11 of Birmingham Township’s places are on the National Register
More historic than 66% of U.S. towns · #542 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Most of Birmingham Township was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1901 on, and the census since 1930.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Birmingham Township is more historic than 66% of U.S. towns, #542 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Birmingham 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 Birmingham Township’s 63.4 sits above most of its state (87% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 26 historic buildings outnumber those of 81% 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 (±3.6 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Birmingham Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Birmingham Township was the site of the Battle of Brandywine, September 11, 1777, during the American Revolutionary War. Over 18,000 men were engaged. Until then, it was the largest land battle on the North American continent. Birmingham Friends Meeting, founded in 1690, is the location of a common grave of both American and British casualties. Much of the original battlefield around the meeting is preserved to this day. Birmingham is the oldest township in Chester County. Philadelphia magazine recently rated the township as one of the top five Best Places to Live in the suburbs of Philadelphia and as the "Place with the Biggest Paychecks".
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.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Birmingham Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1901West Chester 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 Birmingham 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 Maps - Pennsylvania - Chester County - Birmingham - ED 15-3, 1880
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Birmingham Township’s page.
Birmingham Township is more historic than 66% of U.S. towns, #542 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.
What is on the National Register in Birmingham Township?
11 listings: 8 buildings, 2 historic districts, the Brandywine Battlefield and the Dilworthtown Historic District, with 9 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 26 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Birmingham Township?
6% of Birmingham Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1989.
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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (11), 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.
★ Landmark
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