Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
West Kittanning dates its founding to 1855 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1910.
More historic than 54% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, West Kittanning is more historic than 54% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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 West Kittanning’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.
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 →
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 West Kittanning’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of West Kittanning. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of West Kittanning.
Peaked at 1,591 in 1980; 1,192 people lived here in 2020.
12 censuses, 1910–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on West Kittanning’s Wikipedia page.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of West Kittanning yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
West Kittanning is a borough in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,192 at the 2020 census.
West Kittanning was established in 1855. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 1,175 in 2010, 1,192 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Passages that mention West Kittanning, cut from the printed page as they were published.
of the chain ferry in 1824, and the old tavern at the foot of the hill on the Allegheny, were objects of interest to travelers here in early days. West Kittanning was incorporated as a borough in 1900, the first census after that being the one of 1910, when the population was given as 871. The storekeepers are P.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyNobody well known was born in West Kittanning itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Another post office, Weskit, opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
In 1855, according to Wikidata. West Kittanning’s post office opened in 1900, and the census of 1910 counted 589 people here.
West Kittanning is more historic than 54% 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.
40% of West Kittanning’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.7 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1947.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (5), 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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