Most of Marion Township was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1982. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1924 on, and the census since 2000.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Marion Township is more historic than 24% of U.S. towns. 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 Marion 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 Marion 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 (±3.8 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 Marion Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Walker Township
1822–1827
Walker
1829–1906
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Jacksonville
Gone or out of use
Boy SchoolschoolCurtin Gap Quarrymine
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Marion Township
JacksonvilleLick Run Presbyterian Church
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Marion Township on the map, 1924 to 1973
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Marion Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1924Centre Hall 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 Marion Township.
The story so far
Marion Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Marion Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Marion Township is a township that is located in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,196 at the time of the 2020 census, a decline from the figure of 1,224 tabulated in 2010. Part of Bald Eagle State Park is in Marion Township.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,224 to 1,182 (-3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Marion Township, 1822 to 1924
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Marion Township is more historic than 24% 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.
How old are the homes in Marion Township?
8% of Marion Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.8 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1982.
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 (6), 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.
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