Story

Reading Shamokin’s Downtown

An 1873 borough plan, an 1884 bird’s-eye view, fire-insurance mapping, and present-day planning records let visitors read downtown Shamokin as a changing landscape of commerce, civic life, industry, and reuse.

Historically established

Back to Stories Suggest a correction

Dime Trust and Safe Deposit Company postcardHistoric postcard view of the Dime Trust and Safe Deposit Company in Shamokin.Image date unknown

From Borough Plan to Bird’s-Eye View

The 1873 borough map records an early street framework, while the explicitly dated 1884 bird’s-eye view depicts a denser pictorial city. Read together, they show growth in form and scale, though neither image is treated as modern parcel geometry.

A Downtown Recorded Building by Building

The 1913 fire-insurance map set records footprints, construction materials, uses, streets, tracks, and close building relationships. It captures downtown as a working system of stores, hotels, civic buildings, factories, theaters, and transportation rather than a list of isolated landmarks.

Historic Character as a Living Resource

The GoShamokin plan treats older buildings, public space, local business activity, and downtown identity as practical resources for revitalization. Reading the city today therefore means noticing what survives, what has changed, and how historic structures can support new uses.

Image gallery

Open any image to view the full-size photograph or document.

Historic postcard showing the Shamokin High School building — **Shamokin High School postcard**Historic postcard view of Shamokin High School.Image date unknown

Historic postcard showing the former United States Post Office in Shamokin — **United States Post Office in Shamokin**Historic postcard view of the United States Post Office in Shamokin.Image date unknown

Historic postcard showing the former U.S. Post Office in Shamokin — **Historic postcard of the former U.S. Post Office in Shamokin**Historic postcard view of the former U.S. Post Office in Shamokin.Image date unknown

Historic newspaper image of the Knights of Columbus Building in Shamokin — **Historic newspaper image of the Shamokin Knights of Columbus Building**Historic newspaper image showing the Knights of Columbus Building in Shamokin.Image date unknown

Image showing the historic Douty Building in Shamokin — **Image of the historic Douty Building in Shamokin**Image documenting the historic Douty Building in Shamokin.Image date unknown

Central Drug Store mural wrapped around a Shamokin street corner — **Central Drug Store Mural**A corner mural remembering Central Drug Store in Shamokin.Image date unknown

Panoramic 1873 illustration of clustered Shamokin buildings, rail corridors, open land, and surrounding hills — **Shamokin panorama, 1873**A panoramic inset printed on O. M. Fowler’s 1873 borough map pictures Shamokin beneath the surrounding ridges.Image date: 1873

1873 architectural illustration of William H. Douty’s tall brown-stone-front building with arched windows and storefront — **William H. Douty’s Brown Stone Front, 1873**The 1873 borough-map inset depicts the arched facade and storefront identified with William H. Douty.Image date: 1873

1873 illustration of the two-story Shamokin Herald printing office and book bindery with people outside — **Shamokin Herald printing office, 1873**An architectural inset on the 1873 borough map identifies the Herald printing office and book bindery.Image date: 1873

Oblique 1884 illustration of Shamokin with dense street blocks, bridges, creeks, rail lines, churches, and surrounding hills — **Shamokin’s built landscape in 1884**The central illustration from O. H. Bailey & Co.’s 1884 bird’s-eye pictures dense street blocks, bridges, waterways, rail lines, churches, and surrounding hills.Image date: 1884