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–Not graded
History · Clarence

Clarence’s post office opened in 1887, and 20% of its homes were built before 1940

1887first post office
0on the National Register
20%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Clarence began

When was Clarence founded?

1887

The Clarence post office opened in 1887, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 604139 years
Founding year: the first Clarence post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Clarence’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Clarence are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Clarence’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story so far

Clarence, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Clarence yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Clarence is a census-designated place (CDP) in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 626 at the 2010 census.

Its first post office opened in 1887. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 626 to 604 (-4%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Clarence, decade by decade

Today1 recent
St. Michael the Archangel2019St. Michael the Archangel
Famous people

Famous people close to Clarence

Nobody well known was born in Clarence itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Jonathan FrakesAmerican actor and director · b. 1952
Jeff VanderMeerAmerican writer · b. 1968
Glenn ThompsonU.S. Representative from Pennsylvania · b. 1959
Andrew Gregg CurtinAmerican politician · b. 1815
George Grey BarnardAmerican sculptor · b. 1863
John Montgomery WardAmerican Major League Baseball pitcher, shortst… · b. 1860
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Snow ShoeIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Clarence’s history

What year was Clarence founded?

The Clarence post office opened in 1887, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
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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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (1). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.