The Lenni Lenape called this place gueno-sheiki-hacki-ing, meaning "beautiful or peaceful valley." Incorporated in 1850, Conshohocken's colorful history had its beginnings as Native American territory prior to 1684, when William Penn purchased the land from the Tammany people. Soon Quakers purchased land, built homes, and opened mills. Conshohocken begins with tales and images of early history and continues with rare views that capture some of the majestic mansions built by the founding fathers, the tree-lined avenues with trolleys and horse-drawn carriages, the firehouses and train station and schools, and the many families and faces that have brought Conshohocken to life.

In the mid-nineteenth century, a transportation industry developed in Reading that put the city on the mapand on the Monopoly boardforever. Founded in 1748 by William Penns sons Thomas and Richard, Reading experienced rapid growth throughout the nineteenth century as the Reading Railroad (the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad) breathed steam into the citys industry. As the powerful railroads faded later, so did the citys economy. In recent years, Reading has become known as the birthplace and capital of factory outlet shopping and the hub of newborn manufacturing, financial, and agricultural enterprises.

Located just 14 miles northwest of Philadelphia, Bridgeport is a stone's throw from Valley Forge National Historic Park. Incorporated in 1851, the tiny village of 422 acres had 500 residents living within its boundaries. In 1723, Swedish and Welsh immigrants settled along the Schuylkill River, with the Eastburn and Holstein families among the first to settle. Irish immigrants found work in Bridgeport as early as 1860, and Italian immigrants poured into Bridgeport in the 1890s, finding work in the quarries and along the railroads and canals. Through vintage photographs, Bridgeport celebrates the families and industries that have helped shape this borough.

Established by real estate developers Tracy E. Shoults and S. H. Woodruff in 1923, Hollywoodland was one of the first hillside developments built in Hollywood. Touting its class and sophistication, the neighborhood promoted a European influence, featuring such unique elements as stone retaining walls and stairways, along with elegant Spanish, Mediterranean, French Normandy, and English Tudor-styled homes thoughtfully placed onto the hillsides. The community contains one of the world's most recognizable landmarks, the Hollywood sign, originally constructed as a giant billboard for the development and reading "Hollywoodland." The book illustrates the development of the upper section of Beachwood Canyon known as Hollywoodland with historical photographs from Hollywood Heritage's S. H. Woodruff Collection as well as from other archives, institutions, and individuals.

The village of Norris was founded by Isaac Norris, a Quaker merchant and mayor of Philadelphia, and his family in 1704. More than a century later, on March 31, 1812, Norristown was officially incorporated as a Pennsylvania state borough, and it was the first borough to be incorporated in Montgomery County. Laid out along the banks of the Schuylkill River, both business and the community prospered. Over the years, the area has attracted business and visitors alike, including a visit in 1960 from John F. Kennedy. Norristown offers a delightful flashback to the fascinating history of this community through vintage photographs from area residents and organizations.

Upper Dublin and Fort Washington, located to the northwest of Philadelphia, were part of William Penn's original land grant of 1681. The villages of Fitzwatertown, Jarrettown, Three Tuns, and Dreshertown developed to serve early settlers who worked as farmers and lime burners. Through vintage photographs collected by the Historical Society of Fort Washington from local sources, Fort Washington and Upper Dublin illustrates the area's transformation as new roads and railroads brought industry, grand country homes, and vacation retreats. Included are photographs of Dr. Richard Mattison's grand Lindenwold estate, homes built for his employees, and the water-tower house with its five twenty-thousand-gallon tanks perched above four apartments. The collection also includes photographs of several country inns and the now vanished community of Hoopeston.