Boalsburg Historic District

Boalsburg developed around an intersection of principal roads, and the town was laid out by Andrew Stroup in 1808. Its commercial core runs along Main Street, with residential streets on Pine and South Academy, a church area at the north end of Church Street, and a tannery at the east end of Main Street. Early tanning began there when William Murray bought the property in 1811, and a series of twelve tanning vats was uncovered in 1960. The district contains Georgian and Victorian houses, including the Smith-Coverly House, which was owned almost continuously by local doctors from 1835 until 1933. Two substantial churches stand in the north area: St. John's German Reformed Church, built in 1861-1862, and Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, built in 1867-1868, with its brick colonial form. The Boalsburg Academy and the Presbyterian Church that replaced it in 1892 reflect the town's schooling and worship.