Until 1970, Vanport was officially known as Borough Township, although the popular name had been in use since the days of Martin Van Buren. The community came into being in 1804, when it was created to be identical in boundaries with the Borough of Beaver, hence, "Borough Township." (Beaver Borough, incorporated in 1802, was not completely independent of its parent, South Beaver Township, until Borough Township was formed.) Later Beaver's boundaries were reduced (1814) leaving Borough Township as a separate entity.
Most of the land in Vanport was originally known as "The Academy Lands," in the original survey of lands in the Reserve Tract at the mouth of the Beaver ("Reserved" from the Depreciation Lands for the use of the state.)
A river port and manufacturing village, Vanport once was the site of potteries and brickyards. As these were phased out, World War II brought the huge Curtiss-Wright airplane propeller plant (now Cutler-Hammer). Van Buren Homes and Tamaqui Village, the township housing projects, were built at this time to provide homes for the workers.
For many years no more than a suburb of Beaver, the township, through these developments, evolved into an integrated community with its own police and fire protection. Before the boundaries were stabilized, a section of the township between the river and the Beaver Cemetery called Groveland entered a petition for borough status. The court denied the petition, but the area was annexed by Beaver shortly thereafter. Vanport is now joined with Beaver, Bridgewater, and Brighton township in a merged school district.
The "Vanport Bridge" and Beaver Valley Expressway altered the appearance of much of the township, but opened up new potential for commercial or industrial development.