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OldfirehousePhoto: Schoeneck (Uploads) · Public domain
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History · Schoeneck

Schoeneck’s post office opened in 1837, and 15% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1906 on and old-book passages.

1837first post office
0on the National Register
15%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Schoeneck (Uploads) · Public domain
Quick answers

How Schoeneck began

When was Schoeneck founded?

1837

The Schoeneck post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 1,009189 years
Founding year: the first Schoeneck post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Schoeneck’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 Schoeneck are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19066 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 1992. Watch Schoeneck change.Deep rootsA post office since 1837: 189 years of Schoeneck.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Schoeneck’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Schoeneck on the map, 1906 to 1992

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

Schoeneck on the 1906 USGS mapSchoeneck on the 1941 USGS mapSchoeneck on the 1956 USGS mapSchoeneck on the 1969 USGS mapSchoeneck on the 1974 USGS mapSchoeneck on the 1992 USGS map1906New Holland 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 Schoeneck.

The story so far

Schoeneck, in brief

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

Schoeneck (German: Schöneck) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) that is located in West Cocalico Township, Pennsylvania, United States. The name Schoeneck is a corruption of the Pennsylvania Dutch phrase, "Schoenes Eck," which translates to "pretty corner." As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,056.

Its first post office opened in 1837. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,056 to 1,009 (-4%).

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

From the old history books

What they wrote about Schoeneck in 1883

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

their property and left for other parts. The land occupied by the first three Shirks extended from a point three-quarters of a mile north of the village of Schoeneck to a black-oak a mile and a tpiarter south of Schoeneck, from thence to Denver, and from Denver northwest to the place of beginning.
History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania1883Read the page →
Read the text

their property and left for other parts. The land occupied by the first three Shirks extended from a point three-quarters of a mile north of the village of Schoeneck to a black-oak a mile and a tpiarter south of Schoeneck, from thence to Denver, and from Denver northwest to the place of beginning.

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

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Famous people

Famous people close to Schoeneck

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

See all →
Floyd LandisAmerican road racing cyclist · b. 1975
Amy CuddyAmerican psychologist · b. 1972
Pat GelsingerAmerican businessperson; former CEO of Intel · b. 1961
Charles B. McVay IIIUnited States Navy officer · b. 1898
W
Whitey Von NiedaAmerican basketball player · b. 1922
S
Savannah GraybillSkeleton racer from the United States · b. 1988

Questions about Schoeneck’s history

What year was Schoeneck founded?

The Schoeneck post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.