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History · Pillow

Pillow dates to 1818, and 64% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1893 on and the census since 1870.

1818founded
0on the National Register
64%homes built before 1940
2famous people
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Photo: Shuvaev · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Pillow began

When was Pillow founded?

1818

Pillow dates its founding to 1818 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 299 in 18702020 census: 292208 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1847.The full story ↓

What stands out about Pillow’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 Pillow are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18935 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1975. Watch Pillow change.Old housesHalf of Pillow’s homes were built before 1938.Deep rootsEstablished in 1818: 208 years of Pillow.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Pillow’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Pillow on the map, 1893 to 1975

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

Pillow on the 1893 USGS mapPillow on the 1947 USGS mapPillow on the 1953 USGS mapPillow on the 1969 USGS mapPillow on the 1975 USGS map1893Millersburg 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 Pillow.

The story

How Pillow came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Pillow.

Read it all →

Pillow was founded in 1818 in the eastern part of Mifflin Township, Dauphin County by John Snyder, a land developer from Mercer County, as "Snydertown" (Schneiderschteddel). The borough was incorporated as "Uniontown" on April 20, 1864, becoming a separate municipality from the township.

When the town got its first post office in 1847, post offices under the name of "Snydertown" and "Uniontown" already existed. A postal official substituted the name "Pillow" after General Gideon Pillow, who was popular at the time for his victories in the Mexican–American War. Over the next hundred years, the new name slowly took hold, and on November 2, 1965, the residents voted to change the official name of the town to "Pillow".

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Pillow in 1907

Passages that mention Pillow, cut from the printed page as they were published.

In Middle Paxton township, outside of Dauphin, the United Evangelical church built a neat frame house in 1898, known as (Trinity) or "Fishing Creek" church. The same denomination built a church at Uniontown (Pillow postoffice) about 1898, and also one at Williamstown and one in Lower Paxton. CHURCH…
History of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania1907 · page 259Read the page →
Read the text

In Middle Paxton township, outside of Dauphin, the United Evangelical church built a neat frame house in 1898, known as (Trinity) or "Fishing Creek" church. The same denomination built a church at Uniontown (Pillow postoffice) about 1898, and also one at Williamstown and one in Lower Paxton. CHURCHES OF HUMMELSTOWN.

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

Pillow, 1818 to 1901

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1818
    FoundingPillow is established
  3. 1847Post officeThe Pillow post office opens
  4. 1867Born hereCharles A. Snyder is born here
  5. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 20th century
  7. 1901Born hereFred Stiely is born here
By decade

Pillow, decade by decade

Today8 recent
Pillow, PA post office, June 20252025Pillow, PA post office, June 2025Pillow, PA Boro Hall, June 20252025Pillow, PA Boro Hall, June 2025Grand View Cemetery, Pillow, PA, June 20252025Grand View Cemetery, Pillow, PA, June 2025God's Missionary Church, Pillow, PA, June 20252025God's Missionary Church, Pillow, PA, June 2025Zion's Evangelical Lutheran Church2015Zion's Evangelical Lutheran ChurchZion's Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery2015Zion's Evangelical Lutheran Church CemeteryMulberry Alley2015Mulberry AlleyMarket St, Pillow PA 012015Market St, Pillow PA 01
People over time

Pillow, census by census

010020030040018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 367

Between 291 and 367 people in every census since 1870.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Pillow

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
F
Fred StielyBaseball player · b. 1901
Charles A. SnyderAmerican politician · b. 1867
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Jordan TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLykens Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLower Mahanoy Township1 historic placeAMifflin TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Pillow’s history

What year was Pillow founded?

In 1818, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Pillow’s post office opened in 1847, and the census of 1870 counted 299 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 (8), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.