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History · Allentown

Half of Allentown’s homes were built after 1996

Most of Allentown was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1996.

0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Allentown’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 Allentown are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Allentown’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Allentown came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Allentown.

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Allentown was founded in around 1842 by Floridatown resident, former Sheriff of Escambia County, and first Sheriff of Santa Rosa County Jesse Carter Allen (1811-1892). Allen homesteaded in the region after a Yellow Fever outbreak. Another pioneer of the area was Ben Jernigan, a sawmill operator. John Botts and W.W. Harrison (second Sheriff of Santa Rosa County) were also among the earliest settlers in the area.

Allentown largest industry early on was lumber. Robinson Point and Bay Point Lumber Companies owned large land areas. Sheep and cattle are also large industries in the area.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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.

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Famous people

Famous people close to Allentown

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

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Kevin Stitt28th governor of Oklahoma · b. 1972
Bubba WatsonAmerican professional golfer · b. 1978
Daniel EwingAmerican basketball player · b. 1983
M
Mark EverettAmerican track and field athlete, middle-distan… · b. 1968
R
Randy AllenAmerican basketball player · b. 1965
Boo WeekleyProfessional golfer · b. 1973

Questions about Allentown’s history

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What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

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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 Wikipedia 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.