Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1800.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Middletown’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Middletown is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #115 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Middletown’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 Middletown’s 7.3 sits above most of its state (72% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 7 historic buildings outnumber those of 73% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.3 points). Two sources give 1755.
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 Middletown’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost half of its people between 1820 and 1830, then grew more than tenfold.
20 censuses, 1820–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Middletown’s Wikipedia page.
Every building
Middletown, building by building, 1888–1920
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.
Middletown was founded in 1755 along the left bank of the Susquehanna River and was incorporated as a borough in 1828 after a sudden boom in development and population occurred as a result of the construction of the Union Canal, connecting Lancaster to Middletown. In 1824, Pennsylvania's state legislature authorized and funded the canal construction as part of the broad sweeping commercial initiative called the Main Line of Public Works; a forward looking project designing to connect Philadelphia to Pittsburgh by canals and river navigations and Philadelphia to challenge New York City and the Erie Canal for emerging mid-western markets beyond the Allegheny Mountains.
Passages that mention Middletown, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The chronicles of Middletown, containing a compilation of facts, biographical sketches, reminiscences, anecdotes, &c., connected with the history of one of the oldest towns in Pennsylvania1906Read the page →
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Conewago Church — This church was located about four miles from Middletown near where the village of Gainsburg (laid out in 1812), now stands. There is no account of its erection, but in 1741, Rev. Samuel Black was their regular preacher, indicating that a church had been built previous to that time. This structure had probably fallen to decay, for another was erected, the only record of which, that has come down to us, is that its builder was killed by falling from its roof in 1745, and was buried in the graveyard attached. It could have had but a transi-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania1907 · page 477Read the page →
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mill-race through the Fisher estate; 498 1-4 acres purchased from Blair McClenachan; 284 1-2 acres purchased from Andrew Mc- Clure, Roan McClure and Jonathan McClure; 120 acres "contiguous to the town of Middletown;" 4 houses in Middletown, to wit: One occupied by himself, one by Charles McDowell, one by Memucan J. Howell, and one by Michael Hemperly; 120 lots in Middletown, 207 acres in Northumberland county; about 300 acres on Penn's creek, and all his personal property; in trust to John
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The chronicles of Middletown, containing a compilation of facts, biographical sketches, reminiscences, anecdotes, &c., connected with the history of one of the oldest towns in Pennsylvania1906Read the page →
Read the text
During the many years that elapsed between the death of George Fisher, the founder of Middletown, and the return of his son, the residence at "Pineford" was rented, part of the time to Mr. Benner, the father of John and Jacob, and they were born in the old two-story log house (the first building in Middletown), which was afterwards torn down by Edward Fisher.
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History of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania1907 · page 246Read the page →
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built at Gainsburg, four miles distant. The builder was killed by falling from the roof, and was buried in 1745, in the graveyard attached. Revs. N. R. Snowden and James R. Sharon frequently preached in the Lutheran Church at Middletown. There was an early organization that went down, for the records show that June 7, 1802, James Russell and wife conveyed lot No. 94 in Middletown to William Crabb, John McCammon and Edward Crouch, as "trustees of the English Presbyterian Congregation of Middle-
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.
Timeline
Middletown, 1755 to 1985
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
In 1755, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Middletown’s post office opened in 1800, and the census of 1820 counted 567 people here.
How does Middletown rank for history?
Middletown is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #115 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 Middletown?
5 listings: 5 buildings, among them the St. Peter's Kierch (listed 1973, the first). 7 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Middletown?
27% of Middletown’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.3 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1958.
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 (5), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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.
c. 1930
1945
1945
