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B−History
History · Collier Township

Collier Township dates to 1875, and 10% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 47% of U.S. towns · #786 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Neville House, a National Historic Landmark. Below: maps from 1904 on and the census since 1880.

1875founded
2on the National Register
10%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Collier Township began

When was Collier Township founded?

1875

Collier Township dates its founding to 1875 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 1,697 in 18802020 census: 8,935151 years

How historic is Collier Township?

B−

More historic than 47% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1841.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Collier Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Collier Township is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #786 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Collier Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1875, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194010.2% of homes (±4.2) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%B−National Register2 listings, 2.2 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 47%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 24%

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 Collier Township’s 2.2 sits near the middle of its state (58% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1875.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.2 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 Collier Township’s past

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

Lost villages6 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Collier Township, and 8 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Collier Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19045 editions of the USGS map, 1904 to 1990. Watch Collier Township change.A National Historic Landmark2 places on the National Register, including Neville House, a National Historic Landmark.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Walkers Mills
1841–1894
Beechmont
1884–1889
Hickman
1889–1954
Ewingsville
1898–1912
Greggs
1902–1937
Presto
1903–today
Rennerdale
1906–1944
18401930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BeechmontEwingsvilleGreggHickmanKirwan HeightsPrestoRennerdaleWalkers Mill
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Collier Township
All Saints Polish NationalHoly TrinitySaint Barbara Roman CatholicSaint John Evangelical Lutheran ChurchWoodville State Hospital

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

Help out

Start Collier Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Collier Township on the map, 1904 to 1990

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

Collier Township on the 1904 USGS mapCollier Township on the 1953 USGS mapCollier Township on the 1960 USGS mapCollier Township on the 1979 USGS mapCollier Township on the 1990 USGS map1904Carnegie 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 Collier Township.

The story

How Collier Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Collier Township.

Read it all →

One of the earliest settlers of the township was James Ewing. James Ewing was born in Cecil County, Maryland, about 1730, emigrated to the west in 1770, and built a gristmill on Robinson's run. His claim comprised a thousand acres (4 km2). Gabriel and Isaac Walker were born in Lancaster County, Pa., the former in 1744, the latter in 1746. The Scotch-Irish brothers emigrated to the west in 1772, and purchased two thousand acres (8 km2) from John Henry. Gabriel located near Hays crossing, on the Pan Handle railroad, and Isaac at Walker's Mills.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Collier Township, 1841 to 1978

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1841Post officeThe Walkers Mills post office opens
  3. 1875
    FoundingCollier Township is established
  4. 1884Post officeThe Beechmont post office opens
  5. 1889Post officeThe Beechmont post office closes
  6. 1889Post officeThe Hickman post office opens
  7. 1894Post officeThe Walkers Mills post office closes
  8. 20th century
  9. 1904On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1954Post officeThe Hickman post office closes
  11. 1978LandmarkNeville House named a National Historic Landmark
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your album
On the National Register

2 historic places in Collier Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmark
1
Neville House
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1974
Neville House
Walker-Ewing Log HouseNeville House★
Buildings★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

Colonial1
★ Landmark
Neville HouseColonial
Walker-Ewing Log HouseBuilding

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Collier Township, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,000188019001920194019601980200020208,931

Grew from 1,697 people in 1880 to 8,931 in 2020, 5 times over.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Collier Township’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Collier Township

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

See all →
John KasichAmerican politician and former television host · b. 1952
Billy MaysEuropean-American salesperson · b. 1958
S
Scott HahnAmerican theologian · b. 1957
J
Jay LivingstonAmerican composer and singer · b. 1915
J
Jeff SmithAmerican cartoonist · b. 1960
Mike DitkaAmerican football player, coach, and television… · b. 1939
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

South Fayette Township2 historic placesB+Robinson TownshipIts storyC+Scott TownshipIts storyCBridgevilleIts storyB+North Fayette TownshipIts storyC+GlendaleIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHeidelbergIts storyC+

Questions about Collier Township’s history

What year was Collier Township founded?

In 1875, according to Wikidata. Collier Township’s post office opened in 1841, and the census of 1880 counted 1,697 people here.

How does Collier Township rank for history?

Collier Township is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #786 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 Collier Township?

Two places: the Neville House (listed 1974) and the Walker-Ewing Log House (1976).

How old are the homes in Collier Township?

10% of Collier Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.2 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1998.

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 Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.