The story
Read it all →How Heidelberg Township came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Heidelberg Township.
The Kissling Farm and Conrad Weiser House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo: Shuvaev · CC BY-SA 4.0AHistory
History · Heidelberg Township
21% of Heidelberg Township’s homes were built before 1940
More historic than 90% of U.S. towns. What drives it
3 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Conrad Weiser House, a National Historic Landmark, and two historic districts with 16 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1902 on, and the census since 1980.
3on the National Register
21%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Quick answers
About Heidelberg Township’s history
How historic is Heidelberg Township?
A
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 90% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
History grade
What drives Heidelberg Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Heidelberg Township is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Heidelberg Township’s overall grade.
Founding eraWithout a firm founding date for Heidelberg Township, this grade rests on its old homes and Register listings–Homes built before 194020.6% of homes (±7.2) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%B+National Register3 listings, 18 historic buildings, 101 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 90%
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 Heidelberg Township’s 101 sits above most of its state (89% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 18 historic buildings outnumber those of 79% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.2 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Heidelberg Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19025 editions of the USGS map, 1902 to 1977. Watch Heidelberg Township change.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Heidelberg Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.A National Historic Landmark3 places on the National Register, including Conrad Weiser House, a National Historic Landmark.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Heidelberg Township’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Heidelberg Township’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.On the map
Heidelberg Township on the map, 1902 to 1977
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Heidelberg Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1902Wernersville sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Heidelberg Township.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Ryeland
Freeland
18901960today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Ryeland
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Heidelberg Township
Conrad Weiser Homestead and Memorial ParkHeidelbergSaint Daniels Church
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Timeline
Heidelberg Township, 1862 to 1960
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1862
In the archiveTownship map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, from actual surveys - 1880
In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania - Berks County - Heidelberg - ED 6-3… - 1893Post officeThe Ryeland post office opens
- 1898Post officeThe Freeland post office opens
- 20th century
- 1902
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1905Post officeThe Freeland post office closes
- 1920Post officeThe Ryeland post office closes
- 1960LandmarkConrad Weiser House named a National Historic Landmark
By decade
Heidelberg Township, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1860s to the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
1860s–1880s2 items
1890s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
2015
2015
2015
2008Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania - Berks County - Heidelberg - ED 6-37, ED 6-38, 1880
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Heidelberg Township’s page.
Retake this view · +15On the National Register
3 listings protect 18 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.
places listed
3
National Historic Landmark
1
Conrad Weiser House
historic buildings protected
18
each building in a district counts
first listed
1966
Conrad Weiser House
BuildingsDistricts★ landmark
Architectural styles listings
Pennsylvania Bank Barn2
Federal1
Vernacular House Banked1
★ LandmarkConrad Weiser HouseBuilding
Kissling FarmFederal
Stupp-Oxenrider FarmVernacular House Banked
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
People over time
Heidelberg Township, census by census
Between 1,513 and 1,726 people in every census since 1980.
5 censuses, 1980–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Heidelberg Township’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →Famous people close to Heidelberg Township
Nobody well known was born in Heidelberg Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
K
Kenneth RiegelAmerican operatic tenor · b. 1938Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about Heidelberg Township’s history
How does Heidelberg Township rank for history?
Heidelberg Township is more historic than 90% 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.
What is on the National Register in Heidelberg Township?
Three places: the Conrad Weiser House (listed 1966), the Kissling Farm (1992) and the Stupp-Oxenrider Farm (1992).
How old are the homes in Heidelberg Township?
21% of Heidelberg Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.2 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1970.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.