Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1827.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives New Cumberland’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, New Cumberland is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns, #334 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 New Cumberland’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 New Cumberland’s 1.3 sits near the middle of its state (54% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 (±6.7 points). Two sources give 1814.
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 New Cumberland’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.
1890Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
On the map
New Cumberland on the map, 1906 to 1999
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of New Cumberland. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1906New Cumberland 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 New Cumberland.
New Cumberland has had many names — Shawneetown, Chartiers Landing, Lowther Manor, Haldeman’s Town, and Cumberland — before being officially named “New Cumberland” in 1827 and incorporated as a borough in 1831. Early on, the river and creek provided a harbor for lumber rafting, leading to sawmills, a grain mill, and a depot that turned the town into a shipping point for lumber, grain and iron to larger cities. By 1845 it had a small but growing community of over 300 people, stores, mills, and a tavern. After the Civil War lumber dwindled, but the town diversified with woolen mills, nail and carpet factories and retail shops. In the 20th century New Cumberland transformed from an industrial town to a suburban borough — expanding its area, building infrastructure like paved streets, sewage, schools, churches, and services, while maintaining small-town character with civic organizations, a…
Passages that mention New Cumberland, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania 18481848 · page 374Read the page →
Read the text
mills. It falls into the Susquehanna at New Cumberland avout three miles below the Harrisburg bridge. Mountain creek, the principal tributary of the Yellow Breeches, rises on the borders of Adams county, flowing along anil winding round the South mountain, after a course of ten or twelve miles, falls into its recipient. Boiling Spring, rises near the eastern boundary of South Middleton township, contiguous to Ege’s iron works, and after running a
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
New Cumberland, 1814 to 1992
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 1814, according to Wikidata. New Cumberland’s post office opened in 1827, and the census of 1840 counted 284 people here.
How does New Cumberland rank for history?
New Cumberland is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns, #334 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 New Cumberland?
One place: the William Black Homestead (listed 1977).
How old are the homes in New Cumberland?
23% of New Cumberland’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.7 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1953.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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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