Caln Township’s post office opened in 1835, and 4 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns · #295 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Most of Caln Township was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. 4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 126 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1956 on.
The Caln Township post office opened in 1835, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Caln (1835) and Thorndale (1895), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 14,432191 years
How historic is Caln Township?
A−
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Caln Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Caln Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Caln Township is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #295 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Caln 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 Caln Township’s 86.1 sits above most of its state (88% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 127 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% 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 (±3.4 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 Caln Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Caln
1835–1907
Thorndale
1895–1974
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
CalnCaln Meeting HouseFishervilleThorndale
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Caln Township
Caln Friends OrthodoxOld Caln Friends Meeting
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Caln Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Caln Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Caln is a census-designated place (CDP) in Caln Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,519 at the 2010 census. It is located east of the city of Coatesville and lies west of Philadelphia.
Its first post office opened in 1835. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 13,817 to 14,432 (+4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Caln Township, 1835 to 1974
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Caln Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1956Wagontown sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Caln Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Caln Township
Nobody well known was born in Caln Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Caln Township post office opened in 1835, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Caln Township rank for history?
Caln Township is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #295 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 Caln Township?
4 listings: 1 building, among them the Caln Meeting House (listed 1984, the first), 2 historic districts, the Coatesville Veterans Administration Hospital Historic District and the Carver Court, with 126 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 127 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Caln Township?
9% of Caln Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.4 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1981.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (4), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
