The Haines Township post office opened in 1838, the earliest record of the town by name. Four smaller post offices, Haines (1838), Fowler (1878) and Poe Mills (1882), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,479 in 20002020 census: 1,649188 years
How historic is Haines Township?
A+
More historic than 98% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Haines Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Haines Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Haines Township is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Haines 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 Haines Township’s 1,469 sits above most of its state (98% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 278 historic buildings outnumber those of 95% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.5 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 Haines Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Haines Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Haines Township is a township in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,663 at the 2020 census.
Its first post office opened in 1838. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,564 to 1,649 (+5%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Haines Township, 1792 to 1941
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Haines Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1941Millheim 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 Haines Township.
People over time
Haines Township, census by census
Between 1,479 and 1,663 people in every census since 2000.
3 censuses, 2000–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Haines Township’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
Famous people close to Haines Township
Nobody well known was born in Haines Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Haines Township post office opened in 1838, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Haines Township rank for history?
Haines Township is more historic than 98% 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.
What is on the National Register in Haines Township?
Two places: the Woodward Inn (listed 1978) and the Aaronsburg Historic District (1980).
How old are the homes in Haines Township?
36% of Haines Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.5 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1981.
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), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.
