European settlers arrived in the area of Trappe in the early 18th century and included many German immigrants. They had landed at the port of Philadelphia and moved west, where land was available. One of the oldest extant buildings in town is Augustus Lutheran Church. Construction of the old church began in 1743 following the arrival of Lutheran minister Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, who emigrated from Germany in 1742. After a severe storm on February 16, 1860 that damaged the colonial building, it was saved and restored by his grandson William Augustus Muhlenberg. It is the oldest unchanged Lutheran church building in the US in continuous use by the same congregation and has been designated a National Historic Landmark. A c. 1830 building across from Augustus Lutheran Church served as the US Post Office until 1929, when operations were moved to a larger regional location. The post office/general store is now a private residence. Trappe is also home to the Henry Melchior Muhlenberg House, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The building has been restored and is operated as a museum by the Historical Society of Trappe, Collegeville, Perkiomen Valley, Inc. The Speaker's House, home of Frederick Muhlenberg, is another historic site in Trappe that is open to the public. It is currently undergoing restoration.
Demographics
As of the 2010 census, 89.2% White, 3.2% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 4.5% Asian, and 2.0% were two or more races. 2.7% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry. As of the census of 2000, there were 3,210 people, 1,292 households, and 886 families residing in the borough. The population density was 1,547.1 people per square mile. There were 1,351 housing units at an average density of 651.1 per square mile. The racial makeup of the borough was 94.02% White, 2.40% African American, 0.22% Native American, 1.37% Asian, 0.34% from other races, and 1.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.18% of the population. There were 1,292 households, out of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.0% were married couples living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.4% were non-families. 24.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.00. In the borough the population was spread out, with 24.7% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 41.0% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 99.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.5 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $67,500, and the median income for a family was $76,544. Males had a median income of $52,337 versus $37,212 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $31,281. About 0.6% of families and 0.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under the age of eighteen or sixty-five or over.
Politics and government
Trappe has a borough managerform of government with a mayor and a seven-member borough council. The mayor is Matthew Wismer. The current borough council members are Phil Ronca, Cathy Johnson, Scott Martin, Stewart Strauss, Mallory Perlin, Brett Yeagley and Pat Webster. The borough is part of the Fourth Congressional District, the 150th State House District and the 24th State Senate District.
