More historic than 39% of U.S. towns · #872 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Most of Tunkhannock Township was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1980. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1948 on, and the census since 1850.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Tunkhannock Township is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns, #872 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Tunkhannock 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 Tunkhannock Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (25% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1841.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B−. The pre-1940 share (±2.4 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Tunkhannock Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Tunkhannock Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Tunkhannock ( tuhng-KA-nuhk) is a borough and county seat of Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located 31 miles (50 km) northwest of Wilkes-Barre, Tunkhannock is in the Scranton–Wilkes-Barre–Hazleton, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. In the past, lumbering was carried on extensively. Today, many residents are employed by the Procter & Gamble plant in nearby Washington Township. As of the 2020 census, the borough population was 1,766. The name Tunkhannock is derived from the Minsi-Len'api term Ptuk'hanna'unk, which means "Bend-in-river-place", especially to the town's west, upstream at the radical bend called "The Neck". Modern Tunkhannock, Wyoming County, The Tunkhannock Histori…
Tunkhannock Township was established in 1841. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,273 to 3,974 (-7%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
By decade
Tunkhannock Township, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Tunkhannock Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1948Tunkhannock sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Tunkhannock Township.
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.
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Pennsylvania - Wyoming County - Tunkhannock - ED 66-21, ED 66-22, ED 66-23, 1880
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Tunkhannock Township’s page.
In 1841, according to Wikidata. Tunkhannock Township’s post office opened in 1868, and the census of 1850 counted 561 people here.
How does Tunkhannock Township rank for history?
Tunkhannock Township is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns, #872 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.
How old are the homes in Tunkhannock Township?
5% of Tunkhannock Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.4 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1980.
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 Wikimedia Commons (6), 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.
c. 1930
c. 1930
c. 1930
c. 1930
