Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1858.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Shaler Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Shaler Township is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #387 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Shaler Township’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 Shaler Township’s 2.2 sits near the middle of its state (58% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1847.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A−. The pre-1940 share (±2.8 points) is firm at this size.
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 Shaler Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
18cemeteries and burying grounds inside Shaler Township
Anshe LabovitzBeth ShalomChesed Shel EmethMount RoyalNew LightOak GroveOhave ShalomOhave ZedeckOld Chesed Shel EmethSaint AugustineSaint JohnsSaint Luke's LutheranSaint Mary's ChurchSaint Stanislaus and Saint AnthonySaint StanislausSisters of Saint FrancisTiphereth IsraelWorkman's Circle Branch 45
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Shaler Township on the map, 1908 to 1993
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Shaler Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1908New Kensington 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 Shaler Township.
Traders began settling in the Shaler area in the mid-18th century. The most prominent early trader in the area was George Croghan, who came in the early 1740s. By 1754, settlement included the Pine Creek trading post, where Europeans traded fur and skins with the Mingo and other Native Americans in the Ohio Valley. The second early European settlement was Girty's Run, established by Simon Girty.
In 1847, according to Wikidata. Shaler Township’s post office opened in 1858, and the census of 1940 counted 11,185 people here.
How does Shaler Township rank for history?
Shaler Township is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #387 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 Shaler Township?
Three places: the Isaac Lightner House (listed 1978), the Bridge in Shaler Township (1988) and the Mt. Alvernia Historic District (2024).
How old are the homes in Shaler Township?
13% of Shaler Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1961.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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) 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.
