Indian Valley
What is it?
The Montgomery County Planning Commission calls the Indian Valley Region "a multi-municipal planning effort that includes Franconia, Lower Salford, Salford, Souderton, Telford, and Upper Salford."
Why is it called that?
The May 2015 Indian Valley Regional Comprehensive Plan discusses the history of the region as follows:
In 1684 William Penn purchased the Perkiomen Watershed from the Lenape Indians. Many of the settlers of the Indian Valley were a collection of Rhineland Germans and Swiss. The Indian Valley got its name from early settlers who noticed that much of present-day Franconia had an abundance of fertile farmfields which were cultivated by the Lenape Indians. The early settlers called these fields “Indianfield.”1
By 1853 the old paths of the Indians and settlers were intersected by a north-south railroad. With the railroad, boroughs developed quite rapidly with mills, warehouses, businesses, institutions and residences. Souderton and Telford became the hub of the Indian Valley. Many young people migrated off the surrounding farms to look for work in their many mills and factories. Souderton became well known for its clothing mills and cigar factories.1