Founding year: the first Nanticoke post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1874.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Nanticoke’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Nanticoke is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #387 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Nanticoke’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 Nanticoke’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.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1874.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Nanticoke’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Nanticoke. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1894Shickshinny 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 Nanticoke.
Every building
Nanticoke, building by building, 1884–1920
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.
The name Nanticoke was derived from Nentego ("tidewater people"), an Algonquian-speaking Native American people who moved to the Wyoming Valley when their Chesapeake Bay homelands were spoiled for hunting by the European settlers. For quite some time, the tribe maintained a village in the valley before Europeans settled there. The nearby Nanticoke Creek, also named after the tribe, was once known as Muddy Run. However, its current name was appearing on maps as early as 1776. The creek has also historically been referred to by many other names, including Lee's Creek, Miller's Creek, Robbins Creek, Bobbs Creek, Rummage Creek, and Warrior Run Creek. All of these names were described as erroneous in Henry C. Bradsby's 1893 book History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.
Passages that mention Nanticoke, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A history of Wilkes-Barré, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania1909 · page 129Read the page →
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Nanticoke Borough, of course, took part of its land from Newport Township, and part of the township history is included in that of the borough, or, as it now is, the city of Nanticoke — elsewhere reviewed. The first store in the township was Jacob Ramback's, on the road between Wanamie and Nanticoke. Almost without exception the communities of Newport Township owe their growth to coal. Wanamie is the mining town that was provided for the mine workers at Wanamie Colliery. It has a population of about fifteen hundred. Glenlyon, about four miles from Nanticoke, is a much larger mining
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections1893 · page 614Read the page →
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Glenlyon is about four miles from Nanticoke and the mines were opened in 1870. A postoffice, store and hotel and all else of the thriving place is connected with coal in some way. The Central railroad of New Jersey built a branch road frrm Ashley to Nanticoke and Wanamie and extended it to Alden and Glenlyon, thereby securing a large transportation of coal.
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A history of Wilkes-Barré, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania1909 · page 41Read the page →
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Nanticoke State Hospital, Washington Street. Nanticoke, was founded in 1908. Like the Hazleton institution, its major purpose when founded was to receive injured persons of the mining district. Neither, however, confines its service to mine-workers. The Nanticoke Hospital has a capacity of 95 beds. Dr. E. G. Heyer is surgeon-in-chief and Lillian V. Kilgus is superintendent.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections1893 · page 613Read the page →
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Prince Alden made hia improvement on Newport creek; in modern times his place was the property of Col. Washington Lee. This description is still somewhat vague, as Lee owned at various times a great deal of property. Either Alden' s first location was in what is now a part of Nanticoke borough or was very close thereto. Of one thing there is little doubt, namely, that his settlement here was the cause of the coming of the first settlers in what is now Nanticoke borough, such as William Stewart and others, who came in 1773. About one-third of the borough of Nanticoke, the south part, was taken from Newport township. To which the reader is
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
Nanticoke, 1828 to 1937
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.
The Nanticoke post office opened in 1828, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1874.
How does Nanticoke rank for history?
Nanticoke is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #387 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 Nanticoke?
43% of Nanticoke’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 1946.
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 (4), the Library of Congress (2), 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.
1852
1852
1905
1905
