The area which is present day Collegeville was part of the original William Penn purchase of "All the land lying on the Pahkehoma" in 1684. In 1799, Perkiomen Bridge was constructed using funds raised from a special lottery approved by the Pennsylvania Legislature. When the first post office in this area was established in 1847, it was called Perkiomen Bridge. In 1832, the first school for primary and secondary students was established as Todd's School. It was later renamed Freeland Public School in 1844. In 1848, Henry A. Hunsicker built the "Freeland Seminary of Perkiomen Bridge." The village around the school became known as Freeland. In 1851, Abraham Hunsicker – Henry's son – established the Pennsylvania Female College near present-day Glenwood Avenue. Ten years later, in 1861, the post office was moved and renamed Freeland.
When the trains first arrived in the area in 1868, there was a debate about naming of the station (Perkiomen Bridge vs Freeland). The local citizens acquired notoriety when they burned down the toll booth on the Perkiomen Bridge and threw the gate into the river. The rail company avoided any troubles by naming it "Collegeville" (the station was actually closer to the Pennsylvania Female College than either Freeland School or Perkiomen Bridge). Ursinus College was founded a year later in 1869. Thus the name "Collegeville" precedes the establishment of Ursinus College and it is actually named after the other 4-year liberal arts college (Pennsylvania Female College) which closed in 1880. Collegeville was incorporated as borough in 1896.
Collegeville and the surrounding area are rapidly growing. Collegeville is home to Ursinus College and several local businesses. Outside the borough, Pfizer's pharmaceutical division and Dow Chemical share a global research and development campus.[5][6] There is also a GlaxoSmithKline research and development facility. The Providence Town Center, an open-air shopping and restaurant mall, is located just outside Collegeville.
As of the 2010 census, the population of the borough was 89.4% White, 4.0% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 3.8% Asian, and 1.9% were two or more races. 2.4% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry.[12]
There were 1,408 households, out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.9% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 21.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the borough the population was spread out, with 12.9% under the age of 18, 17.6% from 18 to 24, 42.9% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 5.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 240.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 275.6 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $77,499, and the median income for a family was $90,733. Males had a median income of $40,185 versus $39,236 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $23,080. About 1.0% of families and 2.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.
Politics and government
Collegeville has a city manager form of government with a mayor and a seven-member borough council. The current mayor is Aidsand Wright-Riggins.
There is also one private parochial school, Holy Cross Regional Catholic School, which serves grades K-8. Holy Cross was formed in 2012 by the merger of St. Eleanor in Collegeville and Sacred Heart in Royersford.[18]Pope John Paul II High School in Royersford is the area Catholic high school.[19]
The Montgomery County Library & Information Network Consortium (MCLINC) operates area bookmobiles, and physical libraries serving the Collegeville area including the Perkiomen Valley Library at Schwenksville, the Lower Providence Community Library in Eagleville, the Royersford Free Public Library, the Norristown public library, and the Phoenixville Public Library of the Chester County Library System.[20]
Defunct institutions
Several other now-defunct primary, secondary, and post-secondary educational institutions were also located in Collegeville, all of which predate the founding of Ursinus College and the incorporation of Collegeville as a borough.
Todd’s School was founded in 1832 as the area’s primary and secondary school. It was known Freeland Public School from 1844 to 1874. The Freeland Seminary of Perkiomen Bridge, a post-secondary institution, was established in 1848. It and its land were purchased and turned into Ursinus College in 1869. Ursinus College also later came into possession of the building that was once Freeland Public School; that building is now known as Isenberg Hall, a residence hall located in the southwest corner of Ursinus's main campus.[21][22]
Pennsylvania Female College, a post-secondary educational institution, was established in 1851 and closed in 1880.
Transportation
PA 29 northbound in Collegeville
As of 2021 there were 17.24 miles (27.75 km) of public roads in Collegeville, of which 3.31 miles (5.33 km) were maintained by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and 13.93 miles (22.42 km) were maintained by the borough.[23]
The southern segment of highway PA 29 is the only numbered highway which directly serves Collegeville, running north to Allentown and south to Malvern. PA 29 has an interchange with US 422 southwest of Collegeville; US 422 heads east toward King of Prussia and Philadelphia and west toward Pottstown and Reading.
Collegeville offers multiple attractions, including skydiving, numerous shops and restaurants, horse-back riding and its well-known car show.
Notable people
Horace Ashenfelter,[25] winner of the steeplechase at the 1952 Summer Olympics at Helsinki and Sullivan Award winner as outstanding amateur athlete for the year 1952.
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