Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Abington Township is a township in Montgomery County
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Montgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2010, the population was 799,874, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania . The county seat is Norristown.The county was created on September 10, 1784, out of land originally part...

, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The population was 55,310 in as of the 2010 census.

Abington Township is one of Montgomery County's oldest communities dating back to before 1700 and being incorporated in 1704. It is home to some of the county's oldest transportation routes, industries and churches. Many of these older business and transportation centers were the forerunners of modern Abington. Today, Abington Township is a highly desirable residential area that contains the Willow Grove Park Mall
Willow Grove Park Mall
Willow Grove Park Mall is a three-story shopping mall located in the unincorporated community of Willow Grove in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania at the intersection of Easton Road and Moreland Road...

, several small businesses, and a few of Montgomery County's largest employers.

History

The land that comprises Abington today was purchased from the native Lenape
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...

 by William Penn
William Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...

 during the 1680s. By the next decade, a handful of European settlers built and lived in Hill Township, at the crossroads of Susquehanna Street Road and Old York Road. After brief times under other names, the township incorporated as Abington in 1704. The name's origin is not known. A local 1734 census counted 42 resident landowners.

Some institutions have been in Abington for most of its existence. The cornerstone of the original Abington Friends School
Abington Friends School
Abington Friends School, founded in 1697, is a K-12 private Quaker secondary school in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania . It is the oldest primary and secondary educational institution in the United States to operate continuously at the same location under the same management...

, in operation since before Abington's incorporation, is used in today's school building. The Abington Presbyterian Church opened in the early years of the township, and while the original building is gone, its graveyard is still used today.

The railroad reached the township in 1855, with the first station building erected in 1873, on the site of today's Noble Station
Noble (SEPTA station)
Noble is a station along the SEPTA West Trenton Line to Ewing, New Jersey. It is located at Old York Road & Rodman Avenue in Abington, Pennsylvania...

.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the township has a total area of 15.5 square miles (40.1 km²), of which, 15.4 square miles (39.9 km²) of it is land and none of the area is covered with water.

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, the township was 79.7% White, 12.4% Black or African American, 0.1% Native American, 4.9% Asian, and 2.1% were two or more races. 3.2% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/census/profile/PA#locality-tab.

As of 2008, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated there were 55,234 people, 21,252 occupied households, and 14,819 families residing in the township. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 3,563 people per square mile (1,377/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 80% White, 12% Black, 3% Asian, a fraction of a percent Pacific Islander, 1% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3% of the population.

There were 21,252 households out of which 32% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 11% had a female householder with no husband present, 56% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, and 30% were non-families. 26% of all households were made up of individuals and 12% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the township the population was spread out with 22% under the age of 18, 9% from 18 to 24, 25% from 25 to 44, 29% from 45 to 64, and 16% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. The population was 47% male, and 53% female.

The median income for a household in the township was $77,363, and the median income for a family was $94,473. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the township was $38,737. About 2% of families and 3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1% of those under age 18 and 5% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Presidential elections results
Year Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

2008 34.4% 11,244 64.8% 21,210
2004 38.0% 12,116 61.7% 19,667
2000 38.4% 16,586 59.0% 10,808
1996 37.2% 9,670 53.6% 13,933
1992 37.9% 13,933 46.3% 13,736


Abington Township does not have a mayor. Rather it is governed by a Board of Commissioners, who are elected one from each of the township's fifteen wards. A President of the Board is elected from among these commissioners, and serves as the head of government for Abington Township. Carol T. DiJoseph is the current Commission President.

Most of the township is in the Thirteenth Congressional District (represented by Rep. Allyson Schwartz
Allyson Schwartz
Allyson Young Schwartz is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes parts of Montgomery County and Northeast Philadelphia...

) with a small part in the Eighth Congressional District (represented by Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick
Mike Fitzpatrick
Michael G. "Mike" Fitzpatrick is the U.S. Representative for . He is a member of the Republican Party. He was reelected to Congress in 2010, and previously represented the district from 2005 to 2007, but lost to Patrick Murphy in 2006....

).

In 2004, Pennsylvanian political scientists Dr. G. Terry Madonna and Dr. Michael Young identified Abington Township as an especially interesting political bellwether—a local area "looked to for early readings of how national elections will turn out."

