From Union Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Union Township began
When was Union Township founded?
1826
The Union Township post office opened in 1826, the earliest record of the town by name. Five smaller post offices, Union (1826), Muhlenburg (1840) and Koonsville (1848), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,100 in 20002020 census: 2,035200 years
How historic is Union Township?
B
More historic than 58% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Union Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Union Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Union Township is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Union 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 Union Township’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 C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.0 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Union Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Union
1826–1840
Muhlenburg
1840–1905
Koonsville
1848–1849
Reyburn
1882–1902
Koonsville
1891–1903
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
KoonsvilleMuhlenburg
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Union Township
BenscoterBenscoter FamilyMarvinMillerSorber
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Union Township on the map, 1894 to 1977
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Union Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1894Shickshinny 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 Union Township.
Timeline
Union Township, 1826 to 1940
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Union Township was formed from a piece of Huntington Township in July 1813. The first settlements, outside of what is now Shickshinny, were erected by George Fink and Peter Gregory in 1790. Other settlers, most of whom were from Connecticut, followed in their footsteps. The first sawmills in the territory were later constructed along Shickshinny Creek.
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.
The Union Township post office opened in 1826, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Union Township rank for history?
Union Township is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns. 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 Union Township?
17% of Union Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.0 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1975.
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 (1), the Library of Congress (5), Wikipedia, 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.
1940
1940
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