Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The Southview post office opened in 1915, the earliest record of the town by name.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Southview’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of Southview.
Southview was built as a coal town for the Montour No. 1 coal mine, which opened in 1914. The village was considered to be a first-class miners' town and included housing for miners and their families, as well as a company store. The exact date of the mine closing is unknown, but it was probably closed between 1932 and 1939, according to the aerial photos.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nobody well known was born in Southview itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Southview post office opened in 1915, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.