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C+History
History · Trafford

Trafford dates to 1904, and 33% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 35% of U.S. towns · #902 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1910.

1904founded
0on the National Register
33%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Trafford’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Trafford began

When was Trafford founded?

1904

Trafford dates its founding to 1904 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 1,959 in 19102020 census: 3,317122 years

How historic is Trafford?

C+

More historic than 35% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1880.
History grade

What drives Trafford’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Trafford is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #902 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Trafford’s overall grade.
Founding era1904, from Wikidata: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194032.8% of homes (±9.3) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%ANational RegisterNo listings counted · typical PA town 2.1 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 35%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 13%

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 Trafford’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (25% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.3 points). Two sources give 1904.

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 Trafford’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 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19044 editions of the USGS map, 1904 to 1979. Watch Trafford change.Old housesHalf of Trafford’s homes were built before 1954.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Trafford’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Trafford’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 viewNorth from Stewarts: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Trafford on the map, 1904 to 1979

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

Trafford on the 1904 USGS mapTrafford on the 1953 USGS mapTrafford on the 1960 USGS mapTrafford on the 1979 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 Trafford.

The story so far

Trafford, in brief

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

Trafford is a borough in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Located near Pittsburgh in western Pennsylvania, the borough lies primarily in Westmoreland County; only a small portion extends into Allegheny County. It was incorporated in 1904 from the northernmost corner of North Huntingdon Township, and was named by George Westinghouse for Trafford near Manchester, England. Westinghouse purchased the land in 1902, and the Trafford Foundry began operations on October 3, 1903. The population was 3,317 at the 2020 census. Of this, 3,113 were in Westmoreland County, and only 61 were in Allegheny County.

Trafford was established in 1904. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 3,174 to 3,317 (+5%).

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

Timeline

Trafford, 1875 to 1939

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1875In the archiveNorth from Stewarts
  3. 1880Post officeThe Blackburn post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1904
    FoundingTrafford is established
  6. 1904On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1909Post officeThe Trafford post office opens
  8. 1910Post officeThe Blackburn post office closes
  9. 1911Born hereWilliam L. Crawford is born here
  10. 1923In the archiveTrafford PA Reformed PHS604
  11. 1939Born hereSonny Vaccaro is born here
By decade

Trafford, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1920s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s3 items
North from Stewarts1875North from StewartsStewarts Station1875Stewarts StationTurtle Creek near Stewarts1875Turtle Creek near Stewarts
1920s1 item
Trafford PA Reformed PHS6041923Trafford PA Reformed PHS604
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
Today2 recent
Cavitt Avenue Trafford 20132013Cavitt Avenue Trafford 2013Map of Allegheny County PA Highlighting2007Map of Allegheny County PA HighlightingMap
Every building

Trafford, building by building, 1909–1910

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.

Trafford fire insurance map, 1909, sheet 11909Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

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.

North from Stewarts
Retake this viewNorth from Stewarts, 1875

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Trafford, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,500192019401960198020002020Peak: 4,383

Between 1,959 and 4,383 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Trafford’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Trafford

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
S
Sonny VaccaroAmerican sports businessman · b. 1939
W
William L. CrawfordAmerican publisher and editor · b. 1911
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Trafford’s post office has been open since 1909. Another post office, Blackburn, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Blackburn
1880–1910
Trafford
1909–today
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BlackburnStewart
Gone or out of use
Trafford Elementary SchoolschoolTrafford High Schoolschool

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.

MonroevilleIts storyC−North Huntingdon Township2 historic placesBLevel GreenIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townPenn Township1 historic placeC+North Versailles Township1 historic placeB−

Questions about Trafford’s history

What year was Trafford founded?

In 1904, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Trafford’s post office opened in 1880, and the census of 1910 counted 1,959 people here.

How does Trafford rank for history?

Trafford is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #902 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.

How old are the homes in Trafford?

33% of Trafford’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.3 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1954.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (6), 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), 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.