The story
Read it all →How Lawrence Park Township came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Lawrence Park Township.
The Lawrence Park Dinor was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo: Pubdog · Public domainBHistory
History · Lawrence Park Township
Lawrence Park Township dates to 1910, and 49% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 62% of U.S. towns · #578 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Its Register listing is the Park Dinor. Below: maps from 1899 on and the census since 1990.
1910founded
1on the National Register
49%homes built before 1940
Quick answers
How Lawrence Park Township began, and where its name came from
When was Lawrence Park Township founded?
1910
Lawrence Park Township dates its founding to 1910 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1990.
First census: 4,310 in 19902020 census: 3,820116 years
How did Lawrence Park Township get its name?
Lawrence Park Township was named after USS Lawrence, flagship of Oliver Hazard Perry, and her namesake, James Lawrence, commander of USS Chesapeake during the War of 1812.
How historic is Lawrence Park Township?
B
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 62% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Lawrence Park Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lawrence Park Township is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #578 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lawrence Park Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1910, from Wikidata: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194049.0% of homes (±9.2) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register1 listing, 2 historic buildings, 5.3 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 62%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 44%
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 Lawrence Park Township’s 5.3 sits above most of its state (68% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 historic buildings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.2 points). Two sources give 1910.
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 Lawrence Park 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 Lawrence Park Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18996 editions of the USGS map, 1899 to 1996. Watch Lawrence Park Township change.Old housesHalf of Lawrence Park Township’s homes were built before 1941.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Lawrence Park Township’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lawrence Park 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
Lawrence Park Township on the map, 1899 to 1996
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lawrence Park Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1899Erie 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 Lawrence Park Township.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your albumOn the National Register
1 historic place in Lawrence Park Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
2004
Park Dinor
Buildings
Architectural styles listings
Diner1
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
People over time
Lawrence Park Township, census by census
Between 3,824 and 4,310 people in every census since 1990.
4 censuses, 1990–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Lawrence Park Township’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →Famous people close to Lawrence Park Township
Nobody well known was born in Lawrence Park Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Places that used to be
Old corners
Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Lawrence Park
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.
Questions about Lawrence Park Township’s history
What year was Lawrence Park Township founded?
In 1910, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1990 counted 4,310 people here.
How does Lawrence Park Township rank for history?
Lawrence Park Township is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #578 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 Lawrence Park Township?
One place: the Park Dinor (listed 2004).
How old are the homes in Lawrence Park Township?
49% of Lawrence Park Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.2 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1941.
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 Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.