A Brief History of the Camp Hill Pennsylvania area.

The History of Camp Hill Pennsylvania can be traced back to the time in 1735 when people living on the west shore of the Susquehanna River, across from Harrisburg, petitioned the court to lay out a public road "from Harris Ferry to the Potomac". This road was known as the "Great Road", and became Market Street. The first settlement along the great road was between 17th & 29th streets. This is the area that from which Camp Hill grew.

In 1764, in order to generate revenue from the province, John Penn ordered a surveyor to set the boundaries and termed the West Shore as "Manor of Lowther". There were 33 tracts in the Manor, consisting of about 2 square miles of land. Six tracts figure in the history of Camp Hill. The first lot was purchased by Edmund Physick in 1768. Of the 5 original individuals who purchased land, four settled and farmed their land. In 1816 a bridge (in the location of the Market St. bridge) was built across the river connecting to the Great Road with Harrisburg. Twenty years later, the Cumberland Valley Railroad was developed from the river to Carlisle, later extending to Chambersburg, and in 1839, a railroad bridge was built to Harrisburg connecting to the coal trains from the north. Camp Hill's had the White Hill rail yard with its brick roundhouse. By the late 1800's one-third of the residents were railroad workers. A school was built in the mid 1800's and operated as a public school until 1866 when it became known as White Hall, a school for the children of deceased war veterans. On November 10, 1885 the petition submitted by Henry Bowman asking that the settlement become an officially recognized Borough was accepted by the County Court and thus Camp Hill marks that November date as it's birth date.

As the population of the borough doubled in the last decade of the 19th century, the opening of a streetcar line in 1901 made Camp Hill more of a suburb than a town. Many workers traveled to jobs in Harrisburg. In the early 1900's several developers started large blocks of construction. This sudden increase caused residents to form the "Camp Hill Voluntary Fire Company" in 1908. This was built in 1909 at 2201 Market Street, and later became the borough building. During World War I, the newly organized Camp Hill Civic Club formed the "Emergency Aid Committee". As many as 200 at a time gathered to make dressings and sweaters for soldiers in Europe. The Civic Club also had cast a bronze honor roll listing 54 names of persons in the war, two of which died in uniform. This is also the time when the American Legion in Camp Hill received their charter. In 1927, the schools were overcrowded and the Lincoln School was built. Later that year it was deemed to be at its capacity of 140. Two years later, Schaeffer School was built. In Siebert Park a new athletic stadium was built and the high school was opened in 1938.

During the depression of the 1930's, Camp Hill was the main route across the river with bumper to bumper traffic. The "By-Pass" was built in 1936 to relieve the congestion. Several state officials from the borough helped in obtaining WPA funding for the by-pass, Siebert Park and sewers. Most of the town's businesses were on Market St. except for several small groceries. In 1936, three Camp Hill organizations made major moves. The Masonic fraternity built a Bauhaus style temple on Market St. A very contrasting style was the log cabin of the American Legion. Although it had no permanent meeting place, the Junior Civic Club was founded at this time and gave significant help to community projects. At the start of World War II, a Defense Council was organized. Many Camp Hill men who were not eligible for the regular army joined the reserves or served on this council. They implemented blackout and air raid regulations, as well as other volunteer defense work. Many women made bandages and students had a drive for the Red Cross. Volunteers assisted the draft board and scrap drives were begun.  Fifteen months into the War there were 250 citizens were in uniform. When most of the men and women returned following the war, the community held a "Welcome Home" festival. Its committee issued a booklet of all persons known to have served in the armed forces during the war years. A special page honored the 22 who died, including one woman.  

After World War II the town experienced a growth spurt. New streets, schools, churches and recreation facilities were built. By 1960, a new post office was dedicated and was already barely adequate. Country Club Manor and College Park developments arose. Increased population forced the construction of a fourth elementary school, named for Dwight D. Eisenhower. The park system also flourished and by 1954, Siebert's proposal for a community pool came into being with contributions from many service organizations. Increased Equipment caused the Fire Company to need more space. Ground breaking was in 1962 for their headquarters on Walnut Street. 

Developers were adding more commercial buildings, especially the Camp Hill Shopping Center which opened in 1959. Restaurants and more retail establishments have continued to be built.  With the addition of the new borough and public works buildings, the Borough of Camp Hill serves it's residents with modern facilities.  With pride in the past and confidence in the future, Camp Hill enters the 21st Century as forward looking community.