One of the famous men that lived in the Perkiomen Valley was John James Audubon, a French-American ornithologist noted for his paintings and drawings of birds. In 1784, Montgomery County was formed with land that was previously owned by the city of Philadelphia. Nearly a century later in 1879 Limerick Township was created and in 1886 the Skippack and Perkiomen Townships split into Skippack Township and Perkiomen Township. The Perkiomen Township later split into two different townships called Lower Perkiomen Township and Upper Perkiomen Township. Collegeville and Trappe are two towns in Montgomery County that were purchased by Ursinus College in 1869 and was later included in Upper Providence Township in 1896. In 1903, the Schwenksville Borough was incorporated into the Perkiomen Township. In the latest census that was taken in 1990, nearly 59,000 people lived in the Perkiomen Valley. Limerick Township contains the Nuclear Power Plant that produces electricity for the Perkiomen Valley and is owned by a company called PECO. Many businesses that are looking at expanding to the suburbs of Philadelphia look towards the Perkiomen Valley as it is one of the major areas that are rapidly developing into a powerhouse of the suburbs of Philadelphia. They are also moving to the Perkiomen Valley because the businesses are able to escape all of the problems that having a business in Philadelphia creates and they are able to attract more skilled workers to their companies allowing them to grow.