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AHistory
History · Palmyra

Palmyra dates to 1717, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 89% of U.S. towns · #194 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Landis Shoe Company Building. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1892 on, and the census since 1880.

1717founded
1on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Palmyra’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Palmyra began

When was Palmyra founded?

1717

Palmyra dates its founding to 1717 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 531 in 18802020 census: 7,830309 years

How historic is Palmyra?

A

More historic than 89% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1804.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Palmyra’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Palmyra is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #194 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 Palmyra’s overall grade.
Founding era1717, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 194026.8% of homes (±5.3) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register1 listing, 1.3 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 89%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 81%

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 Palmyra’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.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1717.
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).

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 Palmyra’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18927 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1990. Watch Palmyra change.Older than the countryEstablished in 1717, 59 years before the Declaration of Independence.Old housesHalf of Palmyra’s homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Palmyra’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Palmyra’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPalmyra PA Trinity Reformed PHS441: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Palmyra on the map, 1892 to 1990

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

Palmyra on the 1892 USGS mapPalmyra on the 1924 USGS mapPalmyra on the 1947 USGS mapPalmyra on the 1956 USGS mapPalmyra on the 1969 USGS mapPalmyra on the 1974 USGS mapPalmyra on the 1990 USGS map1892Hummelstown 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 Palmyra.

Timeline

Palmyra, 1717 to 1992

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1717
    FoundingPalmyra is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1804Post officeThe Palmstown post office opens
  5. 1810Post officeThe Palmstown post office closes
  6. 1810Post officeThe Palmyra post office opens
  7. 1843Born hereJohn M. Thome is born here
  8. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 20th century
  10. 1923In the archivePalmyra PA Trinity Reformed PHS441
  11. 1930In the archivePalmyaa Tourist Court, located 16 miles east of Harrisburg and 3 miles east of Hershey Pa…
  12. 1937Born hereLes Walters is born here
  13. 1984In the archiveRiver Dale Motel sign
  14. 1992Born hereBrendan Woods is born here
The story

How Palmyra came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Palmyra.

Read it all →

The land on which Palmyra rests was originally home to the Lenape and Susquehannock tribes. The first European explorers and traders came to the region around 1650. Settlers were drawn to the area because of its rich land and abundance of fish and game. Additionally, being part of William Penn’s colony, his charter providing civil rights and religious freedom also attracted settlers to the area.

ChaptersEarly settlementGrowth of PalmstownSince the Civil War250th anniversary

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Palmyra, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1920s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1920s–1930s2 items
Palmyra PA Trinity Reformed PHS4411923Palmyra PA Trinity Reformed PHS441Palmyaa Tourist Court, located 16 miles east of Harrisburg and 3 miles east of Hershey Park on U.S. Rt. 422 (82720)c. 1930Palmyaa Tourist Court, located 16 miles east of Harri…
1940s–1970snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
1980s1 item
River Dale Motel sign1984River Dale Motel sign
1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today15 recent
The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110420-RD-LSC-0582)2011The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110…The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110420-RD-LSC-0580)2011The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110…The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110420-RD-LSC-0572)2011The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110…The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110420-RD-LSC-0568)2011The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110…The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110420-RD-LSC-0545)2011The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110…The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110420-RD-LSC-0497)2011The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110…The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110420-RD-LSC-0478)2011The Wash Basket Laundromat Running on Sunshine (20110…Palmyra, Pennsylvania2011Palmyra, PennsylvaniaPalmyra, Pennsylvania2011Palmyra, PennsylvaniaPalmyra, Pennsylvania2011Palmyra, PennsylvaniaPalmyra, Pennsylvania2011Palmyra, PennsylvaniaCleaning solar panels2011Cleaning solar panelsUS Route 422 - Pennsylvania2009US Route 422 - PennsylvaniaPalmyra, PA Keystone Marker2009Palmyra, PA Keystone Marker2007 10 07 - Palmyra - US422@College20072007 10 07 - Palmyra - US422@College
Every building

Palmyra, building by building, 1902–1911

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.

Palmyra fire insurance map, 1902, sheet 11902Sheet 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.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Palmyra PA Trinity Reformed PHS441
Retake this viewPalmyra PA Trinity Reformed PHS441, 1923

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Palmyra’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Palmyra

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1980
Landis Shoe Company Building
Landis Shoe Company Building
Buildings
Landis Shoe Company BuildingBuilding

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

People over time

Palmyra, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,000188019001920194019601980200020207,830

Grew from 531 people in 1880 to 7,830 in 2020, more than tenfold.

13 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Palmyra’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Palmyra

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
John M. ThomeAmerican-Argentine astronomer · b. 1843
Brendan WoodsAmerican ice hockey forward · b. 1992
L
Les WaltersAmerican football player · b. 1937
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Palmyra’s post office has been open since 1810. Another post office, Palmstown, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Palmstown
1804–1810
Palmyra
1810–today
18001910today
1cemetery inside Palmyra
Palmyra

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

North Londonderry Township1 historic placeCPalmdaleIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDerry Township4 historic placesA−

Questions about Palmyra’s history

What year was Palmyra founded?

In 1717, according to Wikidata. Palmyra’s post office opened in 1804, and the census of 1880 counted 531 people here.

How does Palmyra rank for history?

Palmyra is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #194 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 Palmyra?

One place: the Landis Shoe Company Building (listed 1980).

How old are the homes in Palmyra?

27% of Palmyra’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 1957.

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
Start a conversation
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 (18), 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 and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.