How Black Creek Township began, and where its name came from
When was Black Creek Township founded?
1833
The Black Creek Township post office opened in 1833, the earliest record of the town by name. Six smaller post offices, Black Creek (1833), Gowen (1872) and Mountain Grove (1873), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,132 in 20002020 census: 1,909193 years
How did Black Creek Township get its name?
Black Creek Township was named after Black Creek (a stream which runs through the township).
How historic is Black Creek Township?
B+
More historic than 70% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Black Creek Township is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Black Creek 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 Black Creek 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 B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.9 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 Black Creek 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 Black Creek Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1892Mahanoy 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 Black Creek Township.
Black Creek Township was established from a section of Sugarloaf Township on August 8, 1848. It was named after Black Creek (a stream which runs through the township).
The township grew slowly during its early years. Farmers had to clear away thick forests in order to utilize the land. The early lumbermen were also busy cutting down the forests which blanketed the mountainous landscape. The first sawmill and gristmill were built by Martin and William Rittenhouse in 1810.
What they wrote about Black Creek Township in 1909
Passages that mention Black Creek Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A history of Wilkes-Barré, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania1909 · page 111Read the page →
Read the text
Black Creek Township was formed on August 8, 1848. its territory l:)eing taken from Sugarloaf Township. The first settlers in Black Creek Township were the Huntsinger, Rittenhouse, Shellhammer, Short and Swoyer families.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Black Creek Township, 1833 to 1917
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Black Creek Township post office opened in 1833, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Black Creek Township rank for history?
Black Creek Township 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.
How old are the homes in Black Creek Township?
30% of Black Creek Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.9 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1972.
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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
