Perkasie Borough

Perkasie Borough municipal offices are located at 620 West Chestnut Street, Perkasie PA 18944; phone: 215-267-5056.

Catch a glimpse of the 19th century in Perkasie Borough, incorporated in 1876 from land previously part of East Rockhill Township. A common, early spelling was "Perkasey," and was pronounced with the accent on the second syllable, "ka." Historians attribute the name's origin to a corruption of the Lenni Lenape Indian word "Pockskos-sing," which meant "the place where hickory nuts are cracked." Pocasie Creek (aka Indian Creek) flowed through Perkasie Manor and commonly-found along its banks were shellbark hickory trees. (Note: The Manor of Perkasie, more than 11,000 acres, was one of several reserved by William Penn; it was surveyed in 1730 for his son, Richard Penn. In 1875 the Pennsylvania Historical Society published an historical map on which appears the notation: "William Penn visits King Tammany at Perkasie, 1683.")

The town started growing in earnest circa 1870, expanding outward from the country store named Bissey & Barringer. A post office was established in July of 1871 to accommodate what was then the fastest-growing town in the county. The town initially supported what was for a time the only industry, cigar-making.