Florence Township’s post office opened in 1854, and 31% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns · #106 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 94 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1947 on, and the census since 1880.
From Florence Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Florence Township began
When was Florence Township founded?
1854
The Florence Township post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1872. Three smaller post offices, Bustle Town (1800), Bustleton (1882) and Dobbins (1887), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,528 in 18802020 census: 12,812172 years
How historic is Florence Township?
A−
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Florence Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1872.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Florence Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Florence Township is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #106 of 468 in New Jersey. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Florence Township’s overall grade.
New Jersey towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical New Jersey town has 3.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Florence Township’s 75.8 sits above most of its state (84% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 98 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.2 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1872 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Florence Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The Florence City Company, formed in 1849, organized the original layout of lots and streets in Florence. It also oversaw construction of the Florence Hotel and wharf. The Florence Iron Works was established in 1857 along the Delaware River by Richard Jones. It continued as a major force in the economy of the community, especially after ownership was transferred to Richard D. Wood in 1867. The 1900 United States census reported that a good portion of the workforce was dependent on the foundry.
Florence was soon recognized as an attractive vacation spot with sandy beaches along the Delaware River. Visitors could also partake of hydrotherapy offered by a center established about 1872 by Dr. Trall of Philadelphia.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Florence Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1947Bristol sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Florence Township.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Burlington County - ED 3-47, ED 3-48, ED 3-49, ED 3-50, 1850
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Florence Township’s page.
The Florence Township post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1872.
How does Florence Township rank for history?
Florence Township is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #106 of 468 in New Jersey. 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.
What is on the National Register in Florence Township?
Three places: the Roebling Historic District (listed 1978), the Providence Presbyterian Church of Bustleton (1988) and the Florence Public School No. 1 (2015).
How old are the homes in Florence Township?
31% of Florence Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.2 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1971.
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 (18), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.
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