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Perspective view of east portal, looking WSW. Allegheny tunnel at left; Gallitzin tunnel (HAER no. PA-516) at right jpgPhoto: Lowe, Jet, HABS photographer · Public domain
–Not graded
History · Tunnelhill

Tunnelhill’s post office opened in 1856, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1902 on, and the census since 1880.

1856first post office
0on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Tunnelhill’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Tunnelhill began

When was Tunnelhill founded?

1856

The Tunnelhill post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1876. Another post office, Tunnel Hill (1856), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 224 in 18802020 census: 315170 years
Founding year: the first Tunnelhill post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1876.

What stands out about Tunnelhill’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19024 editions of the USGS map, 1902 to 1981. Watch Tunnelhill change.Boom and bustPeaked at 730 in 1890; 315 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Tunnelhill’s homes were built before 1959.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Tunnelhill’s collection

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

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

Tunnelhill on the map, 1902 to 1981

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

Tunnelhill on the 1902 USGS mapTunnelhill on the 1963 USGS mapTunnelhill on the 1972 USGS mapTunnelhill on the 1981 USGS map1902Ebensburg 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 Tunnelhill.

People over time

Tunnelhill, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 730

Peaked at 730 in 1890; 315 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story so far

Tunnelhill, in brief

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

Tunnelhill is a borough that is located in Cambria and Blair counties in Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, Tunnelhill had a population of 315. It is part of the Altoona, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Tunnelhill is named after the many railroad tunnels of the Pennsylvania Railroad near here known as the Gallitzin Tunnels.

Its first post office opened in 1856. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 363 to 315 (-13%).

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

Timeline

Tunnelhill, 1850 to 1917

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1850In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Pennsylvania - Cambria County - ED 11-151…
  3. 1856Post officeThe Tunnel Hill post office opens
  4. 1890CensusPopulation peaks at 730
  5. 20th century
  6. 1902On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1917Post officeThe Tunnel Hill post office closes
By decade

Tunnelhill, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1850s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s1 item
1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Pennsylvania - Cambria County - ED 11-151, ED 11-152, ED 11-153, ED 11-…18501940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Penns…
Today10 recent
Tunnelhill, PA (7), May 20242024Tunnelhill, PA (7), May 2024Tunnelhill, PA (6), May 20242024Tunnelhill, PA (6), May 2024Tunnelhill, PA (5), May 20242024Tunnelhill, PA (5), May 2024Tunnelhill, PA (4), May 20242024Tunnelhill, PA (4), May 2024Tunnelhill, PA (3), May 20242024Tunnelhill, PA (3), May 2024Tunnelhill, PA (2), May 20242024Tunnelhill, PA (2), May 2024Tunnelhill, PA (1), May 20242024Tunnelhill, PA (1), May 2024Leaving Tunnelhill, PA towards the north, May 20242024Leaving Tunnelhill, PA towards the north, May 2024Entering Tunnelhill, PA from south, May 20242024Entering Tunnelhill, PA from south, May 2024Entering Tunnelhill, PA from north, May 20242024Entering Tunnelhill, PA from north, May 2024
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 Descriptions - Pennsylvania - Cambria County - ED 11-151, ED 11-152, ED 11-153, ED 11-…
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Pennsylvania - Cambria County - ED 11-151, ED 11-152, ED 11-153, ED 11-…, 1850

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Tunnelhill

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

See all →
Robert PearyExplorer from the United States · b. 1856
Hedda HopperAmerican gossip columnist and actress · b. 1885
Charlie CristUnited States Representative from 2017 to 2022 · b. 1956
Michael BeheAmerican biochemist, author, and intelligent de… · b. 1952
Janet BlairActress · b. 1921
A
Andrew Kevin WalkerAmerican screenwriter · b. 1964
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Another post office, Tunnel Hill, opened and closed inside today’s town.

2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Tunnelhill
Saint MarysSaint Patricks

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.

Allegheny TownshipIts storyB−GallitzinIts storyB+Gallitzin TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCresson Township1 historic placeC

Questions about Tunnelhill’s history

What year was Tunnelhill founded?

The Tunnelhill post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1876.

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 (11), 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.