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History · Frankford

Frankford’s post office opened in 1857, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

Most of Frankford was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. Its Register listing is the Capt. Ebe Chandler House. Its Register listing is the Capt. Ebe Chandler House. Below: maps from 1918 on and the census since 1880.

1857first post office
1on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Frankford began

When was Frankford founded?

1857

The Frankford post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 380 in 18802020 census: 790169 years
Founding year: the first Frankford post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Frankford’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 Frankford are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19186 editions of the USGS map, 1918 to 1984. Watch Frankford change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Frankford’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Frankford’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
On the map

Frankford on the map, 1918 to 1984

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

Frankford on the 1918 USGS mapFrankford on the 1938 USGS mapFrankford on the 1948 USGS mapFrankford on the 1955 USGS mapFrankford on the 1972 USGS mapFrankford on the 1984 USGS map1918Rehoboth 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 Frankford.

The story

How Frankford came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Frankford.

Read it all →

Located on U.S. Route 113, Frankford, was founded in 1808 and incorporated in 1937. The town was named Frankford Village in 1848 upon the acquisition of a post office. The establishment of the Pennsylvania Railroad brought a hotel, commercial establishments and an opera house to make Frankford a thriving commercial and cultural center.

The Capt. Ebe Chandler House (1880) was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Frankford, 1851 to 1918

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1851Born hereCaleb R. Layton is born here
  3. 1857Post officeThe Frankford post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1904Born hereJohn J. Williams is born here
  6. 1918On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Frankford, decade by decade

Today18 recent
Frankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareFrankford, Delaware2010Frankford, DelawareDEMap-doton-Frankford2004DEMap-doton-Frankford
On the National Register

1 historic place in Frankford

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Capt. Ebe Chandler House
Capt. Ebe Chandler House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Victorian Gothic1
Capt. Ebe Chandler HouseVictorian Gothic

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Frankford, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 847

Between 380 and 847 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Frankford

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

See all →
John J. WilliamsAmerican politician · b. 1904
Caleb R. LaytonAmerican politician · b. 1851
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Dagsboro1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Frankford’s history

What year was Frankford founded?

The Frankford post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Frankford?

One place: the Capt. Ebe Chandler House (listed 1979).

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 (18), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, 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) 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.