On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Fairview Township is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns, #948 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Fairview 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 Fairview 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 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 (±6.2 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 Fairview 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 Fairview Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1891Wilkes-Barre 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 Fairview Township.
In the late 18th century, Conrad Wickeiser was the first settler in modern-day Fairview Township. He was followed by James Wright, who built the first tavern and the first sawmill in 1820. Additional sawmills were constructed throughout the area. Logging was one of the chief industries in the area.
In September 1888, the court appointed several commissioners to examine and report whether or not dividing Wright Township would be feasible. The men reported in favor of division. The court approved the report; a referendum on the question of division was held in 1889. On May 6, the court—in accordance with the affirmative vote—ordered for the division of Wright Township; the new territory was named Fairview Township.
Passages that mention Fairview Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A history of Wilkes-Barré, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania1909 · page 139Read the page →
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Township. The first settler in what is Wright Township was Cornelius Garrison, who came in 1833 or 1834, and built a sawmill on the Big Wapwallopen Creek. He set out the first orchard. But most of Wright Township's early history passed from it with Fairview Township, when the latter was formed, in 1889, for within what was then made Fairview most of the early settlements of Wright Township were made.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A history of Wilkes-Barré, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania1909 · page 115Read the page →
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Ii: Fairview Township, which was created in 1889, is the yonngest township of Luzerne County. It was taken from Wright Township, and its history spans more than a century and a quarter. Conrad Wickeiser, the pioneer settler, came with his ox-team in 1798. James Wright settled soon afterwards.
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
Fairview Township, 1850 to 1956
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Fairview Township is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns, #948 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.
How old are the homes in Fairview Township?
11% of Fairview Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.2 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1977.
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 (4), Wikidata (1), 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 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.
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