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History · Scranton

Scranton’s post office opened in 1878, and 10% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1946 on and the census since 1880.

1878first post office
0on the National Register
10%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Evanoco · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Scranton began

When was Scranton founded?

1878

The Scranton post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 124 in 18802020 census: 648148 years
Founding year: the first Scranton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Scranton’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Scranton are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 942 in 2000; 648 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Scranton’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Scranton, census by census

02004006008001,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 942

Peaked at 942 in 2000; 648 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story so far

Scranton, in brief

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

Scranton is a town in Florence County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 932 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Florence Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Its first post office opened in 1878. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 932 to 648 (-30%).

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

Timeline

Scranton, 1878 to 2000

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1878Post officeThe Scranton post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1946On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 21st century
  6. 2000CensusPopulation peaks at 942
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your album
On the map

Scranton on the map, 1946 to 1990

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

Scranton on the 1946 USGS mapScranton on the 1986 USGS mapScranton on the 1990 USGS map1946Hyman 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 Scranton.

Famous people

Famous people close to Scranton

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

See all →
Joseph L. GoldsteinAmerican biochemist · b. 1940
Ronald McNairAmerican physicist, astronaut · b. 1950
Mary McLeod BethuneAmerican educator and civil rights leader · b. 1875
Raymond FeltonAmerican basketball player · b. 1984
Melvin PurvisFBI Agent · b. 1903
Ellison D. SmithAmerican politician · b. 1864

Questions about Scranton’s history

What year was Scranton founded?

The Scranton post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 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.