Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1842.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives McSherrystown’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, McSherrystown is more historic than 66% of U.S. towns, #532 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of McSherrystown’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 McSherrystown’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.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1765.
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 (±7.8 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 McSherrystown’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
McSherrystown is the fourth oldest town in Adams County. Its founder, Patrick McSherry (1725–1795), who had family origins stemming from Newry in the south-east of Ulster in the north of Ireland, procured a 300-acre (1.2 km2) tract from the Digges Family in 1763 and proceeded to lay out a number of 5-acre (20,000 m2) lots. The first known deed for one of these lots was dated June 27, 1765. Although McSherry may have intended his effort to be used primarily as outlots for Hanover residents, where they could keep their animals at times and obtain wood, it soon developed into a full-fledged town. McSherry, who lived in Mount Pleasant Township in 1765 and was later tavern-keeper in Littlestown, may never have lived in the town which bears his name.
Passages that mention McSherrystown, cut from the printed page as they were published.
history of adams county pennsylvania.1886 · page 228Read the page →
Read the text
Among the old bridges of the township are a few which have stood both flood and travel for over forty years. In 1825 a wooden bridge was built over the Little Conowago at Dellone’s, near McSherrystown, for $550, by Henry Eck. Kitzmiller’s Mill wooden bridge on the Littlestown and Hanover road, was erected in 1837 for $1,690, by John Camp. In 1848 Adam Slagle erected a wooden bridge over the Little Conowago near the chapel for $780. In 1857 John Finley built the covered ‘bridge over the Little Conowago on the Gettysburg and Hanover road for $1,274. In 1862 J. M. Pittenturf built a
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
history of adams county pennsylvania.1886 · page 76Read the page →
Read the text
ity, and his literary productions rank among the best of American histories, and also father of Hon. William McSherry, of the vicinity of Littlestown, and the grandfather of William McSherry, attorney of Gettysburg. Patrick Mc- Sherry’s name is perpetuated in the town of McSherrystown. It was laid out as early as 1765 by him. His son James was the most successful political leader the county ever produced. If the reader will turn to the chapter, giving the county officials, he wil) find the name of James McSherry of more frequent occurrence than
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of McSherrystown. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1944Mc Sherrystown sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of McSherrystown.
People over time
McSherrystown, census by census
Grew from 206 people in 1850 to 3,077 in 2020, more than tenfold.
18 censuses, 1850–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on McSherrystown’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
4 famous people were born in McSherrystown
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
In 1765, according to Wikidata. McSherrystown’s post office opened in 1842, and the census of 1850 counted 206 people here.
How does McSherrystown rank for history?
McSherrystown is more historic than 66% of U.S. towns, #532 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 McSherrystown?
14% of McSherrystown’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.8 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1973.
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 (3), Wikipedia, 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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