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B+History
History · Carnegie

Carnegie’s post office opened in 1894, and 32% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 66% of U.S. towns · #542 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Carnegie, Andrew, Free Library. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1896 on, and the census since 1900.

1894first post office
1on the National Register
32%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
16famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Carnegie’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Carnegie began

When was Carnegie founded?

1894

The Carnegie post office opened in 1894, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Rich Valley (1853) and Mansfield Valley (1865), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 7,330 in 19002020 census: 8,134132 years

How historic is Carnegie?

B+

More historic than 66% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Carnegie post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Carnegie’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Carnegie is more historic than 66% of U.S. towns, #542 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Carnegie’s overall grade.
Founding era1894, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194032.1% of homes (±5.4) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register1 listing, 1.3 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 66%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 48%

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 Carnegie’s 1.3 sits near the middle of its state (54% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.4 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). 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 Carnegie’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 12,663 in 1940; 8,134 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19046 editions of the USGS map, 1904 to 1993. Watch Carnegie change.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Carnegie.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Carnegie’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Carnegie’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewCarnegie, Allegheny County Pennsylvania: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Carnegie, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 12,663

Peaked at 12,663 in 1940; 8,134 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Carnegie’s Wikipedia page.

On the map

Carnegie on the map, 1904 to 1993

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Carnegie. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Carnegie on the 1904 USGS mapCarnegie on the 1948 USGS mapCarnegie on the 1951 USGS mapCarnegie on the 1960 USGS mapCarnegie on the 1979 USGS mapCarnegie on the 1993 USGS map1904Carnegie 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 Carnegie.

The story

How Carnegie came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Carnegie.

Read it all →

Carnegie is named after Andrew Carnegie, who donated one of his libraries for the gesture. It was incorporated on March 1, 1894, from the boroughs of Chartiers and Mansfield (separated by Chartiers Creek). Later, the borough annexed part of Robinson Township (now Rosslyn Heights). Neighborhoods include Rosslyn Heights, Cubbage Hill, Irishtown, Forsythe Hill, Library Hill, and Old Mansfield.

Many neighborhoods were at one time or another SKRT mined for coal. The main employers were steel mills such as Superior Steel & Union Electric Steel. Carnegie had a rail yard that had connections to several railroads early in the twentieth century, including the Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal railroad, and the Pennsylvania Railroad.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Carnegie in 1889

Passages that mention Carnegie, cut from the printed page as they were published.

The Homestead Steelworks, Carnegie, Phipp & Co., limited, proprietors, were built in 1881, by the Pittsburgh Bessemer company, for the manufacture of steel rails, and comprised a converting-mill 115 feet long and 72 feet wide; railmill, 600 feet long and 84 feet wide, with wings attached; blooming-…
History of Allegheny county, Pennsylvania1889 · page 77Read the page →
Read the text

The Homestead Steelworks, Carnegie, Phipp & Co., limited, proprietors, were built in 1881, by the Pittsburgh Bessemer company, for the manufacture of steel rails, and comprised a converting-mill 115 feet long and 72 feet wide; railmill, 600 feet long and 84 feet wide, with wings attached; blooming-mill, 180 feet long and 72 feet wide. The manufacture of rails was discontinued in 1887, in favor of structural or angle steel for buildings, bridges, etc. The platemill department, 1,000 feet long and 150 feet wide, was built in 1887.

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

Carnegie, 1853 to 1940

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1853Post officeThe Rich Valley post office opens
  3. 1865Post officeThe Rich Valley post office closes
  4. 1865Post officeThe Mansfield Valley post office opens
  5. 1879Born hereFrederick Nicholas Zihlman is born here
  6. 1894Post officeThe Mansfield Valley post office closes
  7. 1894Post officeThe Carnegie post office opens
  8. 1897In the archiveCarnegie, Allegheny County Pennsylvania
  9. 20th century
  10. 1902Born hereJames A. Wright is born here
  11. 1904On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  12. 1937Born hereRobert Mikhail Moskal is born here
  13. 1939Born hereMike Ditka is born here
  14. 1940CensusPopulation peaks at 12,663
By decade

