Lansdowne dates to 1893, and 48% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 88% of U.S. towns · #219 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 173 buildings between them. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1890.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1885. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
History grade
What drives Lansdowne’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lansdowne is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #219 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lansdowne’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 Lansdowne’s 157 sits above most of its state (91% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 175 historic buildings outnumber those of 92% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1893.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.5 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 Lansdowne’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
On the map
Lansdowne on the map, 1894 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lansdowne. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1894Chester 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 Lansdowne.
The story so far
Lansdowne, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Lansdowne yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Lansdowne is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, located 6 miles (10 km) southwest of Center City Philadelphia. It was named for the Marquess of Lansdowne. As of the 2020 census, Lansdowne had a population of 11,107. Lansdowne grew quickly in the early part of the twentieth century, when a railroad stop was established near the intersection of Lansdowne Avenue and Baltimore Pike. The borough is primarily residential, with a commercial center near the original railroad stop. The borough also contained some light industrial buildings, which have been in decline in recent decades. The borough is sometimes erroneously spelled "Landsdowne" or confused with Lansdale, in nea…
Lansdowne was established in 1893. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 10,620 to 11,107 (+5%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Lansdowne, 1884–1914
Passages that mention Lansdowne, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A history of Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and its people1914Read the page →
Read the text
war and regaining his health, he opened a blacksmith shop at Fernwood, Delaware county, remaining there four years in successful business. During this period he built the first house in what is now the populous, popular borough of Lansdowne. but did not occupy it at first, renting it to another. After four years in Fernwood, he decided to cast in his fortune with that of the new town, to which he moved his business and residence, first occupying in 1883 the house he had previously erected in Lansdowne. He prospered there in his business, working at his anvil until 1893, but since that date has devoted himself
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
veyed to John Blunston Sept. 10, 1682. The village of Fernwood is located on the one hundred acres which was purchased by Joseph Fearn, May 28, 1712. Above this tract, at a point a trifle west of Lansdowne Station, a line drawn to the New Jerusalem Church, and thence due west to the old Marker Paper-Mllls, on Darby Creek, and then following the creek to the bend above the Lower Darby line, and thence due east
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A history of Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and its people1914 · page 1037Read the page →
Read the text
a natural inclination for drawing he accepted a position with A. Penrose Benner, an architect, with whom he remained as a draftsman for a period of thirteen years. In 1896 he established himself independently in business as an architect and real estate dealer in Lansdowne, Delaware county, Pennsylvania, and was successfully engaged in this line of business for a number of years. In 1905 he commenced building operations in Lansdowne and its vicinity, and is now engaged in the general contracting and building business. He has erected many beautiful private residences and other buildings, his structures being not only
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.
Timeline
Lansdowne, 1859 to 1980
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
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 1893, according to Wikidata. Lansdowne’s post office opened in 1885, and the census of 1890 counted 875 people here.
How does Lansdowne rank for history?
Lansdowne is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #219 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 Lansdowne?
4 listings: 2 buildings, among them the Twentieth Century Club of Lansdowne (listed 1980, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Lansdowne Park Historic District and the Albertson, Henry, Subdivision Historic District, with 173 contributing buildings. 175 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Lansdowne?
48% of Lansdowne’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.5 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1943.
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 (4), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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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