Collegeville dates to 1684, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 67% of U.S. towns · #515 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Most of Collegeville was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1973. Its Register listing is the Perikomen Bridge Hotel. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1900.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1830.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Collegeville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Collegeville is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #515 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Collegeville’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 Collegeville’s 1.9 sits near the middle of its state (57% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1684.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.0 points).
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Collegeville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area which is present day Collegeville was part of the original William Penn purchase of "All the land lying on the Pahkehoma" in 1684. In 1799, Perkiomen Bridge was constructed using funds raised from a special lottery approved by the Pennsylvania Legislature. When the first post office in this area was established in 1847, it was called Perkiomen Bridge. In 1832, the first school for primary and secondary students was established as Todd's School. It was later renamed Freeland Public School in 1844. In 1848, Henry A. Hunsicker built the "Freeland Seminary of Perkiomen Bridge." The village around the school became known as Freeland. In 1851, Abraham Hunsicker – Henry's son – established the Pennsylvania Female College near present-day Glenwood Avenue. Ten years later, in 1861, the post office was moved and renamed Freeland.
Junction to Palm Station, a distance of twenty-six miles through Montgomery county, finally connecting with the East Pennsylvania line with a distance of thirty-eight miles in length. This road has stations at Collegeville, Schwenksville, Green Lane, Pennsburg, and East Greenville. The Plymouth railroad extends from the borough of Conshohocken to Oreland, connecting with the North Pennsylvania line. It is only nine and a quarter miles in length.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania1923 · page 139Read the page →
Read the text
Wachter, of Pottstown, conducted services for the people of the district at the home of Max Van Lang. Weekly services were held until January, 1912, when the Rev. Thomas J. Sullivan, who had been appointed pastor of the new parish of Collegeville, began holding services in the hall of Jacob M. Kuhn, in Green Lane. This hall was used by various priests to June, 1917. In 1918 the services were held in Red Men's Hall.
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.
By decade
Collegeville, decade by decade
3 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
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.
In 1684, according to Wikidata. Collegeville’s post office opened in 1830, and the census of 1900 counted 611 people here.
How does Collegeville rank for history?
Collegeville is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #515 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 Collegeville?
One place: the Perikomen Bridge Hotel (listed 1985).
How old are the homes in Collegeville?
5% of Collegeville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.0 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1973.
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 (9), the Library of Congress (3), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
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