1 of Patton Township’s places is on the National Register
More historic than 29% of U.S. towns · #953 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Its Register listing is the John Gray House. Most of Patton Township was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1991. Below: maps from 1908 on and the census since 1850.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Patton Township is more historic than 29% of U.S. towns, #953 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Patton Township’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 Patton Township’s 0.6 sits near the middle of its state (52% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.2 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Patton Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Patton Township was established in 1794 and named after Colonel John Patton, a revolutionary officer, who co-owned the Centre Furnace, along with Colonel Samuel Miles. The Peter Gray family and the Conrad Hartsock family were the earliest settlers to the area. They came to the Half Moon Valley in 1788, from Frederick County, Maryland, and settled in what is now Patton Township. The early days were strongly influenced by Methodism. As soon as Peter Gray had a roof on his log cabin, he began Sunday School classes, and founded what is today Grays United Methodist Church. These settlers also made pilgrimages to church at Warriors Mark, a 12-mile distance, because that was the nearest regular preaching point in the valley.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Patton Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1908Bellefonte 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 Patton Township.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Patton Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Patton Township is more historic than 29% of U.S. towns, #953 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 Patton Township?
One place: the John Gray House (listed 1975).
How old are the homes in Patton Township?
3% of Patton Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.2 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1991.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
