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B+History
History · Pitcairn

Pitcairn’s post office opened in 1894, and 39% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 71% of U.S. towns · #457 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Pitcairn School #1. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1900.

1894first post office
1on the National Register
39%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
7famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Pitcairn’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Pitcairn began

When was Pitcairn founded?

1894

The Pitcairn post office opened in 1894, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 2,601 in 19002020 census: 3,101132 years

How historic is Pitcairn?

B+

More historic than 71% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Pitcairn post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Pitcairn’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pitcairn is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #457 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pitcairn’s overall grade.
Founding era1894, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194038.8% of homes (±8.5) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register1 listing, 3.3 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 71%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 56%

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 Pitcairn’s 3.3 sits near the middle of its state (62% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.5 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 Pitcairn’s past

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

Boom and bustPeaked at 6,317 in 1930; 3,101 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19044 editions of the USGS map, 1904 to 1979. Watch Pitcairn change.A town in old photos12 old photos, postcards and papers, 1880–1943.Old housesHalf of Pitcairn’s homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · People over time

Pitcairn, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5007,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 6,317

Peaked at 6,317 in 1930; 3,101 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

On the map

Pitcairn on the map, 1904 to 1979

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

Pitcairn on the 1904 USGS mapPitcairn on the 1953 USGS mapPitcairn on the 1960 USGS mapPitcairn on the 1979 USGS map1904Pittsburgh 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 Pitcairn.

By decade

Pitcairn, decade by decade

6 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1900s5 items
1950 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania (PA) - Allegheny County - Pitcairn - ED 2-633 to 64218801950 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania …1895 Hopkins map of Wall Yard18951895 Hopkins map of Wall YardMapPitcairn, Pa., Allegheny County 19011901Pitcairn, Pa., Allegheny County 1901Pitcairn, Pa., Allegheny County 19011901Pitcairn, Pa., Allegheny County 1901PostcardPitcairnPABirdsEyeViewCirca1909c. 1909PostcardPitcairnPABirdsEyeViewCirca1909Postcard
1910s–1940s7 items
Recreation period, Pitcairn, Pa1919Recreation period, Pitcairn, PaPitcairn PA Presby PHS4861923Pitcairn PA Presby PHS486Pitcairn PA Presby PHS4871923Pitcairn PA Presby PHS487Mrs. Bernice Stevens of Braddock, Pennsylvania, mother of one child, employed in the engine house 8d30409v1943Mrs. Bernice Stevens of Braddock, Pennsylvania, mothe…Mrs. May Watson, thirty-eight, mother of three children, employed as a freight trucker 8d30404v1943Mrs. May Watson, thirty-eight, mother of three childr…Pitcairn, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Naomi Stroke, thirty-nine, mother of five children, employed as a trucker for the Pitcairn…1943Pitcairn, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Naomi Stroke, thirty-nin…Pitcairn, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Agnes Glunt, mother of a child four years old, employed as a rivet heater in the Pitcairn,…1943Pitcairn, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Agnes Glunt, mother of a…
1950s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
The story

How Pitcairn came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Pitcairn.

Read it all →

The settlement that would become modern Pitcairn began to grow on the banks of Turtle Creek in 1841 when farmer John McGinnis began sell land to fellow settlers.

In 1850, the Pennsylvania Railroad purchased a corridor from McGinnis. In 1874, Robert Pitcairn of the Pennsylvania Railroad purchased a further 215 acres in the area to serve as a new hub for the Pittsburgh railyard, the original location of which was deemed too small to support the growing level of rail traffic in the region.

During the late 1800s, the growing settlement was called "Wallurba" by residents. In 1894, the settlement separated from current-day Monroeville (formerly known as Patton Township) and was incorporated as the borough of Pitcairn.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Pitcairn, 1880 to 1971

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880In the archive1950 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania (PA) - Allegheny County - Pitcairn -…
  3. 1894Post officeThe Pitcairn post office opens
  4. 1895In the archive1895 Hopkins map of Wall Yard
  5. 1897Born hereHarry Robb is born here
  6. 20th century
  7. 1901In the archivePitcairn, Pa., Allegheny County 1901
  8. 1901Born hereTed Weems is born here
  9. 1904On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1919In the archiveRecreation period, Pitcairn, Pa
  11. 1923In the archivePitcairn PA Presby PHS486
  12. 1930CensusPopulation peaks at 6,317
  13. 1939Born hereCarl Thompson is born here
  14. 1943In the archiveMrs. Bernice Stevens of Braddock, Pennsylvania, mother of one child, employed in the engi…
  15. 1947Born hereDon Roy King is born here
  16. 1971Post officeThe Pitcairn post office closes
Every building

Pitcairn, building by building, 1927

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a sheet.

Pitcairn fire insurance map, 1927, sheet 11927Sheet 1 of 5
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

1950 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania (PA) - Allegheny County - Pitcairn - ED 2-633 to 642
Retake this view1950 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania (PA) - Allegheny County - Pitcairn - ED 2-633 to 642, 1880

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Pitcairn’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Pitcairn

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2025
Pitcairn School #1
Pitcairn School #1
Buildings
All 1 listings
Pitcairn School #1Building · listed 2025

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

Famous people

7 famous people were born in Pitcairn

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

See all →
Ted WeemsAmerican musician, bandleader · b. 1901
C
Carl ThompsonAmerican guitar maker · b. 1939
D
Don Roy KingAmerican television director · b. 1947
H
Harry RobbAmerican football player · b. 1897
John Ralph McDowellAmerican politician · b. 1902
S
Sean LoganAmerican politician · b. 1970
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Pitcairn had its own post office from 1894 to 1971.

Pitcairn
1894–1971
18901960today

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

Help out

Finish Pitcairn’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1950 Census Enumeration District Maps -…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Pitcairn’s history

What year was Pitcairn founded?

The Pitcairn post office opened in 1894, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Pitcairn rank for history?

Pitcairn is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #457 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. 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 Pitcairn?

One place: the Pitcairn School #1 (listed 2025).

How old are the homes in Pitcairn?

39% of Pitcairn’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.5 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1957.

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 (10), the Library of Congress (2), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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 Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.