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A+History
History · Riverton

Riverton dates to 1851, and 74% of its homes were built before 1940

Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns · #2 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 371 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 1880.

1851founded
1on the National Register
74%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Riverton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Riverton began

When was Riverton founded?

1851

Riverton dates its founding to 1851 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 582 in 18802020 census: 2,764175 years

How historic is Riverton?

A+

Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1871.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Riverton’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Riverton is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #2 of 468 in New Jersey. All 2 inputs put Riverton near the top nationally; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Riverton’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 194074.1% of homes (±5.9) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register1 listing, 371 historic buildings, 1,339 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Among the top 1%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)#2 of 468

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 Riverton’s 1,339 sits above most of its state (98% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 371 historic buildings outnumber those of 96% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.9 points). Two sources give 1851.

Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Riverton’s past

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

A historic districtThe Riverton Historic District takes in 371 historic buildings.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18936 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1997. Watch Riverton change.Then and nowOne place photographed years apart. Drag to compare.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

1 listing protects 371 historic buildings

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
371
each building in a district counts
first listed
1999
Riverton Historic District
Riverton Historic District
Districts
Riverton Historic DistrictDistrict

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

Help out

Start Riverton’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewFrank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred E…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Riverton on the map, 1893 to 1997

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

Riverton on the 1893 USGS mapRiverton on the 1950 USGS mapRiverton on the 1967 USGS mapRiverton on the 1973 USGS mapRiverton on the 1983 USGS mapRiverton on the 1997 USGS map1893Germantown 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 Riverton.

The story

How Riverton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Riverton.

Read it all →

Riverton was established in 1851, along the Delaware River, having been laid out by Philadelphia architect Samuel Sloan. According to architectural historian Henry Russell Hitchcock, Riverton was one of the first totally planned residential subdivisions in the United States.

The Japanese beetle, now a widespread invasive insect pest in the United States, were first discovered in a nursery near Riverton in 1916.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Riverton, 1851 to 1927

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1851
    FoundingRiverton is established
  3. 1871Post officeThe Riverton post office opens
  4. 1872Born hereLloyd Carpenter Griscom is born here
  5. 1880In the archiveFrank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House (1)
  6. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1897Born hereEdythe Ferris is born here
  8. 20th century
  9. 1900Born hereRichard Hollingshead is born here
  10. 1927Born herePhilip Slater is born here
By decade

Riverton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s1 item
Frank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House (1)c. 1880Frank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House …
1890s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today17 recent
Frank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House (1.1)2026Frank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House …Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - Riverton, NJ - Christ Episcopal Church Rectory (4)2026Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - …Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - Riverton, NJ - Christ Episcopal Church Rectory (3)2026Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - …Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - Riverton, NJ - Christ Episcopal Church Rectory (2)2026Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - …Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - Riverton, NJ - Christ Episcopal Church Rectory (1)2026Add-ons - Early Victorian (Stick Style on Mansard) - …Riverton, NJ Free Library, Aug. 20252025Riverton, NJ Free Library, Aug. 2025Riverton, NJ post office, Dec. 20242024Riverton, NJ post office, Dec. 2024Riverton, NJ fire department, Dec. 20242024Riverton, NJ fire department, Dec. 2024Riverton, NJ borough hall, Dec. 20242024Riverton, NJ borough hall, Dec. 2024Riverton Bicycle Track marker, Riverton, NJ, Dec. 20242024Riverton Bicycle Track marker, Riverton, NJ, Dec. 2024Riverton Yacht Club at Sunset2021Riverton Yacht Club at SunsetChrist Episcopal Church2021Christ Episcopal ChurchChrist Episcopal Church2021Christ Episcopal ChurchRiverton Station - April 20152015Riverton Station - April 2015Riverton Yacht Club House c 18942012Riverton Yacht Club House c 1894Map of Burlington County highlighting2008Map of Burlington County highlightingMap20070421 RivertonNJ D80 NearHiway73200720070421 RivertonNJ D80 NearHiway73
Every building

Riverton, building by building, 1895–1919

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Riverton fire insurance map, 1895, sheet 11895Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

The same spot, 146 years apart

Drag across each photo to compare.

Frank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House (1.1)Frank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House (1)c. 18802026
Frank Furness - Riverton, NJ - Alfred Earnshaw House (1)Matched from the two captions
People over time

Riverton, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,50018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 3,412

Between 582 and 3,412 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Riverton

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

See all →
Lloyd Carpenter GriscomAmerican diplomat · b. 1872
E
Edythe FerrisAmerican artist · b. 1897
P
Philip SlaterAmerican sociologist · b. 1927
R
Richard HollingsheadAmerican inventor of the drive-in theatre · b. 1900
G
Gladys J. MillerAmerican architect · b. 1926
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Cinnaminson TownshipIts storyC+Palmyra1 historic placeA−

Questions about Riverton’s history

What year was Riverton founded?

In 1851, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Riverton’s post office opened in 1871, and the census of 1880 counted 582 people here.

How does Riverton rank for history?

Riverton is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #2 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 Riverton?

One place: the Riverton Historic District (listed 1999).

How old are the homes in Riverton?

74% of Riverton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.9 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1938.

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).

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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.