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History · South Versailles Township

South Versailles Township dates to 1869, and 34% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1904 on.

1869founded
0on the National Register
34%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Generic1139 · CC BY 3.0
Quick answers

How South Versailles Township began

When was South Versailles Township founded?

1869

South Versailles Township dates its founding to 1869 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1900.

2020 census: 310157 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1900.The full story ↓

What stands out about South Versailles Township’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 South Versailles Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19045 editions of the USGS map, 1904 to 1993. Watch South Versailles Township change.Old housesHalf of South Versailles Township’s homes were built before 1953.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start South Versailles Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how South Versailles Township’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

South Versailles Township on the map, 1904 to 1993

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

South Versailles Township on the 1904 USGS mapSouth Versailles Township on the 1953 USGS mapSouth Versailles Township on the 1960 USGS mapSouth Versailles Township on the 1979 USGS mapSouth Versailles Township on the 1993 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 South Versailles Township.

The story

How South Versailles Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of South Versailles Township.

Read it all →

South Versailles Township was formed on September 18, 1869, by a division of old Versailles Township into the townships of North Versailles and South Versailles. In 1875, the second precinct of South Versailles separated to form a new Versailles Township, leaving South Versailles with only a small area around the villages of Coulter, Osceola (also known as Emblem), and Alpsville. These villages were coal mining communities from about 1850 until the coal was depleted in about 1910. Alpsville and Osceola have since vanished.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

South Versailles Township, 1869 to 1904

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1869
    FoundingSouth Versailles Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1900Post officeThe Coulters post office opens
  5. 1904On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
AlpsvilleCoulter
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside South Versailles Township
Bigley FamilyCoulterSaint Patrick'sSaint Patrick's

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.

Elizabeth Township2 historic placesA−CoulterIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGreenockIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWhite OakIts storyBNorth Huntingdon Township2 historic placesB

Questions about South Versailles Township’s history

What year was South Versailles Township founded?

In 1869, according to Wikidata. South Versailles Township’s post office opened in 1900.

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 Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.