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CHistory
History · Laureldale

Laureldale’s post office opened in 1923, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns · #941 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

Below: maps from 1894 on and the census since 1940.

1923first post office
0on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Shuvaev · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Laureldale began

When was Laureldale founded?

1923

The Laureldale post office opened in 1923, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1930.

First census: 3,397 in 19402020 census: 4,277103 years

How historic is Laureldale?

C

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Laureldale post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1930.
History grade

What drives Laureldale’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Laureldale is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #941 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Laureldale’s overall grade.
Founding era1923, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194026.1% of homes (±6.1) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%A−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical PA town 2.1 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 31%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 9%

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 Laureldale’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (25% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.1 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1930 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.

Founding year: the first post office (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 Laureldale’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 Laureldale are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18948 editions of the USGS map, 1894 to 1999. Watch Laureldale change.Old housesHalf of Laureldale’s homes were built before 1954.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Laureldale’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Laureldale’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

Laureldale on the map, 1894 to 1999

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

Laureldale on the 1894 USGS mapLaureldale on the 1913 USGS mapLaureldale on the 1944 USGS mapLaureldale on the 1956 USGS mapLaureldale on the 1968 USGS mapLaureldale on the 1978 USGS mapLaureldale on the 1983 USGS mapLaureldale on the 1999 USGS map1894Reading 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 Laureldale.

The story so far

Laureldale, in brief

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

Laureldale is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,277 at the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1923. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 3,911 to 4,277 (+9%).

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

Timeline

Laureldale, 1894 to 1955

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1894On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 20th century
  4. 1923Post officeThe Laureldale post office opens
  5. 1940Born hereTom Brown is born here
  6. 1955Post officeThe Laureldale post office closes
By decade

Laureldale, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Laureldale, PA Municipal Building, June 20252025Laureldale, PA Municipal Building, June 2025Laureldale2018LaureldaleLaureldale Welcome Sign, BerksCo PA2015Laureldale Welcome Sign, BerksCo PAGrumpys Bar, Laurendale BerksCo PA2015Grumpys Bar, Laurendale BerksCo PAElizabeth Ave 1100, Laurendale BerksCo PA2015Elizabeth Ave 1100, Laurendale BerksCo PACentre Square Barbers2015Centre Square Barbers
People over time

Laureldale, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,00019401960198020002020Peak: 4,519

Between 3,397 and 4,519 people in every census since 1940.

9 censuses, 1940–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Laureldale had its own post office from 1923 to 1955.

Laureldale
1923–1955
19201970today

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.

South TempleIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHyde ParkIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Laureldale’s history

What year was Laureldale founded?

The Laureldale post office opened in 1923, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1930.

How does Laureldale rank for history?

Laureldale is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #941 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.

How old are the homes in Laureldale?

26% of Laureldale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.1 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1954.

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 Wikimedia Commons (6), 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) 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.