Virginville, Pennsylvania

Virginville, Pennsylvania
Census-designated place
Post Office
Virginville Show map of Pennsylvania Virginville Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 40°31′26″N 75°52′23″W
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Berks
Township	Richmond
Elevation	335 ft (102 m)
Population  (2010)[1]
• Total	309
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code	19564
Area code(s)	610 and 484
GNIS feature ID	1190445[2]

Virginville Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
The Virginville Hotel, part of the historic district
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Location	Main, 2nd, 1st, and Front Sts. and Chapel Dr. Richmond Township, Pennsylvania
Area	17.3 acres (7.0 ha)
Built by	Dreibelbis, Francis; Heinly, Seth
Architectural style	Gothic Revival, Italianate, et al.
NRHP reference No.	00001123[3]
Added to NRHP	September 28, 2000

Virginville is a census-designated place[4] in Richmond Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located at the junction of PA 143 and Crystal Ridge Road, and is approximately seven miles to the south of the borough of Lenhartsville.

The community was designated as the Virginville Historic District by the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.[3]

As of the 2010 census, the population was 309 residents.[5]

History

The origin of the name Virginville is obscure. Some say it is the English translation of a Native American word, while others believe the community was named for virgin forests in the area.[6] "Virgin" may be an alternate translation of the Indian-named Maiden Creek,[7] which runs through the town and also meets up with Sacony Creek.

The hamlet was designated the Virginville Historic District by the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.[3]

The district encompasses 290 contributing buildings built between 2001 and 2001 with residential, commercial, and institutional buildings which were constructed in a variety of popular architectural styles, including Gothic Revival and Italianate. A primarily residential district, notable non-residential buildings include The Creamery (c. 1875), St. Paul's Chapel (1903), Virginville Hotel (1885), post office (c. 1930), and Balthasar's Garage (1921).[8]

Population and demographics

As of the 2010 census, the population was 1400 residents.[5]

Gallery

• 
  St. Paul's Chapel
• 
  Gothic Revival style house
• 
  Vernacular brick house

References

1. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
2. "Virginville". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
3. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
4. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades".
5. https://www.census.gov/# ^[not specific enough to verify]
6. Lucia, Tony (October 17, 1985). "Virginville: What's in a name?". Reading Eagle. p. 35. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
7. Moyer, Armond; Moyer, Winifred (1958). The origins of unusual place-names. Keystone Pub. Associates. p. 136.
8. "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania" (Searchable database). CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System. Note: This includes April E. Frantz (March 2000). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Virginville Historic District" (PDF). Retrieved September 18, 2012.