Pocopson Township’s post office opened in 1880, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 47% of U.S. towns · #778 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Most of Pocopson Township was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. Its Register listing is the Wilkinson House. Below: maps from 1901 on.
The Pocopson Township post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Lenape (1870), Painter's Bridge (1870) and Northbrook (1871), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 4,455146 years
How historic is Pocopson Township?
B−
More historic than 47% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Pocopson Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Pocopson Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pocopson Township is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #778 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pocopson 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 Pocopson Township’s 4.5 sits above most of its state (66% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 historic buildings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.7 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Pocopson Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Lenape
1870–1923
Painter's Bridge
1870–1880
Northbrook
1871–1972
Pocopson
1880–today
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
CorinneLenapeNorthbrookPocopson
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Pocopson Township on the map, 1901 to 1999
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pocopson Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1901West Chester 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 Pocopson Township.
The story so far
Pocopson Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Pocopson Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Pocopson is an unincorporated community in Pocopson Township in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. Pocopson is located at the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 926 and Pocopson Road.
Its first post office opened in 1880. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,582 to 4,455 (-3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Pocopson Township, 1870 to 1972
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Pocopson Township post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Pocopson Township rank for history?
Pocopson Township is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #778 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 Pocopson Township?
One place: the Wilkinson House (listed 1985).
How old are the homes in Pocopson Township?
9% of Pocopson Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.7 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1986.
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), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
