurd erected the first dwelling on the site of the present town of Newburg, and indeed the Hurd family are
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
This request, like the others bearing on the division, was referred to the viewers, Alexander B. Reed, James Allport and David Ferguson, who, by their report, dated February 4, 1834, made the division of the territory, but not strictly according to the prayer of the petitioners. Burnside was laid out, having a length north and south of eight miles and one hundred and fifty perches, and of a width, east and west, of six miles. The report of the commissioners was confirmed by the court on the 4th day of May, 1835, and the township was named " Burnside," in honor of Hon. Thomas Burnside, then
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
This request, like the others bearing on the division, was referred to the viewers, Alexander B. Reed, James Allport and David Ferguson, who, by their report, dated February 4, 1834, made the division of the territory, but not strictly according to the prayer of the petitioners. Burnside was laid out, having a length north and south of eight miles and one hundred and fifty perches, and of a width, east and west, of six miles. The report of the commissioners was confirmed by the court on the 4th day of May, 1835, and the township was named “ Burnside,” in honor of Hon. Thomas Burnside, then
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 SurveyEvery edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Burnside. 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 Burnside.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Nobody well known was born in Burnside itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Burnside post office opened in 1838, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1874.
One place: the Irvin-Patchin House (listed 1979).
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 (4), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
2024
2024
2024
2015
