Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Rutherford

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Rutherford

Half of Rutherford’s homes were built after 1980

Most of Rutherford was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1980. Below: maps from 1892 on.

0on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY-SA 4.0

What stands out about Rutherford’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Rutherford are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18928 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1993. Watch Rutherford change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rutherford’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Rutherford on the map, 1892 to 1993

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

Rutherford on the 1892 USGS mapRutherford on the 1924 USGS mapRutherford on the 1947 USGS mapRutherford on the 1956 USGS mapRutherford on the 1969 USGS mapRutherford on the 1975 USGS mapRutherford on the 1987 USGS mapRutherford on the 1993 USGS map1892Harrisburg 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 Rutherford.

The story so far

Rutherford, in brief

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

Rutherford is a census-designated place (CDP) in Swatara Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. The area is also known as Rutherford Heights. The population was 4,303 at the 2010 census, an increase over the figure of 3,859 tabulated in 2000. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 4,303 to 5,765 (+34%).

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

By decade

Rutherford, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Trinity Evangelical Congregational Church, Rutherford, PA, Sept. 20252025Trinity Evangelical Congregational Church, Rutherford…Rutherford, PA veterans memorial, Sept. 20252025Rutherford, PA veterans memorial, Sept. 2025Rutherford, PA Honor Roll memorial, Sept. 20252025Rutherford, PA Honor Roll memorial, Sept. 2025Rutherford, PA Fire Company, Sept. 20252025Rutherford, PA Fire Company, Sept. 2025Derry Street wb, Rutherford, PA (2), Sept. 20252025Derry Street wb, Rutherford, PA (2), Sept. 2025Derry Street wb, Rutherford, PA (1), Sept. 20252025Derry Street wb, Rutherford, PA (1), Sept. 2025
Famous people

Famous people close to Rutherford

Nobody well known was born in Rutherford itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
C
Christian PulisicAmerican soccer player · b. 1998
Newt GingrichAmerican politician and former speaker of the U… · b. 1943
Eric MabiusAmerican actor · b. 1971
Don KeeferAmerican actor · b. 1916
Glenn BrancaAmerican composer and guitarist · b. 1948
Jennifer BradyUS American tennis player · b. 1995
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

LawntonIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSwatara Township2 historic placesB−Lower Paxton Township1 historic placeB+

Questions about Rutherford’s history

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 (6) and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.