Doylestown Among PA's Most 'Unconventional' Towns: World Atlas

DOYLESTOWN, PA ? Doylestown Borough has been named one of the most unconventional towns in Pennsylvania by the World Atlas for its "historical and quirky attractions."

In an introduction to its 2025 list of Pennsylvania's most "unconventional" towns, the Atlas explains that while many visitors come to Pennsylvania to experience the history that abounds in places like Philadelphia, there's a "unique brand of tourist" who looks for the state's "most eccentric attractions and oddities .... their target being towns that have embraced alternative lifestyles, peculiar points of interest and atypical traditions that set them apart."

The World Atlas chose the Bucks County Seat as one of those "unconventional" places to visit in Pennsylvania for its "display of gorgeous architecture" and its "historical and quirky attractions," which make the town "worth exploring."

The atlas says Doylestown is best associated with "The Mercer Mile," a trio of concrete structures built by Henry Chapman Mercer. "The TileWorks, Mercer Museum and Fonthill Castle showcase a mix of architectural designs decorating the downtown skyline."

The Mercer Museum in Doylestown. (Jeff Werner/Patch)

The atlas also notes that Doylestown is home to the VAMPA Vampire and Paranormal Museum, a 7000-square-foot museum with "a vast stockpile of vampire-related artifacts, from killing sets to occult paraphernalia and paranormal items, which spooks many first-timers."

Among other towns making the list were Yeadon Borough, the final resting place of one of the nation's most notorious serial killers - H.H. Holmes; Monroeville, the home of the Living Dead Museum and the town's Zombie Weekend held every June; and Ashland, known for its Big Mine Run Geyser and an eight-foot-tall statue of Whistler's Mother.