The Alsace Township post office opened in 1863, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Alsace (1863), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 3,689 in 20002020 census: 3,834163 years
How historic is Alsace Township?
C+
More historic than 41% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Alsace Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Alsace Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Alsace Township is more historic than 41% of U.S. towns, #840 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Alsace Township’s overall grade.
Pennsylvania towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Pennsylvania town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Alsace Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (25% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±11.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Alsace Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Alsace Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1894Reading 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 Alsace Township.
Alsace Township was established on March 3, 1745, following a petition to the Pennsylvania Court of Quarter Sessions. The township was given its name in deference to the original settlers, who came from Alsace, German Empire in present-day France. The township's settlers were predominantly industrious farmers and millers. Large areas of land were cleared for agricultural production, streams were harnessed for milling, and churches were built for spiritual and social needs.
The Alsace Township post office opened in 1863, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Alsace Township rank for history?
Alsace Township is more historic than 41% of U.S. towns, #840 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. 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.
How old are the homes in Alsace Township?
21% of Alsace Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±11.3 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1980.
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 Wikipedia, 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.