Communities

Abington Township comprises sixteen "communities" as follow alphabetically:

Communities:
  • Abington
  • Ardsley
    Ardsley, Pennsylvania
    Ardsley is an unincorporated community located in Abington Township, as well as Upper Dublin Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It shares the zip code 19038 with the neighboring town of Glenside. A large portion of this neighborhood is composed of the historic cemeteries...

  • Crestmont
  • Elkins Park
    Elkins Park, Pennsylvania
    Elkins Park is an unincorporated community in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is split between Cheltenham and Abington Townships in the suburbs of Philadelphia, roughly from Center City, Philadelphia.-Points of interest:...

  • Glenside
    Glenside, Pennsylvania
    Glenside is a census-designated place in Abington, Cheltenham, and Springfield townships, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 8,384 at the 2010 census...

  • Hollywood
  • Huntingdon Valley
    Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania
    Huntingdon Valley is a village, as well as a suburban mailing address located in Lower Moreland Township, Upper Moreland and Abington Township all in Montgomery County, and in a small section of Upper Southampton Township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania bordering the Fox Chase section of...

  • McKinley
  • Meadowbrook
    Meadowbrook, Pennsylvania
    Meadowbrook is an unincorporated community in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States within Abington Township. It is served by Abington Police, and Meadowbrook Station....

  • Noble
  • North Hills
    North Hills, Pennsylvania
    North Hills is an unincorporated community in Abington, Springfield, and Upper Dublin townships in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is served by the 19038 zip code. It is a lesser developed town than their neighbor, Glenside. It has a rail station on the SEPTA Lansdale/Doylestown...

  • Roslyn
    Roslyn, Pennsylvania
    Roslyn is an unincorporated community in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally called Hillside, the name Roslyn came from rose gardens that once grew there....

  • Roychester
    Roychester, Pennsylvania
    Roychester is an unincorporated community within Abington Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States.-Roychester Park:The community is home to a park that shares its name. Roychester Park is roughly , containing a playground, multiple baseball fields, basketball courts, tennis...

  • Rydal
    Rydal, Pennsylvania
    Rydal, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Rydal is mainly residential except for one large shopping area. The Abington campus of Pennsylvania State University is located in Rydal...

  • Willow Grove
    Willow Grove, Pennsylvania
    Willow Grove is a census-designated place in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. A community in Philadelphia's northern suburbs, the population was 15,726 at the 2010 census. It is located in Abington Township and Upper Moreland Township...



The communities are unofficial, unincorporated subdivisions of the township, corresponding roughly to voting districts and elementary school placement. Their primary importance aside from community identity is the postal system (e.g., to send a letter to someone living in the Glenside community, you would address the letter to Glenside, Pennsylvania rather than Abington Township, Pennsylvania). Additionally, some portions of some of these subdivisions, including Glenside, Huntingdon Valley, Willow Grove, and Elkins Park, are actually in neighboring townships.

Schools

Abington is served by the Abington School District
Abington School District
The Abington School District covers the Borough of Rockledge and Abington Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. The district operates Abington Senior High School , Abington Junior High School , Copper Beech Elementary School, Highland Elementary School, McKinley Elementary School, Overlook...

. The elementary schools in this township are:
  • Copper Beech Elementary
  • Highland Elementary
  • McKinley Elementary
  • Overlook Elementary
  • Roslyn Elementary
  • Rydal Elementary
  • Willow Hill Elementary


The middle school (grades 7-9) is Abington Junior High School and the senior high (grades 10-12) is Abington Senior High School
Abington Senior High School
Abington Senior High School is a three-year co-educational high school in Abington, Pennsylvania. The school was a two-year high school known as Abington South Campus until June 1983. In September 1984, Abington South Campus became a three-year high school and eventually changed its name to...

.

There are several private schools located inside the township, such as Meadowbrook and Abington Friends School
Abington Friends School
Abington Friends School, founded in 1697, is a K-12 private Quaker secondary school in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania . It is the oldest primary and secondary educational institution in the United States to operate continuously at the same location under the same management...

. Penn State’s Abington campus
Penn State Abington
Penn State Abington is a commonwealth campus of the Pennsylvania State University. Located approximately north of Center City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States in the Abington section of Abington Township, it is set in wooded, which include a duck pond and stands of hardwood trees...

 is located in the Rydal section of the township.

