Columbia Historic District

Columbia's historic district lies on the eastern bank of the Susquehanna River and includes about 950 buildings covering roughly a third of the borough. Its growth followed the ferry established at Wrights' Ferry in 1730, which became a gateway to the west, and later the canal of 1797 and the first bridge of 1814. Riverfront wharves, sawmills and warehouses turned the town into a major lumber and transshipment center. The houses are mostly brick, produced locally from the early nineteenth century, and follow a common two-thirds Georgian plan in Federal, Greek Revival and Italianate versions. Locust Street forms the commercial core, with storefronts ranging from Victorian to modern. Chestnut Street held elaborate residences of professionals and managers from 1871 onward. The district's preserved streetscapes reflect the town's economic strength across two centuries.