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B+History
History · Cherry Township

Cherry Township’s post office opened in 1825, and 31% of its homes were built before 1940

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

Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1954 on.

1825first post office
0on the National Register
31%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nicholas · CC BY 2.0
Quick answers

How Cherry Township began

When was Cherry Township founded?

1825

The Cherry Township post office opened in 1825, the earliest record of the town by name. Five smaller post offices, Cherry (1825), Cherry Mills (1850) and Bernice (1871), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 1,481201 years

How historic is Cherry Township?

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: the first Cherry Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Cherry Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cherry 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 Cherry Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1825, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194030.5% of homes (±6.5) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%ANational RegisterNo listings counted · typical PA town 2.1 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 70%
NewerOlder

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 Cherry 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 (±6.5 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 Cherry Township’s past

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

Lost villages5 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Cherry Township, and 7 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Deep rootsA post office since 1825: 201 years of Cherry Township.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Cherry
1825–1852
Cherry Mills
1850–1906
Bernice
1871–1919
Coreytown
1893–1894
Mildred
1894–today
Satterfield
1895–1905
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BerniceCherry MillsCoveytownFoley CornerMildredSatterfieldShinerville
1cemetery inside Cherry Township
Fairview

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Cherry Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Timeline

Cherry Township, 1825 to 1954

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1825Post officeThe Cherry post office opens
  3. 1850Post officeThe Cherry Mills post office opens
  4. 1852Post officeThe Cherry post office closes
  5. 1871Post officeThe Bernice post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1906Post officeThe Cherry Mills post office closes
  8. 1919Post officeThe Bernice post office closes
  9. 1954On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story

How Cherry Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Cherry Township.

Read it all →

Cherry Township was first settled in 1816 by Amos Ellis, and a sawmill was built in the township in 1818. Cherry Township was formed from Shewsbury Township in 1824 and named for the nearby Cherry Hill. Cherry Township contained the county seat of Sullivan county from 1848 to 1850, when it was moved to Laporte. A post office was built in Cherry Township in 1878.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Cherry Township, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
Map of Sullivan County Pennsylvania Highlighting Cherry TownshipDate?Map of Sullivan County Pennsylvania Highlighting Cher…Map
Today14 recent
Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2025-04-16-15-38-49 UMBRA-08)2025Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2025-04-14-14-17-22 UMBRA-05)2025Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2025-01-07-02-51-08 UMBRA-08)2025Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-12-12-02-48-14 UMBRA-09)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-11-29-15-20-02 UMBRA-08)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-11-26-02-17-24 UMBRA-05)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-11-25-14-05-42 UMBRA-05)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-11-16-02-14-22 UMBRA-05)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-11-09-01-11-47 UMBRA-05)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-10-20-02-24-56 UMBRA-08)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-10-16-01-18-21 UMBRA-05)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, United States (2024-10-12-02-20-42 UMBRA-05)2024Cherry Township, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Unite…Cherry Township Warmth2010Cherry Township WarmthCherry Township Cemetery Statue2009Cherry Township Cemetery Statue
On the map

Cherry Township on the map, 1954 to 1974

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

Cherry Township on the 1954 USGS mapCherry Township on the 1960 USGS mapCherry Township on the 1974 USGS map1954Williamsport sheet · 1:250,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Cherry Township.

Famous people

Famous people close to Cherry Township

Nobody well known was born in Cherry Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
J
Johnny BentAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1908
P
Philip Van Doren SternAmerican writer and historian · b. 1900
Ada BittenbenderAmerican lawyer, feminist activist · b. 1848
J
John LaporteAmerican politician · b. 1798
G
Garland GrangePlayer of American football · b. 1906
K
Kenneth E. CasterAmerican paleontologist · b. 1908
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Colley Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLaporte TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townForks Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townAlbany TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Cherry Township’s history

What year was Cherry Township founded?

The Cherry Township post office opened in 1825, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Cherry Township rank for history?

Cherry 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 Cherry Township?

31% of Cherry Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.5 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1975.

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 (15), Wikipedia, 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.