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–Not graded
History · Jefferson Township

26% of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1892 on.

0on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY-SA 4.0

What stands out about Jefferson 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 writtenNo old photos of Jefferson Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18926 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1997. Watch Jefferson Township change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Jefferson Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Jefferson 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

Jefferson Township on the map, 1892 to 1997

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

Jefferson Township on the 1892 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1947 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1955 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1969 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1977 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1997 USGS map1892Lykens 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 Jefferson Township.

The story so far

Jefferson Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Jefferson Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Jefferson Township is a township in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 359 at the time of the 2020 census. Jefferson Township was formed in 1842 and named for Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States.

Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 362 in 2010, 360 in 2020.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Jefferson Township, 1878 to 1917

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1878Post officeThe Carsonville post office opens
  3. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1917Post officeThe Carsonville post office closes
By decade

Jefferson Township, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Jefferson Township, Dauphin County, PA Municipal Building, Sept. 20252025Jefferson Township, Dauphin County, PA Municipal Buil…Carsonville, PA Volunteer Fire Company, Sept. 20252025Carsonville, PA Volunteer Fire Company, Sept. 2025Carsonville, PA Hotel, Sept. 20252025Carsonville, PA Hotel, Sept. 2025Carsonville Fire Co., PA (2), Dec. 20232023Carsonville Fire Co., PA (2), Dec. 2023Carsonville Fire Co., PA (1), Dec. 20232023Carsonville Fire Co., PA (1), Dec. 2023
Famous people

Famous people close to Jefferson Township

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

See all →
Les BrownAmerican bandleader · b. 1912
Arthur Byron CobleAmerican mathematician · b. 1878
G
Gary CollinsAmerican football player · b. 1940
Carl ScheibAmerican baseball player · b. 1927
J
John J. KleinerAmerican politician · b. 1845
D
Dave HooverAmerican comic book artist and animator · b. 1955
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Carsonville, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
CarsonvilleSpechty Kopf
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jefferson Township
Saint JamesTrinity United Brethren Church

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Rush TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWayne TownshipIts storyCJackson TownshipIts storyB−

Questions about Jefferson Township’s history

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (5), 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.