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Henry Smith FarmHenry Smith Farm · Photo: JoeRed · CC BY-SA 3.0
B−History
History · Londonderry Township

1 of Londonderry Township’s places is on the National Register

More historic than 47% of U.S. towns · #784 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

Most of Londonderry Township was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. Below: maps from 1908 on.

1on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

About Londonderry Township’s history

How historic is Londonderry Township?

B−

More historic than 47% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Londonderry Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Londonderry Township is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #784 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 Londonderry Township’s overall grade.
Founding eraWithout a firm founding date for Londonderry Township, this grade rests on its old homes and Register listings–Homes built before 19405.8% of homes (±3.6) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register1 listing, 2 historic buildings, 4.1 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 47%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 24%

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 Londonderry Township’s 4.1 sits near the middle of its state (64% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 historic buildings outnumber those of 60% 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 (±3.6 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 Londonderry 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 Londonderry Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19086 editions of the USGS map, 1908 to 1990. Watch Londonderry Township change.Lost villages5 hamlets and corners are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Londonderry Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Londonderry Township’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

Londonderry Township on the map, 1908 to 1990

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

Londonderry Township on the 1908 USGS mapLondonderry Township on the 1943 USGS mapLondonderry Township on the 1956 USGS mapLondonderry Township on the 1963 USGS mapLondonderry Township on the 1972 USGS mapLondonderry Township on the 1990 USGS map1908Middletown 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 Londonderry Township.

Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
BraeburnCrest ViewHillsdale AcresPine ManorRound Top Manor
Gone or out of use
Three Mile Island Number Two Airportairport
7cemeteries and burying grounds inside Londonderry Township
BrinserEast MiddletownHillsdaleMetzgerNissleyRothrockSwatara Hill Church

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Londonderry Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Londonderry Township.

Read it all →

Londonderry Township originally was part of Derry Township. Since the township was so large and difficult to govern, the residents petitioned the court in 1767 to subdivide the land into two parts, the eastern section to remain Derry and the western to be Londonderry. It is named after County Londonderry in Northern Ireland.

Derry and Londonderry became a part of Dauphin County when it was established in 1785. In 1787, the population of Derry Township was 198. Lebanon County was created in 1813 and created a new Londonderry Township which included the eastern half of the original.

Conewago Township was created in 1850 from southern parts of Derry Township and eastern parts of Londonderry Township.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Londonderry Township, decade by decade

Today9 recent
Swatara Hill Church of the Brethren, Londonderry Twp., Dauphin Co., PA, Feb. 20262026Swatara Hill Church of the Brethren, Londonderry Twp.…GracePointe Church, Londonderry Twp., Dauphin Co., PA, Feb. 20262026GracePointe Church, Londonderry Twp., Dauphin Co., PA…Londonderry Township, Dauphin County, PA municipal building, June 20252025Londonderry Township, Dauphin County, PA municipal bu…Hillsdale Cemetery, Londonderry Twp., Dauphin Co., PA, June 20252025Hillsdale Cemetery, Londonderry Twp., Dauphin Co., PA…Former Geyers United Methodist Church, Londonderry Twp., Dauphin Co., PA, June 20252025Former Geyers United Methodist Church, Londonderry Tw…Farm in Londonderry Township, Dauphin County, PA, June 20252025Farm in Londonderry Township, Dauphin County, PA, Jun…Swatara Creek north of PA 2302023Swatara Creek north of PA 230Sunset Golf Course Aerial - Middletown2016Sunset Golf Course Aerial - MiddletownThree Mile Island accident sign2014Three Mile Island accident sign
On the National Register

1 historic place in Londonderry 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
1988
Henry Smith Farm
Henry Smith Farm
Districts

Architectural styles listings

Federal1
Henry Smith FarmFederal

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Conoy Township1 historic placeA−West Donegal TownshipIts storyCNewberry Township2 historic placesB−Middletown5 historic placesA+Mount Joy TownshipIts storyC+Lower Swatara Township2 historic placesB+Goldsboro1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRoyaltonIts storyB−FalmouthIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDerry Township4 historic placesA−

Questions about Londonderry Township’s history

How does Londonderry Township rank for history?

Londonderry Township is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #784 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 Londonderry Township?

One place: the Henry Smith Farm (listed 1988).

How old are the homes in Londonderry Township?

6% of Londonderry Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1978.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 (9), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.