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Entering Washingtonville from Strawberry Ridge RoadPhoto: Jakec · CC BY-SA 4.0
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History · Washingtonville

Washingtonville dates to 1775, and 59% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1935 on, and the census since 1870.

1775founded
0on the National Register
59%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Washingtonville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Washingtonville began

When was Washingtonville founded?

1775

Washingtonville dates its founding to 1775 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 172 in 18702020 census: 202251 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1828.The full story ↓

What stands out about Washingtonville’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Washingtonville’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 273 in 2010; 202 people lived here in 2020.Older than the countryEstablished in 1775, 1 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Washingtonville’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewWashingtonville Bridge, Pennsylvania Le…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Washingtonville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Washingtonville.

Read it all →

The small borough is named after the first American president, George Washington. Before the time of the town's founding during the Revolutionary War, Fort Bosley stood along the eastern backs of Chillisquaque Creek near its confluence with Mud Creek. During, the early 20th century, millionaire Frank DeLong would often visit the borough to get away from the city. He ended up donating a school, which at the time was considered one of the best facilities in the country, to the town. He also turned the old Presbyterian Church into a memorial for his mother. Today, the old school building is now a nursing home, and the memorial still stands today, containing many historical artifacts. Recently, the remains of an 18th-century log cabin were discovered at the corner of Front and Water Streets, suggesting early settlement of permanent residents.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

People over time

Washingtonville, census by census

010020030018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 273

Peaked at 273 in 2010; 202 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Washingtonville’s Wikipedia page.

Timeline

Washingtonville, 1775 to 2010

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1775
    FoundingWashingtonville is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1811Born hereSamuel Calvin is born here
  5. 1828Post officeThe Washingtonville post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1935On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 21st century
  9. 2010CensusPopulation peaks at 273
By decade

Washingtonville, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
Washingtonville Bridge, Pennsylvania Legislative Route 47036, spanning Chillisquaque Creek (Derry Township)Date?Washingtonville Bridge, Pennsylvania Legislative Rout…
Today2 recent
Washingtonville, PA post office, Aug. 20242024Washingtonville, PA post office, Aug. 2024Washingtonville PA Station2011Washingtonville PA Station
On the map

Washingtonville on the map, 1935 to 1977

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

Washingtonville on the 1935 USGS mapWashingtonville on the 1953 USGS mapWashingtonville on the 1969 USGS mapWashingtonville on the 1977 USGS map1935Hughesville 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 Washingtonville.

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.

Washingtonville Bridge, Pennsylvania Legislative Route 47036, spanning Chillisquaque Creek (Derry Township)
Retake this viewWashingtonville Bridge, Pennsylvania Legislative Route 47036, spanning Chillisquaque Creek (Derry Township)

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

Retake this view · +15

Questions about Washingtonville’s history

What year was Washingtonville founded?

In 1775, according to Wikidata. Washingtonville’s post office opened in 1828, and the census of 1870 counted 172 people here.

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 (2), the Library of Congress (1), 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.