The school district received some notoriety in the 1960s when it became one of the key parties in the school prayer
School prayer
School prayer in its common usage refers to state-approved prayer by students in state schools. Depending on the country and the type of school, organized prayer may be required, permitted, or prohibited...

 controversy, with Abington School District v. Schempp
Abington School District v. Schempp
Abington Township School District v. Schempp , 374 U.S. 203 , was a United States Supreme Court case argued on February 27–28, 1963 and decided on June 17, 1963...

. The Supreme Court case resulted in a declaration of the unconstitutionality of school-sanctioned Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

 reading.

The Elementary Schools, Junior High School, and Senior High school within Abington School District have recently undergone a series of renovations and rebuilding resulting in more up-to-date and sophisticated structures.

Services infrastructure

Abington Memorial Hospital and Holy Redeemer Hospital are both located in Abington Township.

Alverthorpe Park is located in the community of Abington.

Abington Art Center
Abington Art Center
Abington Art Center, located in the northern suburbs of Philadelphia, PA is a non-collecting contemporary art museum with exhibition galleries and a sculpture park. Abington Art Center’s mission is to cultivate the power of the arts – inspiring individuals and strengthening community...

 is a contemporary art museum located in Abington.

Notable natives and residents

  • Gail Berman
    Gail Berman
    Gail Berman is the former president of entertainment at Fox Broadcasting Company and the former president of Viacom's Paramount Pictures.She graduated from the University of Maryland in 1978...

     - former president of entertainment at Fox Broadcasting Company and former president of Viacom's Paramount Pictures; 1974 Abington graduate
  • Amar Gopal Bose  - MIT professor and founder of the audio company Bose Corporation; attended Abington Senior High School
    Abington Senior High School
    Abington Senior High School is a three-year co-educational high school in Abington, Pennsylvania. The school was a two-year high school known as Abington South Campus until June 1983. In September 1984, Abington South Campus became a three-year high school and eventually changed its name to...

  • Bradley Cooper
    Bradley Cooper
    Bradley Cooper is an American film, theater, and television actor. He is known for his roles in the films The Hangover, The A-Team, and Limitless. In 2011, People magazine named Cooper "Sexiest Man Alive".-Early life:...

     - actor
  • Ray Downs
    Ray Downs
    Raymond W. Downs is an American author as well as a former country music singer.Ray was most notably known for his appearances on the syndicated Porter Wagoner television show. Downs also played for a couple of years with Country Music legend Marty Robbins opening shows on the road...

     - author and musician
  • Tom Feeney
    Tom Feeney
    Thomas Charles "Tom" Feeney III, usually known as Tom Feeney , is an American politician from the state of Florida. He represented . He was defeated in the 2008 election by Democrat Suzanne Kosmas.-Early life:...

     - former U.S. Representative from Florida
  • Jon D. Fox
    Jon D. Fox
    Jon D. Fox was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.Jon Fox was born in Abington, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Pennsylvania State University in State College, PA in 1969, and earned a J.D. from the Delaware School of Law , in Wilmington, Delaware, in 1975...

     - former U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
  • Matthew Fox
    Matthew Fox (actor)
    Matthew Chandler Fox is an American actor. He is mostly known for his role as Charlie Salinger on Party of Five, and for portraying Jack Shephard on the supernatural drama television series Lost.- Early life :...

     - actor, plays Jack on Lost
    Lost (TV series)
    Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...

  • Eddie George
    Eddie George
    Edward Nathan "Eddie" George, Jr. is a former American football running back in the National Football League. He played for the Tennessee Titans both in Tennessee and in Houston when the franchise was known as the Houston Oilers, and spent his final season with the Dallas Cowboys...

     - retired NFL running back
  • Adam Gerber - 2007 United States Poker Championship winner
  • Deborah Kaplan
    Deborah Kaplan
    Deborah Kaplan is an American screenwriter and film director.Raised in Abington, Pennsylvania, Deborah Kaplan met her creative partner Harry Elfont while they were both enrolled at the Tisch School of the Arts of New York University...

     - screenwriter and film director
  • Bil Keane
    Bil Keane
    William Aloysius Keane , better known as Bil Keane, was an American cartoonist. He is most notable for his work on the long-running newspaper comic The Family Circus, which began its run in 1960 and continues in syndication, drawn by his son Jeff Keane.-Biography:Born in Philadelphia,...

     - cartoonist of The Family Circus
    The Family Circus
    The Family Circus is a syndicated comic strip created by cartoonist Bil Keane and currently written, inked, and colored by his son, Jeff Keane. The strip generally uses a single captioned panel with a round border, hence the original name of the series, which was changed following objections from...

