Living in Cornwall

About Cornwall

A Closer Look at the Area

Cornwall is one of Lebanon County's most unique communities — a historic iron-furnace town built around the 1742 Cornwall Iron Furnace, one of the most complete charcoal-fired iron furnaces in North America and a National Historic Landmark. Founded by Peter Grubb in 1732 and developed by Robert Coleman into one of the most productive iron operations in colonial America, Cornwall grew as a company town around the furnace, the iron ore mines, and the Cornwall Railroad, and that industrial heritage still shapes the community's identity today. The Cornwall Iron Furnace, now a Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission site, anchors the town's historic core and draws visitors year-round. The surrounding residential streets offer some of the most distinctive housing in Lebanon County — historic stone and iron-master estate homes near the furnace, mid-century colonials on wooded hillside lots, and newer construction in the surrounding Cornwall and South Lebanon townships. Mature trees, the wooded slopes of the surrounding ridges, and the nearby Cornwall reservoir give the community a more rural, estate-like feel than the boroughs to the north. Families are drawn to the well-regarded Cornwall-Lebanon School District, and the community's location just south of Lebanon city puts downtown Lebanon, WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital, and the Route 422 corridor within a few minutes' drive. The nearby Governor Dick Recreation Area and the Clarence Schock Memorial Park at Governor Dick offer hiking, rock climbing, and an observation tower with panoramic views of the Lebanon Valley — some of the best outdoor recreation in the county. With its combination of genuine historic character, estate-style housing, wooded hillside settings, top-rated schools, and easy access to Lebanon city and the broader Harrisburg metro, Cornwall offers one of the most distinctive residential lifestyles in Lebanon County — a community where colonial iron heritage and modern suburban living sit side by side.