1 place in town is on the National Register, among them the Albert Gallatin House; Friendship Hill National Historic Site, a National Historic Landmark. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1902 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1878.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Point Marion’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Point Marion is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Point Marion’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 Point Marion’s 8.5 sits above most of its state (75% 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 A− to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.5 points). Two sources give 1842.
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 Point Marion’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The region's original inhabitants from AD 1050 to 1635 were the Iroquoian related Monongahela Culture tribes. Two archeological sites from these tribes exist locally today: 1) several miles to the south of Point Marion in Morgantown, WV, and 2) two miles to the north at Dunkard Creek. This Aboriginal culture, which peaked about AD 1300 and dominated all of southwestern Pennsylvania, disappeared by the 1630s.
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.
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 year, then a sheet.
In 1842, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Point Marion’s post office opened in 1878, and the census of 1880 counted 28 people here.
How does Point Marion rank for history?
Point Marion is more historic than 92% 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 Point Marion?
One place: the Albert Gallatin House; Friendship Hill National Historic Site (listed 1966).
How old are the homes in Point Marion?
72% of Point Marion’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 1938.
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), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, 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.
1902
1902
1909