Borough of Conshohocken Celebrates its Demisemiseptcentennial
This month, the Borough of Conshohocken celebrates its “demisemiseptcentennial.” That’s a fun way of saying “175 years.”
The name "Conshohocken" is a derivative of “Gueno Skeiki-Hacki-Ing”, or the “place of the long, fine land.” Conshohocken was the name the Indians had for Edge Hill and could be found on deeds of purchase by William Penn on July 14, 1683, and July 30, 1685. A mere 15 miles from Center City Philadelphia, the borough has proximity to leading universities, colleges, and businesses.
In 1848, the 727-resident village selected five men to represent them as the village’s incorporation committee. The committee comprised James Wood, owner and manager of the J. Wood & Sons Company; Isaac Jones, president of the Matson Ford Bridge Company; James Wells, proprietor of the Ford Hotel and Railroad Depot; Cadwallader Foulke, a farmer; and David Harry, a gristmill operator who owned a large amount of the village’s property.
The five men met at Norristown’s Montgomery Hotel to apply for a charter to turn the village into a borough and select the new borough’s name. The committee wrote three names on slips of paper and placed them into Jones’ hat. The names were Riverside, Wooddale, and Conshohocken. They agreed that the third name drawn out of the hat would be the new borough’s name. The final name drawn was Conshohocken.
The village would be incorporated by an act of the Pennsylvania General Assembly on May 15, 1850, thus turning it into the Borough of Conshohocken.
The incorporation papers, signed by Pennsylvania Governor William Fraeme Johnston, arrived in the newly incorporated borough via the Philadelphia, Germantown, and Norristown line on May 18, 1850.
Conshohocken would become the third borough in Montgomery County after Norristown (1812), and Pottstown (1815).
Perhaps best known for its exceptional industrial firms, such as the Alan Wood Iron and Steel Company, whose roots date back to the early 1800s, "Lee of Conshohocken”, the automobile tire company founded in the early 1900s, Conshohocken played a major role in the industrial development of southeastern Pennsylvania. Today, the borough is thriving with a robust population and a bustling downtown area on the main thoroughfare, Fayette Street. It has become the home to many large corporations, including Cencora, a Fortune 100 company, Morgan Properties, Fanatics, and Aerotek to name a few.
Alongside the development, Conshohocken prides itself in its many community engagement opportunities, and is the hub for many large-scale events. The Montgomery County St. Patrick’s Day Parade has marched down Fayette Street since 2006. In 2024, the borough hosted the Simon’s Heart Conshy Classic Bike Race, hosted by QCW. This June, the town will welcome the Philadelphia Flyers Alumni Bike Ride and 5/10K. Conshohocken also offers many recreational activities through its eight parks, active community center, and the Schuylkill River Trail.
Almost 175 years to the date, the borough will host several events this month, one being the Simon’s Heart Conshy Classic Bike Race on Saturday, May 10 1pm-7pm. Following that event, there will be a drone show over the Schuylkill River starting at 8:30 p.m. For those interested in attending, the official viewing area for the show will be the Millennium II parking lot at 225 Washington Street.
Congratulations to the Borough of Conshohocken on this milestone celebration!
"Conshohocken-once an old mill town- is now a hub of residential and commercial activity and one of the most important professional centers in Montgomery County today. We look forward to celebrating this special anniversary by reveling in the economic growth and development that has transformed our borough into a thriving and prosperous community in which to live, work, play, and grow.”
ANITA L. BARTON
CBO, SR. COUNCIL MEMBER
