Yardley dates to 1682, and 29% of its homes were built before 1940
Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns · #38 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 200 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1981 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1828.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Yardley’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Yardley is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #38 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Yardley’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 Yardley’s 767 sits above most of its state (96% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 200 historic buildings outnumber those of 93% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.1 points). Two sources give 1682.
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 Yardley’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Yardley was founded by William Yardley, who emigrated to America in July 1682 with his family. He made an agreement with William Penn, before leaving England, to buy 500 acres (2.0 km2) for ten pounds. A survey was completed in October 1682, and the area William Yardley settled was called "Prospect Farm." It was located just outside the present Yardley Borough. William Yardley died in 1693, and his family in 1702–1703, possibly of smallpox. The family's burial plots are located in Slate Hill Cemetery, one of the oldest Quaker burial grounds in the state.
Passages that mention Yardley, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, from the discovery of the Delaware to the present time1905 · page 575Read the page →
Read the text
in early life learned the blacksmith's trade, which he followed until 1859. m that year he began farming in Lower Makefield township near the village of Yardley, and continued an active representative of agricultural interests for almost thirty years until 1887, after which he retired from active business life and established his home in
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, from the discovery of the Delaware to the present time1905Read the page →
Read the text
of James Anderson. Hfe remained upon his father's farm until he attained his majority, and then, removing to the village of Yardley, was identified with its commercial interests as a general merchant for several years.
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The history of Bucks County, Pennsylvania1876 · page 124Read the page →
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There are but two villages in Lower Makefield, Edgewood, on the road from Yardleyville to Attleborough, consisting of a store, postoffice, established in 1858, and Samuel Tomlinson appointed postmaster, and two or three dwellings ; and Yardley ville on the Delaware, at the site of Thomas Yardley's ferry, of ye olden time. Dolington, on the line between Lower and Upper Makefield, will be noticed in our account of the latter township. Yardleyville began to develop into what Americans call a village about 1807. An old
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Yardley, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1890s 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.
In 1682, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Yardley’s post office opened in 1828, and the census of 1880 counted 820 people here.
How does Yardley rank for history?
Yardley is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #38 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 Yardley?
Two places: the Bridge in Yardley Borough (listed 1988) and the Yardley Historic District (2005).
How old are the homes in Yardley?
29% of Yardley’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.1 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1962.
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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1891
1933
1933
1933
