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History · Port Clinton

Port Clinton dates to 1829, and 71% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1850.

1829founded
0on the National Register
71%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Port Clinton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Port Clinton began

When was Port Clinton founded?

1829

Port Clinton dates its founding to 1829 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1850.

First census: 374 in 18502020 census: 278197 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1830.

What stands out about Port Clinton’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 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18896 editions of the USGS map, 1889 to 1999. Watch Port Clinton change.Old housesHalf of Port Clinton’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 739 in 1960; 278 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Port Clinton’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPort Clinton Depot, on the Reading RR: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Port Clinton on the map, 1889 to 1999

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

Port Clinton on the 1889 USGS mapPort Clinton on the 1891 USGS mapPort Clinton on the 1945 USGS mapPort Clinton on the 1968 USGS mapPort Clinton on the 1979 USGS mapPort Clinton on the 1999 USGS map1889Pottsville 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 Port Clinton.

The story so far

Port Clinton, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Port Clinton yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Port Clinton is a borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, Port Clinton had a population of 278. It is located at the confluence of the Schuylkill and Little Schuylkill rivers, it was a port on the Schuylkill Canal and named after DeWitt Clinton.

Port Clinton was established in 1829. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 326 to 278 (-15%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Port Clinton, 1907–1916

Passages that mention Port Clinton, cut from the printed page as they were published.

Tobias, who live in Berks county. After completing a course in the common schools John H. Fink clerked in a store at Auburn for two years, and then for a period of two years managed a hotel in Port Clinton. In 1866 he entered the employ of the railroad as a brakeman. After a time he went to firing …
History of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania ... including a genealogical and biographical record of many families and persons in the county1907 · page 155Read the page →
Read the text

Tobias, who live in Berks county. After completing a course in the common schools John H. Fink clerked in a store at Auburn for two years, and then for a period of two years managed a hotel in Port Clinton. In 1866 he entered the employ of the railroad as a brakeman. After a time he went to firing on an engine, and in 1869 was given a locomotive. Since that time he has been at the throttle almost continuously, having lost no time because of Digitized by

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Darius D. Coldren attended public school at Reading and Port Clinton, Pa. When sixteen years old he began work in the rolling mill at Port Clinton as a rougher, and followed this kind of employment for a period of seven years, becoming a master roller. In 1887 he engaged in the manufacture of paper…
Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania1916 · page 148Read the page →
Read the text

Darius D. Coldren attended public school at Reading and Port Clinton, Pa. When sixteen years old he began work in the rolling mill at Port Clinton as a rougher, and followed this kind of employment for a period of seven years, becoming a master roller. In 1887 he engaged in the manufacture of paper boxes at Schuylkill Haven, carrying on the business for one year, until he decided to enter the hosiery manufacturing line at Pine Grove, this county. He had a large knitting factory at that place which he operated for one year, transferring his business then to Harrisburg, where he also

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
(The borough of Port Clinton is in Schuylkill County, but its railway centre and railway depot are located in Windsor Township, Berks County.)
Blue book of Schuylkill County1916 · page 142Read the page →
Read the text

(The borough of Port Clinton is in Schuylkill County, but its railway centre and railway depot are located in Windsor Township, Berks County.)

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
William L. Robinhold was born Aug. 21, 1863, at Port Clinton, and obtained his education in the public schools of his native place. In his early manhood he engaged in railroad work, being an engineer on the Philadelphia & Reading railroad for a period of twenty years. Mis run was between Pottsville…
Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania1916 · page 491Read the page →
Read the text

William L. Robinhold was born Aug. 21, 1863, at Port Clinton, and obtained his education in the public schools of his native place. In his early manhood he engaged in railroad work, being an engineer on the Philadelphia & Reading railroad for a period of twenty years. Mis run was between Pottsville and Philadelphia. When he gave up this work, in 1908, he became engaged in the manufacture of shirts and nightrobes, and he is still carrying on that business in partnership with his cousin George A. Robinhold, under the firm name of Robinhold & Robinhold. He built the plant at Port Clinton (the main

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

Port Clinton, 1829 to 1960

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1829
    FoundingPort Clinton is established
  3. 1830Post officeThe Port Clinton post office opens
  4. 1856In the archivePort Clinton Depot, on the Reading RR
  5. 1889On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 20th century
  7. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 739
By decade

Port Clinton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1850s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s2 items
Port Clinton Depot, on the Reading RR1856Port Clinton Depot, on the Reading RRGeneral view of the Genessee Valley, near Portage, N.Y., looking up the river; Montague Street, Brooklyn, N.Y.; Port Cl…1856General view of the Genessee Valley, near Portage, N.…
Today4 recent
Port Clinton Depot2010Port Clinton DepotFlickr - Nicholas T - Directive2010Flickr - Nicholas T - DirectiveUntitled photo2009Untitled photoBloomsburg2007Bloomsburg
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.

Port Clinton Depot, on the Reading RR
Retake this viewPort Clinton Depot, on the Reading RR, 1856

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Port Clinton, census by census

02004006008001850190019502000Peak: 739

Peaked at 739 in 1960; 278 people lived here in 2020.

18 censuses, 1850–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Tilden TownshipIts storyC−West Brunswick Township1 historic placeA

Questions about Port Clinton’s history

What year was Port Clinton founded?

In 1829, according to Wikidata. Port Clinton’s post office opened in 1830, and the census of 1850 counted 374 people here.

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (4), the Library of Congress (2), 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 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.