Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Jennerstown

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Jennerstown

Jennerstown dates to 1822, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper from 1939 on.

1822founded
0on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Jennerstown’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Jennerstown began

When was Jennerstown founded?

1822

Jennerstown dates its founding to 1822 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1854.

2020 census: 678204 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1854.The full story ↓

What stands out about Jennerstown’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Deep rootsEstablished in 1822: 204 years of Jennerstown.Old housesHalf of Jennerstown’s homes were built before 1963.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Jennerstown’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBoswell-Jenner Twp.-Jennerstown05-12-19…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Timeline

Jennerstown, 1822 to 1939

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1822
    FoundingJennerstown is established
  3. 1854Post officeThe Jennertown post office opens
  4. 1858Post officeThe Jennertown post office closes
  5. 1865Post officeThe Jennerstown post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1939In the archiveBoswell-Jenner Twp.-Jennerstown05-12-1939
The story

How Jennerstown came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Jennerstown.

Read it all →

Jennerstown was first settled in the late 18th century as a stage coach stop on the Forbes Road, one of the first roads constructed by English-speaking settlers over the Allegheny Mountains. The town, originally named Laurel Hill, was later renamed Jennerville in honor of Dr. Edward Jenner, discoverer of the smallpox vaccine. Later, Jennerville became Jennerstown. The town and vicinity boast several buildings about 200 years old, which is not common in the surrounding area.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Jennerstown, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s1 item
Boswell-Jenner Twp.-Jennerstown05-12-19391939Boswell-Jenner Twp.-Jennerstown05-12-1939
1940s–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
Today5 recent
Sunday Drive July 2016 - panoramio (78)2016Sunday Drive July 2016 - panoramio (78)Sunday Drive July 2016 - panoramio (77)2016Sunday Drive July 2016 - panoramio (77)Sunday Drive July 2016 - panoramio (73)2016Sunday Drive July 2016 - panoramio (73)John Dennison House in2015John Dennison House inJennerstown speedway2011Jennerstown speedway
Then & 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.

Boswell-Jenner Twp.-Jennerstown05-12-1939
Retake this viewBoswell-Jenner Twp.-Jennerstown05-12-1939, 1939

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Jennerstown’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Jennerstown

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

See all →
W
Wilma Scott HeideAmerican writer · b. 1921
Richard PetersAmerican attorney · b. 1780
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Jennerstown’s post office has been open since 1865. Another post office, Jennertown, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Jennertown
1854–1858
Jennerstown
1865–today
18501940today

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

Questions about Jennerstown’s history

What year was Jennerstown founded?

In 1822, according to Wikidata. Jennerstown’s post office opened in 1854.

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 (6), 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.