2 of London Britain Township’s places are on the National Register
More historic than 69% of U.S. towns · #496 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Lunn's Tavern and the Thompson Farm. Most of London Britain Township was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1985. Below: maps from 1984 on and the census since 1930.
What drives London Britain Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, London Britain Township is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #496 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of London Britain Township’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 London Britain Township’s 18.7 sits above most of its state (82% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.0 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 London Britain Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
On March 14, 1681, William Penn received a charter from the King of England for a grant of land to establish a colony in the New World. This colony was named Pennsylvania, or Penn's Woods. The Township of London Britain was organized in 1725 from a tract of land belonging to the London Company of Great Britain. The southernmost part of the township was originally disputed territory between Pennsylvania and Maryland, resolved eventually by the Mason–Dixon line. The southernmost section of the township formed the northern section of New Munster, a large settlement tract established by Maryland and named after the southern province of Munster in Ireland. New Munster acted as an early genesis point and catalyst for large Scotch-Irish settlement and expansion into Chester County and points west in Pennsylvania.
The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of London Britain Township.
1984Wilmington sheet · 1:100,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of London Britain Township.
On the National Register
2 historic places in London Britain Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
How does London Britain Township rank for history?
London Britain Township is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #496 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 London Britain Township?
Two places: the Lunn's Tavern (listed 1979) and the Thompson Farm (1983).
How old are the homes in London Britain Township?
9% of London Britain Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.0 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1985.
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 (2), Wikipedia, 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.
