Upper Providence Township’s post office opened in 1862, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 44% of U.S. towns · #816 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Most of Upper Providence Township was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1967. Its Register listings are the Old Rose Tree Tavern and the Idlewild. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1930.
The Upper Providence Township post office opened in 1862, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Rose Tree (1849), Upper Providence (1862) and Worrell (1894), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,008 in 19302020 census: 10,852164 years
How historic is Upper Providence Township?
C+
More historic than 44% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Upper Providence Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Upper Providence Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Upper Providence Township is more historic than 44% of U.S. towns, #816 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Upper Providence 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 Upper Providence Township’s 1.8 sits near the middle of its state (56% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 listings 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 (±3.4 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 Upper Providence Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Upper Providence Township on the map, 1894 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Upper Providence Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1894Chester 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 Upper Providence Township.
The story
How Upper Providence Township came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Upper Providence Township.
The area was settled about 1683 and formed into Providence Township. On October 17, 1683, the residents of Providence Township petitioned the Court of Chester County, of which they were then a part, to establish a road from Providence to Chester. The court approved the creation of Providence Great Road (now Route 252). Upper Providence Township and Nether Providence Township, Pennsylvania split in 1687. The borough of Media was formed in 1850 from pieces of both townships.
Water power was used extensively in the township's early history, with local mills including Sycamore Mills or Bishop's Mills built on Ridley Creek in 1718, Robinett Grist Mill (1687), Malin's Grist Mill (1770), Register's Nail Factory (1812), and Palmer's Mills (1802).
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.
Questions about Upper Providence Township’s history
What year was Upper Providence Township founded?
The Upper Providence Township post office opened in 1862, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Upper Providence Township rank for history?
Upper Providence Township is more historic than 44% of U.S. towns, #816 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 Upper Providence Township?
Two places: the Old Rose Tree Tavern (listed 1971) and the Idlewild (2013).
How old are the homes in Upper Providence Township?
8% of Upper Providence Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.4 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1967.
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), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
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