    ; resided in Roslyn with his family from 1948 to 1959
  • Chad Kolarik
    Chad Kolarik
    Chad Kolarik is a professional ice hockey right wing currently playing for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League. He married University of Michigan gymnastic great Kylee Botterman in August 2011 in Botterman's hometown of Chicago, Illinois...

     - University of Michigan hockey player, drafted by the Phoenix Coyotes
  • Ken V. Krawchuk
    Ken V. Krawchuk
    Ken V. Krawchuk is a Libertarian Party activist, writer, inventor, public speaker, business architect, Information Technology professional, and outdoorsman.-Political Activist:...

     - Libertarian Party
    Libertarian Party (United States)
    The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...

     candidate for Governor of Pennsylvania in 1998 and 2002
  • Joey Lawrence
    Joey Lawrence
    Joseph "Joey" Lawrence is an American actor, R&B-singer, and TV-host. He is known for his roles in the TV-series Gimme a Break!, Blossom, and Melissa & Joey.- Early life :...

     - actor
  • Matthew Lawrence
    Matthew Lawrence
    Matthew William Lawrence is an American actor known for his leading role in the movie Cheats with Trevor Fehrman and his role of Jack Hunter on the ABC sitcom Boy Meets World from 1997 to 2000, and his roles in movies such as The Hot Chick, The Comebacks, and Mrs...

     - actor (brother of Joey Lawrence)
  • Benjamin Lay
    Benjamin Lay
    Benjamin Lay was a Quaker philanthropist and abolitionist.-Life and beliefs:Lay was born in Colchester, England. In 1710, he moved to Barbados as a merchant, but his abolition principles, fueled by his Quaker radicalism, became obnoxious to the people who lived there so he moved to Abington,...

     - philanthropist, abolitionist, and Quaker extremist
  • Stephen Lynch
    Stephen Lynch (musician)
    Stephen Andrew Lynch , is an American stand-up comedian, musician and Tony Award-nominated actor who is known for his songs mocking daily life and popular culture. Lynch has released two studio albums and two live albums along with a live DVD...

     - Tony Award
    Tony Award
    The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...

    -nominated actor, comedian and musician
  • James Morrow
    James Morrow
    James Morrow is a fiction author. A self-described "scientific humanist", his work satirises organized religion and elements of humanism and atheism....

     - science fiction author, born in the area and alludes to the case in his novel Blameless in Abaddon, whose title community is a parallel of Abington
  • Jeff Parke
    Jeff Parke
    Jeff Parke is an American soccer player who currently plays for Seattle Sounders FC in Major League Soccer.-Career:...

     - current Major League Soccer player
  • Mike Richter
    Mike Richter
    Michael Thomas Richter is a former ice hockey goaltender. One of the most successful American-born goaltenders in history, he is best known for having led the New York Rangers to the Stanley Cup title in 1994 and for repeatedly representing the United States in international play. Due to his...

     - retired NHL goaltender
  • Bob Saget
    Bob Saget
    Robert Lane "Bob" Saget is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and television host. Although he is best known for his roles as Danny Tanner in Full House, host of America's Funniest Home Videos and Future Ted Mosby on How I Met Your Mother, Saget is also known outside of television for his blue...

     - actor and comedian
  • Ellery Schempp
    Ellery Schempp
    Ellery Schempp is an accomplished physicist and is also famous for being the primary student involved in the landmark 1963 United States Supreme Court case of Abington School District v...

     - physicist; famous for his involvement as a student in Abington School District v. Schempp
    Abington School District v. Schempp
    Abington Township School District v. Schempp , 374 U.S. 203 , was a United States Supreme Court case argued on February 27–28, 1963 and decided on June 17, 1963...

  • Stephen A. Schwarzman
    Stephen A. Schwarzman
    Stephen Allen Schwarzman is an American businessman and investor and the chairman and co-founder of the Blackstone Group, the private-equity and financial advisory firm.-Early life and education:...

     - Chairman, CEO and co-founder of Blackstone Group
  • Shawn Wooden
    Shawn Wooden
    Shawn Wooden was a safety with an 9 year career from 1996 to 2004. He was forced to retire due to a back injury. He played for the Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears of the National Football League....

     - retired NFL safety for the Miami Dolphins
  • Chris Thayne - founder of Chris Thayne's crab shack (located in Ardsley, Pa) and former relief pitcher for AAA baseball team Camden RiverSharks
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