Carnegie, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1890s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s4 items
Carnegie, Allegheny County Pennsylvania1897Carnegie, Allegheny County PennsylvaniaCarnegie, Allegheny County Pennsylvania1897Carnegie, Allegheny County PennsylvaniaCarnegie, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania 18971897Carnegie, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania 1897Carnegie, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, 18971897Carnegie, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, 1897
1900s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today31 recent
27 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-07202527 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-0726 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-07-09202526 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-07-0926 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-07-09-1202526 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-07-09-125 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-07202525 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-07230 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-072025230 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-0721–33 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-07202521–33 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-072 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-0720252 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-0717 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-07202517 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-07144 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-072025144 East Main Street, Carnegie, 2025-05-07Luebbe Building, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 022022Luebbe Building, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 02Luebbe Building, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 012022Luebbe Building, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 01House on Fifth Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 032022House on Fifth Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 03House on Fifth Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 022022House on Fifth Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 02House on Fifth Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 012022House on Fifth Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 01House on Doolittle Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 032022House on Doolittle Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 03House on Doolittle Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 022022House on Doolittle Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 02House on Doolittle Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 012022House on Doolittle Avenue, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 01Commercial building at Third and Third, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, gable2022Commercial building at Third and Third, Carnegie, 202…Commercial building at Third and Third, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 022022Commercial building at Third and Third, Carnegie, 202…Commercial building at Third and Third, Carnegie, 2022-10-06, 012022Commercial building at Third and Third, Carnegie, 202…Thos. E. Morgan ghost sign, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 022020Thos. E. Morgan ghost sign, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 02Thos. E. Morgan ghost sign, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 012020Thos. E. Morgan ghost sign, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 01Standard chimney, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 012020Standard chimney, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 01Standard chimney, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 01, 2-color2020Standard chimney, Carnegie, 2020-10-04, 01, 2-colorMain Street, Carnegie, 2020-10-042020Main Street, Carnegie, 2020-10-04Brown’s Block, Carnegie, 2020-10-042020Brown’s Block, Carnegie, 2020-10-04Carnegie Stage theater inside2015Carnegie Stage theater insideInterstate 376 - Pennsylvania2012Interstate 376 - PennsylvaniaForsytheHome2010ForsytheHomeCarnegiePA2009CarnegiePAMap of Allegheny County PA Highlighting2007Map of Allegheny County PA HighlightingMap
Every building

Carnegie, building by building, 1896–1901

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Carnegie fire insurance map, 1896, sheet 11896Sheet 1 of 6
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Carnegie, Allegheny County Pennsylvania
Retake this viewCarnegie, Allegheny County Pennsylvania, 1897

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Carnegie’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Carnegie

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1981
Carnegie, Andrew, Free Library
Carnegie, Andrew, Free Library
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Beaux Arts1
Carnegie, Andrew, Free LibraryBeaux Arts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

16 famous people were born in Carnegie

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Mike DitkaAmerican football player, coach, and television… · b. 1939
R
Robert Mikhail MoskalUkrainian Catholic bishop in the United States · b. 1937
Frederick Nicholas ZihlmanAmerican politician in Maryland · b. 1879
James A. WrightAmerican politician · b. 1902
James Michael NewellAmerican artist · b. 1900
Ruggero J. AldisertAmerican judge · b. 1919
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Carnegie’s post office has been open since 1894. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Rich Valley
1853–1865
Mansfield Valley
1865–1894
Carnegie
1894–today
18501940today
1cemetery inside Carnegie
Ross Colonial

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Scott TownshipIts storyCGlendaleIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRosslyn FarmsIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRobinson TownshipIts storyC+

Questions about Carnegie’s history

What year was Carnegie founded?

The Carnegie post office opened in 1894, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Carnegie rank for history?

Carnegie is more historic than 66% of U.S. towns, #542 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. 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 Carnegie?

One place: the Carnegie, Andrew, Free Library (listed 1981).

How old are the homes in Carnegie?

32% of Carnegie’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.4 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1952.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (35), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.