On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Williams Township is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #199 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 Williams 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 Williams Township’s 9.1 sits above most of its state (76% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% 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 (±8.0 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 Williams Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Williams Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1890Easton 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 Williams Township.
The Bridge in Williams Township, Jacob Arndt House and Barn, Coffeetown Grist Mill, and Isaac Stout House, all in the township, are each listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Another historic grist mill located in Williams Township is the Wottring Mill built in 1810 by William Wottring located on a road that is named in honor of William's mill on Wottrings Mill Road. Presently, it is an unregistered historic place that is privately owned.
Williams Township is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #199 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 Williams Township?
5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Coffeetown Grist Mill (listed 1977, the first), and 1 structure. 6 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Williams Township?
25% of Williams Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.0 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1994.
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 (21), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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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