Parkesburg’s post office opened in 1836, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 86% of U.S. towns · #239 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Parkesburg National Bank and the Parkesburg School. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: the first Parkesburg post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1872.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Parkesburg’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Parkesburg is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #239 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Parkesburg’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 Parkesburg’s 5.1 sits above most of its state (68% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% 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 (±6.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1872.
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 Parkesburg’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Parkesburg was first known as the Fountain Inn, a tavern built ca. 1734. The inn ceased operation as a tavern around 1836 and became Parkesburg's first post office. In 1872, the Pennsylvania legislature authorized the formation of Parkesburg Borough (from Sadsbury Township). The town was named after noted politician John G. Parke. Today, the Fountain Inn is a private residence.
The Parkesburg National Bank and Parkesburg School are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Passages that mention Parkesburg, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with genealogical and biographical sketches1881 · page 199Read the page →
Read the text
This borough was incorporated March 1, 1872. When the State constructed the railroad from Philadelphia to Columbia, the work-shops, commonly called the State shops, were located at Parkesburg, and continued there until the year 1861, when their operations were removed by the Pennsylvania Railroad to Harrisburg as a more central point. The buildings at Parkesburg formerly oc-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with genealogical and biographical sketches1881Read the page →
Read the text
The church in Parkesburg was built in 1854 or 1855, on a plot of ground northwest of Parkesburg, given to the parish by the McFillin family.
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.
By decade
Parkesburg, decade by decade
4 decades in the archive, from the 1850s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
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.
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 Parkesburg post office opened in 1836, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1872.
How does Parkesburg rank for history?
Parkesburg is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #239 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 Parkesburg?
Two places: the Parkesburg National Bank (listed 1980) and the Parkesburg School (1995).
How old are the homes in Parkesburg?
27% of Parkesburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.8 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1982.
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 (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.
1933
1933
