The story
Read it all →How East Brady came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of East Brady.
East Brady is named after Captain Samuel Brady, who battled Native Americans at that location.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo: Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0–Not graded
History · East Brady
East Brady dates to 1866, and 47% of its homes were built before 1940
Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1870.
1866founded
0on the National Register
47%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Quick answers
How East Brady began
When was East Brady founded?
1866
East Brady dates its founding to 1866 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1870.
First census: 728 in 18702020 census: 818160 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1877.The full story ↓
What stands out about East Brady’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19004 editions of the USGS map, 1900 to 1993. Watch East Brady change.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,563 in 1930; 818 people lived here in 2020.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1886 to 1910, drew every building in East Brady.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start East Brady’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how East Brady’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.On the map
East Brady on the map, 1900 to 1993
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of East Brady. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1900Kittanning sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of East Brady.
People over time
East Brady, census by census
Peaked at 1,563 in 1930; 818 people lived here in 2020.
16 censuses, 1870–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on East Brady’s Wikipedia page.
From the old history books
What they wrote about East Brady in 1887
Passages that mention East Brady, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Clarion County, Pennsylvania1887 · page 452Read the page →
Read the text
East Brady, the second largest town in the county, is situated in this bend in the Allegheny River, at a point opposite to what was formerly known as " The Great Western." The main portion of the town lies in a valley, but a number of houses are built on the surrounding hills. Some of the most picturesque scenery of the Allegheny may be viewed from the town. The sides of the hills are covered with trees, shrubs, and projecting rocks. These combined form one of nature's grandest displays. It is the half-way point between the cities of Pittsburgh and Oil City, which makes it an important railroad station.
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
East Brady, 1866 to 1930
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1866FoundingEast Brady is established
- 1877Post officeThe East Brady post office opens
- 20th century
- 1900
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1909
In the archivePanoramic view of town of - 1930CensusPopulation peaks at 1,563
By decade
East Brady, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
1900s1 item
1910s–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
2012
2012
2012
2012
2006Every building
East Brady, building by building, 1886–1910
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.
1886Sheet 1 of 1Edition
Sheets
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.
Retake this viewPanoramic view of town of, 1909
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on East Brady’s page.
Retake this view · +15Famous people
See all →Famous people close to East Brady
Nobody well known was born in East Brady itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about East Brady’s history
What year was East Brady founded?
In 1866, according to Wikidata. East Brady’s post office opened in 1877, and the census of 1870 counted 728 people here.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (6), 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, 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.