Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Polk

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 · Polk

Polk dates to 1839, and 42% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 2 old photos and papers from 1880 on.

1839founded
0on the National Register
42%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Polk’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Polk began

When was Polk founded?

1839

Polk dates its founding to 1839 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1845.

2020 census: 634187 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1845.

What stands out about Polk’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Polk’s homes were built before 1951.Deep rootsEstablished in 1839: 187 years of Polk.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Polk’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps -…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Polk, in brief

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

Polk is a borough in Venango County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 703 at the 2020 census. Polk State Center, a state-run facility for the intellectually disabled, was opened in 1897 and is located in the borough. In 2019, Pennsylvania announced a plan to close the facility. Families and residents sued Pennsylvania in an attempt to prevent the closure.

Polk was established in 1839. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 816 to 634 (-22%).

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

Timeline

Polk, 1839 to 1923

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1839
    FoundingPolk is established
  3. 1845Post officeThe Polk post office opens
  4. 1880In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania - Venango County - Frenchcreek - ED …
  5. 20th century
  6. 1923In the archivePolk PA Presby PHS502
By decade

Polk, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1920s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s1 item
1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania - Venango County - Frenchcreek - ED 61-2218801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania …
1890s–1910snothing 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
1920s1 item
Polk PA Presby PHS5021923Polk PA Presby PHS502
1930s–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
Today4 recent
United Methodist Church2013United Methodist ChurchUS Route 62 - Pennsylvania2013US Route 62 - PennsylvaniaMain Street Market2013Main Street MarketUS Route 62 - Pennsylvania2009US Route 62 - Pennsylvania
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.

1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania - Venango County - Frenchcreek - ED 61-22
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania - Venango County - Frenchcreek - ED 61-22, 1880

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Polk

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

See all →
Alexander HaysUnion Army general · b. 1819
Alexander McDowellPolitician · b. 1845
F
Francis Patrick McFarlandCatholic bishop · b. 1819
Lawrence Leo GranerRoman Catholic archbishop · b. 1901
Ted MarchibrodaAmerican football player and coach · b. 1931
Arnold PlumerAmerican politician · b. 1801
Places that used to be

Places now gone

Polk’s post office has been open since 1845.

Gone or out of use
Polk Post Officepost office

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Frenchcreek TownshipIts storyCVictory TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSandycreek TownshipIts storyB−

Questions about Polk’s history

What year was Polk founded?

In 1839, according to Wikidata. Polk’s post office opened in 1845.

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 (6), 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.