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Monongahela College site with historical markerPhoto: Nyttend · Public domain
AHistory
History · Jefferson Township

Jefferson Township dates to 1795, and 20% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 88% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Hughes House, the John Rex Farm and the William Cree House. Below: maps from 1901 on and the census since 1880.

1795founded
3on the National Register
20%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Jefferson Township began

When was Jefferson Township founded?

1795

Jefferson Township dates its founding to 1795 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 347 in 18802020 census: 2,351231 years

How historic is Jefferson Township?

A

More historic than 88% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1836.
History grade

What drives Jefferson Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jefferson Township is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.

A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Jefferson Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1795, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194020.3% of homes (±5.3) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%B+National Register3 listings, 8 historic buildings, 38.7 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 88%
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 Jefferson Township’s 38.7 sits above most of its state (85% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 8 historic buildings outnumber those of 74% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1795.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.3 points).

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Jefferson Township’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Jefferson Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19014 editions of the USGS map, 1901 to 1994. Watch Jefferson Township change.Boom and bustPeaked at 575 in 1950; 253 people lived here in 2020.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Jefferson Township, and 4 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Jefferson Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Jefferson Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Jefferson Township on the map, 1901 to 1994

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

Jefferson Township on the 1901 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1961 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1973 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1994 USGS map1901Waynesburg 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 Jefferson Township.

People over time

Jefferson Township, census by census

010020030040050060018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 575

Peaked at 575 in 1950; 253 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Jefferson Township’s Wikipedia page.

The story so far

Jefferson Township, in brief

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

Jefferson is a borough in Greene County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 253 at the 2020 census, a decline from the figure of 270 tabulated in 2010. The borough was named after Thomas Jefferson.

Jefferson Township was established in 1795. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 2,352 in 2010, 2,351 in 2020.

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

Timeline

Jefferson Township, 1795 to 1950

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1795
    FoundingJefferson Township is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1836Post officeThe Rices Landing post office opens
  5. 1856Post officeThe Moredocks post office opens
  6. 1864Post officeThe Moredocks post office closes
  7. 20th century
  8. 1901On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 575
By decade

Jefferson Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Monongahela College site with historical marker2014Monongahela College site with historical marker
On the National Register

3 historic places in Jefferson Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
8
each building in a district counts
first listed
1972
Hughes House
Hughes HouseJohn Rex FarmWilliam Cree House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Vernacular1
Gothic Revival1
Federal Era Stone Cabin1
Hughes HouseVernacular
John Rex FarmGothic Revival
William Cree HouseFederal Era Stone Cabin

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Places that used to be

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

Another post office, Moredocks, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Rices Landing
1836–today
Moredocks
1856–1864
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Braden PlanBurson PlanDry TavernPitt Gas
Gone or out of use
Edwards Shaft PortalmineEmerald Minemine
7cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jefferson Township
CumberlandEstleJefferson BaptistJeffersonLoveMoredockMuddy Creek Presbyterian

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Cumberland Township2 historic placesA−Morgan Township2 historic placesAEast Bethlehem Township1 historic placeADry TavernIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRices Landing2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townFranklin Township4 historic placesAMatherIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGreene Township3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLuzerne Township3 historic placesA+ClarksvilleIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Jefferson Township’s history

What year was Jefferson Township founded?

In 1795, according to Wikidata. Jefferson Township’s post office opened in 1836, and the census of 1880 counted 347 people here.

How does Jefferson Township rank for history?

Jefferson Township is more historic than 88% 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 Jefferson Township?

Three places: the Hughes House (listed 1972), the John Rex Farm (1998) and the William Cree House (2002).

How old are the homes in Jefferson Township?

20% of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.3 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1967.

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 (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.