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STONE HOUSE INN, WENONAH, GLOUCESTER COUNTYPhoto: Jerrye & Roy Klotz, MD · CC BY-SA 3.0
B+History
History · Wenonah

Wenonah dates to 1871, and 45% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 70% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Memorial Presbyterian Church. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1880.

1871founded
1on the National Register
45%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Wenonah’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Wenonah began

When was Wenonah founded?

1871

Wenonah dates its founding to 1871 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 166 in 18802020 census: 2,283155 years

How historic is Wenonah?

B+

More historic than 70% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1872.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Wenonah’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wenonah is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wenonah’s overall grade.
Founding era1871, from Wikipedia: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194045.2% of homes (±10.4) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register1 listing, 4.4 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 70%
NewerOlder

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 Wenonah’s 4.4 sits near the middle of its state (54% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.4 points). Two sources give 1871.

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 Wenonah’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18917 editions of the USGS map, 1891 to 1995. Watch Wenonah change.Old housesHalf of Wenonah’s homes were built before 1946.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Wenonah’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Descri…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Wenonah on the map, 1891 to 1995

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

Wenonah on the 1891 USGS mapWenonah on the 1920 USGS mapWenonah on the 1949 USGS mapWenonah on the 1951 USGS mapWenonah on the 1967 USGS mapWenonah on the 1986 USGS mapWenonah on the 1995 USGS map1891Philadelphia 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 Wenonah.

The story

How Wenonah came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Wenonah.

Read it all →

Wenonah was founded in 1871 by Philadelphia businessmen as a country resort, drawn by its location along the Mantua Creek and on the West Jersey Railroad. Over the next 40 years, numerous dams were installed to create recreational lakes. From 1902 until the Great Depression, Wenonah Military Academy, a private military school, trained cadets there.

Throughout its history, Wenonah has been almost exclusively a residential area. Over 21% of the borough's land area is conservation land, which is protected by ordinance from development. There are more than 6 miles (9.7 km) of hiking trails are threaded around lakes and alongside waterways in these conserved areas.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Wenonah, 1850 to 1993

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1850In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-49,…
  3. 1871
    FoundingWenonah is established
  4. 1872Post officeThe Wenonah post office opens
  5. 1891Born hereEthel A. Grosscup is born here
  6. 1891On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 20th century
  8. 1907In the archiveWenonah, NJ - Sep. 1907
  9. 1915In the archiveDress Parade, Wenonah Academy
  10. 1921Born hereBob Steuber is born here
  11. 1959Born hereTim Squyres is born here
  12. 1993Born hereJoe Solecki is born here
By decade

Wenonah, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1850s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s1 item
1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-49, ED 8-50, ED 8-5118501940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New J…
1900s–1910s3 items
Wenonah, NJ - Sep. 19071907Wenonah, NJ - Sep. 1907Dress Parade, Wenonah Academy1915Dress Parade, Wenonah AcademyDress Parade1915Dress Parade
1920s–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
Today8 recent
Wenonah, NJ Fire Company, Sept. 20252025Wenonah, NJ Fire Company, Sept. 2025Wenonah, NJ Community Center, Sept. 20252025Wenonah, NJ Community Center, Sept. 2025Wenonah, NJ Community Center and Vineland Secondary, Sept. 20252025Wenonah, NJ Community Center and Vineland Secondary, …Memorial Presbyterian Church, Wenonah, NJ, Sept. 20252025Memorial Presbyterian Church, Wenonah, NJ, Sept. 2025Wenonah Station - August 20222022Wenonah Station - August 2022Wenonah Presby2013Wenonah PresbySTONE HOUSE INN2007STONE HOUSE INNMap of Gloucester County highlighting2004Map of Gloucester County highlightingMap
Every building

Wenonah, building by building, 1914–1922

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.

Wenonah fire insurance map, 1914, sheet 11914Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

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

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.

1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-49, ED 8-50, ED 8-51
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-49, ED 8-50, ED 8-51, 1850

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Wenonah’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Wenonah

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
2013
Memorial Presbyterian Church
Memorial Presbyterian Church
Buildings
Memorial Presbyterian ChurchBuilding

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

People over time

Wenonah, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,50018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 2,364

Between 166 and 2,364 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Wenonah

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

See all →
Tim SquyresAmerican film editor · b. 1959
Ethel A. GrosscupAmerican physical educator · b. 1891
J
Joe SoleckiAmerican mixed martial arts fighter · b. 1993
Bob SteuberAmerican football player · b. 1921
J
James Penrose HarlandAmerican archaeologist · b. 1891
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Mantua Township3 historic placesC+Sewell1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDeptford Township1 historic placeBOak ValleyIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Wenonah’s history

What year was Wenonah founded?

In 1871, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Wenonah’s post office opened in 1872, and the census of 1880 counted 166 people here.

How does Wenonah rank for history?

Wenonah is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns. 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 Wenonah?

One place: the Memorial Presbyterian Church (listed 2013).

How old are the homes in Wenonah?

45% of Wenonah’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.4 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1946.

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 (11), the Library of Congress (1), 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.