Before
1800, the village was called Pottsgrove, however, as
the population increased, this slowly evolved into Pottstown.
On February 6, 1815, this area was incorporated as a
Borough, the second Borough formed in the county, Norristown
being the first. The first election of town officers
was held in April of 1815.
Soon after 1842, the Reading Railroad completed a series
of lines from Philadelphia to Mt. Carbon, near Pottsville.
Raw materials and coal were moved easily, and markets
were more readily accessible. At this time, the population
of the Borough was six hundred. Since the first forge,
Pottstown has received much recognition in the metal
industries. The most significant projects include the
locks for the Panama Canal and the Golden Gate Bridge.
In 1847 the town was divided into two wards. By 1850
the population of the Borough reached a total of one
thousand eight hundred fifty. As the town grew, new
wards were added and old ones were divided. By 1893
the Borough had ten wards represented by twenty councilmen,
two from each ward. Borough Council continued to function
as one of the largest municipal representative bodies
in Pennsylvania. In 1964 the number of wards was reduced
to seven, with one councilman representing each ward.
In 1944, the Council-Manager form of government was
adopted; administrative responsibility for the operation
of the Borough was given to a professional Manager.
The Borough has had ten Managers since the position
was created.
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