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2016-06-25 07 42 17 Pennsylvania State Highway Department marker for the Mason-Dixon Line on northbound U.S. Route 220 (Bedford Road) entering Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County, Pennsylvania from Allegany County, MarylandPhoto: Famartin · CC BY-SA 4.0
B+History
History · Cumberland Valley Township

Cumberland Valley Township’s post office opened in 1828, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 68% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1927 on.

1828first post office
0on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Cumberland Valley Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Cumberland Valley Township began

When was Cumberland Valley Township founded?

1828

The Cumberland Valley Township post office opened in 1828, the earliest record of the town by name. Five smaller post offices, Cumberland Valley (1828), Patience (1888) and Evitts (1893), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 1,454198 years

How historic is Cumberland Valley Township?

B+

More historic than 68% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Cumberland Valley Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Cumberland Valley Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cumberland Valley Township is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cumberland Valley Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1828, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194027.4% of homes (±8.1) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%A−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical PA town 2.1 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 68%
NewerOlder

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 Cumberland Valley Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (25% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.1 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 Cumberland Valley Township’s past

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

Lost villages5 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Cumberland Valley Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Deep rootsA post office since 1828: 198 years of Cumberland Valley Township.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Cumberland Valley
1828–1927
Patience
1888–1904
Evitts
1893–1906
Cruse
1897–1906
Bedford Valley
1927–1943
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
CentervillePatience
Gone or out of use
Bedford Valley Post Officepost officeFort Lookout SchoolschoolManassas SchoolschoolMineral Spring Schoolschool
7cemeteries and burying grounds inside Cumberland Valley Township
Bethel Methodist Episcopal ChurchBortz Lutheran ChurchGrowdenMickey FarmSmith FarmUnionWertz

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

Help out

Start Cumberland Valley Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Cumberland Valley Township’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 viewThe Cumberland Valley Rail Road, near S…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Timeline

Cumberland Valley Township, 1828 to 1927

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1828Post officeThe Cumberland Valley post office opens
  3. 1860In the archiveThe Cumberland Valley Rail Road, near Scotland, destroyed by Rebels
  4. 1888Post officeThe Patience post office opens
  5. 1893Post officeThe Evitts post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1904Post officeThe Patience post office closes
  8. 1906Post officeThe Evitts post office closes
  9. 1927Post officeThe Cumberland Valley post office closes
  10. 1927On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story so far

Cumberland Valley Township, in brief

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

Cumberland Valley Township is a township in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,452 at the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1828. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,597 to 1,454 (-9%).

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

By decade

Cumberland Valley Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1860s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s1 item
The Cumberland Valley Rail Road, near Scotland, destroyed by Rebels1860The Cumberland Valley Rail Road, near Scotland, destr…
Today12 recent
US 220 nb in Cumberland Valley Twp., PA, Aug. 20242024US 220 nb in Cumberland Valley Twp., PA, Aug. 2024US 220 nb in Centerville, Bedford Co., PA, Aug. 20242024US 220 nb in Centerville, Bedford Co., PA, Aug. 2024US 220 nb entering Pennsylvania, Aug. 20242024US 220 nb entering Pennsylvania, Aug. 2024US 220 nb entering Centerville, Bedford Co., PA, Aug. 20242024US 220 nb entering Centerville, Bedford Co., PA, Aug.…US 220 nb at Bethel Church and Cemetery, Cumberland Valley Twp., PA, Aug. 20242024US 220 nb at Bethel Church and Cemetery, Cumberland V…Cumberland Valley Twp., PA fire department, Aug. 20242024Cumberland Valley Twp., PA fire department, Aug. 20242016-06-25 07 45 18 Pennsylvania historical marker on northbound U.S. Route 220 (Bedford Valley Road) in southern Cumbe…20162016-06-25 07 45 18 Pennsylvania historical marker on…2016-06-25 07 45 11 Pennsylvania historical marker on northbound U.S. Route 220 (Bedford Valley Road) in southern Cumbe…20162016-06-25 07 45 11 Pennsylvania historical marker on…2016-06-25 07 42 17 Pennsylvania State Highway Department marker for the Mason-Dixon Line on northbound U.S. Route 220 …20162016-06-25 07 42 17 Pennsylvania State Highway Depart…2016-06-25 07 42 03 Pennsylvania State Highway Department marker for the Mason-Dixon Line on southbound U.S. Route 220 …20162016-06-25 07 42 03 Pennsylvania State Highway Depart…2016-06-25 07 38 23 View north along U.S. Route 220 (Bedford Valley Road) crossing the Mason-Dixon line from Dickens, A…20162016-06-25 07 38 23 View north along U.S. Route 220 (…2016-06-25 07 36 26 "Pennsylvania Welcomes You" sign along northbound U.S. Route 220 (Bedford Valley Road) just north o…20162016-06-25 07 36 26 "Pennsylvania Welcomes You" sign …
On the map

Cumberland Valley Township on the map, 1927 to 1973

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

Cumberland Valley Township on the 1927 USGS mapCumberland Valley Township on the 1931 USGS mapCumberland Valley Township on the 1944 USGS mapCumberland Valley Township on the 1967 USGS mapCumberland Valley Township on the 1973 USGS map1927Hyndman 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 Cumberland Valley Township.

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.

The Cumberland Valley Rail Road, near Scotland, destroyed by Rebels
Retake this viewThe Cumberland Valley Rail Road, near Scotland, destroyed by Rebels, 1860

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Cumberland Valley Township

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

See all →
Eddie DeezenAmerican actor · b. 1957
Drew HankinsonAmerican professional wrestler · b. 1983
Edward MooneyCatholic cardinal · b. 1882
Jesse CarletonAmateur golfer · b. 1862
E. O. C. OrdUnited States Army officer · b. 1818
George L. WellingtonAmerican politician · b. 1852
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Londonderry Township1 historic placeB+Southampton Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townColerain TownshipIts storyB−Harrison Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBedford Township5 historic placesA+

Questions about Cumberland Valley Township’s history

What year was Cumberland Valley Township founded?

The Cumberland Valley Township post office opened in 1828, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Cumberland Valley Township rank for history?

Cumberland Valley Township is more historic than 68% 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.

How old are the homes in Cumberland Valley Township?

27% of Cumberland Valley Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.1 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1971.

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 (12), the Library of Congress (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.