Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Orviston

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Orviston

Orviston’s post office opened in 1909, and 74% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1928 on.

1909first post office
0on the National Register
74%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Orviston began

When was Orviston founded?

1909

The Orviston post office opened in 1909, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 64117 years
Founding year: the first Orviston post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Orviston’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 Orviston are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Orviston’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Orviston’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Orviston’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
The story so far

Orviston, in brief

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

Orviston is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Curtin Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 95. It is located in far northern Centre County, near the Clinton County border. Beech Creek runs through the center of the town, flowing southeast towards Bald Eagle Creek in the West Branch Susquehanna River watershed. Orviston is known as the last town accessible by the Monument/Orviston road (formerly PA 364) - a 10.8-mile paved county road stemming from Beech Creek, Pennsylvania, and ending at the entrance to Orviston. Traffic can flow through Orviston, however, West on the Orviston-Kato road, South on the Or…

Its first post office opened in 1909. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 95 to 64 (-33%).

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

By decade

Orviston, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Orviston PA Houses2015Orviston PA HousesOld Orviston RR bridge2015Old Orviston RR bridgeBig Building2015Big BuildingBeech Creek2015Beech CreekBaeball diamond2015Baeball diamond
On the map

Orviston on the map, 1928 to 1971

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

Orviston on the 1928 USGS mapOrviston on the 1971 USGS map1928Snow Shoe 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 Orviston.

Famous people

Famous people close to Orviston

Nobody well known was born in Orviston itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Jonathan FrakesAmerican actor and director · b. 1952
Jeff VanderMeerAmerican writer · b. 1968
Glenn ThompsonU.S. Representative from Pennsylvania · b. 1959
Andrew Gregg CurtinAmerican politician · b. 1815
George Grey BarnardAmerican sculptor · b. 1863
John Montgomery WardAmerican Major League Baseball pitcher, shortst… · b. 1860

Questions about Orviston’s history

What year was Orviston founded?

The Orviston post office opened in 1909, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (5) and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.