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A−History
History · Washington Township

25% of Washington Township’s homes were built before 1940

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns · #261 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Schuylkill County Bridge No. 113 and the Schuylkill County Bridge No. 114. Below: 18 old photos and papers and maps from 1892 on.

2on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
18old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Washington Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

About Washington Township’s history

How historic is Washington Township?

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More historic than 84% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Washington Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Washington Township is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #261 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.

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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Washington Township’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 194025.1% of homes (±7.9) · typical PA town 17.7% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register2 listings, 6.4 per 10,000 residents · typical PA town 2.1 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 84%
NewerOlder
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,035)Ahead of 75%

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 Washington Township’s 6.4 sits above most of its state (70% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.9 points).

Founding year: our sources. 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 Washington Township’s past

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

On the map since 18925 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1976. Watch Washington Township change.A town in old photos18 old photos, postcards and papers.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Washington Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · On the map

Washington Township on the map, 1892 to 1976

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

Washington Township on the 1892 USGS mapWashington Township on the 1946 USGS mapWashington Township on the 1955 USGS mapWashington Township on the 1969 USGS mapWashington Township on the 1976 USGS map1892Pine Grove 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 Washington Township.

By decade

Washington Township, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1930s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s–1940s18 items
"Old age" near Washington, Pennsylvania1936"Old age" near Washington, PennsylvaniaWorker1940WorkerWorker at furnace1940Worker at furnaceWorkers at rolling machine1940Workers at rolling machineWashington Tinplate Company1941Washington Tinplate CompanyWashington Tinplate Company1941Washington Tinplate CompanyWashington Tinplate Company1941Washington Tinplate CompanyRolling machine. Washington Tinplate Company1941Rolling machine. Washington Tinplate CompanyRolling machine. Washington Tinplate Company1941Rolling machine. Washington Tinplate CompanyWorkers at Washington Tinplate Company. Washington, Pennsylvania1941Workers at Washington Tinplate Company. Washington, P…At the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsylvania1941At the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsyl…At the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsylvania1941At the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsyl…Worker at Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsylvania1941Worker at Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Penn…Worker at Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsylvania1941Worker at Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Penn…Worker1941WorkerIn the Washington Tinplate Company. Washington, Pennsylvania1941In the Washington Tinplate Company. Washington, Penns…At the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsylvania1941At the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsyl…In the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsylvania1941In the Washington Tinplate Works. Washington, Pennsyl…
1950s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Rock
1868–1934
De Turksville
1876–1905
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
De TurksvilleRoedersville
1cemetery inside Washington Township
Zion Evangelical

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Washington Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Washington Township.

Read it all →

The Schuylkill County Bridge No. 113 and Schuylkill County Bridge No. 114 are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Washington Township, 1868 to 1940

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1868Post officeThe Rock post office opens
  3. 1876Post officeThe De Turksville post office opens
  4. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 20th century
  6. 1905Post officeThe De Turksville post office closes
  7. 1934Post officeThe Rock post office closes
  8. 1936In the archive"Old age" near Washington, Pennsylvania
  9. 1940In the archiveWorker
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.

"Old age" near Washington, Pennsylvania
Retake this view"Old age" near Washington, Pennsylvania, 1936

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in Washington Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1978
Schuylkill County Bridge No. 113
Schuylkill County Bridge No. 113Schuylkill County Bridge No. 114
Structures
Schuylkill County Bridge No. 113Structure
Schuylkill County Bridge No. 114Structure

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Washington Township

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

See all →
E
Ed LoveAmerican animator · b. 1910
George F. BrummAmerican politician · b. 1880
J
Jack ErnstAmerican football player · b. 1899
Benjamin C. ChristUnion Army officer · b. 1824
Bill WolffAmerican baseball player · b. 1876
E
Edward F. BurnsAmerican politician · b. 1931
Help out

Finish Washington Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view"Old age" near Washington, Pennsylvania: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Bethel Township1 historic placeA−Reilly TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townPine Grove Township1 historic placeAWayne TownshipIts storyCTremont TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Washington Township’s history

How does Washington Township rank for history?

Washington Township is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #261 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 Washington Township?

Two places: the Schuylkill County Bridge No. 113 (listed 1978) and the Schuylkill County Bridge No. 114 (1978).

How old are the homes in Washington Township?

25% of Washington Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.9 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1975.

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).

From the Library of Congress (18), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.