What drives East St. Clair Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, East St. Clair Township is more historic than 85% of U.S. towns, #250 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of East St. Clair Township’s overall grade.
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 East St. Clair Township’s 6.9 sits above most of its state (72% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.8 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 East St. Clair Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of East St. Clair Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1908Bedford 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 East St. Clair Township.
The story
How East St. Clair Township came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of East St. Clair Township.
St. Clair Township was originally organized in 1794 from a portion of Bedford Township, and subsequently divided into East Saint Clair Township and West Saint Clair Township on 18 December 1875. Sometimes one township is considered the successor and the other a new creation, but in their circumstance it appears both East and West were considered new creations with the original township going defunct.
The Osterburg Covered Bridge and Snooks Covered Bridge were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
How does East St. Clair Township rank for history?
East St. Clair Township is more historic than 85% of U.S. towns, #250 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 East St. Clair Township?
Two places: the Osterburg Covered Bridge (listed 1980) and the Snooks Covered Bridge (1980).
How old are the homes in East St. Clair Township?
26% of East St. Clair Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.8 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, 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.
