Scottdale, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 369,993 people, 149,813 households, and 104,569 families residing in the county. The population density was 361 people per square mile . There were 161,058 housing units at an average density of 157 per square mile...
, 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...
, 49 miles (78.9 km) southeast of Pittsburgh. Scottdale is the home of the Southmoreland Scotties. Early in the 20th century, Scottdale was the center of the Frick
Henry Clay Frick
Henry Clay Frick was an American industrialist, financier, and art patron. He founded the H. C. Frick & Company coke manufacturing company, was chairman of the Carnegie Steel Company, and played a major role in the formation of the giant U.S. Steel steel manufacturing concern...
coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
interests. It had steel and iron pipe mills, brass and silver works, a casket factory, a large milk-pasteurizing plant, and machine shops; all of the aforementioned are presently defunct. Scottdale is notable for its economic decline from a formerly prosperous coke-town into an archetypal Rust Belt
Rust Belt
The Rust Belt is a term that gained currency in the 1980s as the informal description of an area straddling the Midwestern and Northeastern United States, in which local economies traditionally garnered an increased manufacturing sector to add jobs and corporate profits...
town. Duraloy Technologies, "a supplier of specialty high alloy, centrifugal and static cast components and assemblies" is the last remnant of Scottdale's steel related prosperity.
In 1900, 4,261 people lived in Scottdale; in 1910, the population increased to 5,456; and in 1940, 6,493 people lived in Scottdale. The population was 4,772 at the 2000 census. Scottdale is located in the Southmoreland School District.
History
It is difficult to identify when the first non-Indian settler arrived in what is now the Borough of Scottdale, although the area witnessed an influx of Scotch-Irish immigrants in the late 1770s. In the mid-19th century, the present-day townsite was the location of a distillery and flour mill known as Fountain Mills.The Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
and Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
each built branch lines through the community in the early 1870s. With the coming of the railroads, the community’s economy shifted from agriculture to manufacturing and mining. Two brothers who were local farmers, Peter and Jacob Loucks, realized the impact the railroads could have on the area and laid out a small townsite consisting of 24 lots, which went on sale in 1872.
Scottdale was incorporated as a borough
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
on February 5, 1874 and at that time renamed in honor of Thomas Alexander Scott
Thomas Alexander Scott
Thomas Alexander Scott was an American businessman. He was the 4th president of what was the largest corporation in the world, the Pennsylvania Railroad, during the middle of the 19th century...
, who had been president of the Pennsylvania Railroad and served as Assistant Secretary of War during the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Because Scottdale sits atop major coal deposits, the community flourished due to the surrounding coal mines, as well as ovens for converting coal into coke (fuel)
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
. The H. C. Frick Coke Company, controlled by Henry Clay Frick
Henry Clay Frick
Henry Clay Frick was an American industrialist, financier, and art patron. He founded the H. C. Frick & Company coke manufacturing company, was chairman of the Carnegie Steel Company, and played a major role in the formation of the giant U.S. Steel steel manufacturing concern...
, was headquartered here. Scottdale’s factories in the early 20th century also produced iron pipe, tin, knives, steam engines, and caskets.
Scottdale has two sites on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
: Scottdale Armory (1929) at 501 North Broadway Street, and the Scottdale Historic District, which encompasses the oldest parts of the borough.
The oldest extant building in the borough is the Jacob Loucks House at 115 Walnut Avenue, built in 1853. Otherwise, the borough’s oldest residences are concentrated on Loucks Avenue, where many houses date from the 1880s. As well, three downtown retail buildings can be dated to approximately 1880: 101 Pittsburgh Street, 143 Pittsburgh Street, and 4-10 South Broadway Street.
Geography
Scottdale is located at 40°6′55"N 79°35′59"W (40.102410, -79.591078).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 borough has a total area of 1.2 square miles (3.1 km²), all of it land.
Nearby Cities: Pittsburgh (34.5 miles), Connellsville (6.0 miles), Dawson (6.0 miles), Everson (0.9 miles), Hunker (7.3 miles), Mount Pleasant (4.7 miles), New Stanton (8.2 miles), South Connellsville (7.2 miles), Vanderbilt (6.9 miles).
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 4,772 people, 2,034 households, and 1,309 families residing in the borough. 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 4,094.9 people per square mile (1,574.8/km²). There were 2,214 housing units at an average density of 1,899.9 per square mile (730.6/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.13% White, 1.11% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.08% 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 0.38% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.36% of the population.
There were 2,034 households out of which 26.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% 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, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.6% were non-families. 32.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the borough the population was spread out with 21.2% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.2 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $32,000, and the median income for a family was $41,114. Males had a median income of $31,843 versus $22,143 for females. 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 borough was $17,994. About 5.2% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.9% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.
Education Levels: High School or higher: 87.2%, Bachelor's Degree or higher: 18.3%, Graduate or Professional Degree: 6.2%
Ancestries: 35.7% German, 12% Polish, 11.8% Irish, 10.5% Italian, 10.3% English, 4.6% Scottish.
Scottdale's crime rate is less than 40% of the national average (2003 data from http://www.city-data.com).
Notable people
- Johnny ArthurJohnny ArthurJohnny Arthur was an American stage and motion picture actor.-Early years:Born John Lennox Arthur Williams in Scottdale, Pennsylvania, Arthur was a veteran of twenty-five years on stage before he made his screen debut in 1923's The Unknown Purple...
(1883–1951), stage and film actor - Lillian PeacockLillian PeacockLillian Peacock was a silent film actress from Scottdale, Pennsylvania. Her real-life name was Lillian M. Webb....
(1889–1918), silent film actress - Herbert MorrisonHerbert Morrison (announcer)Herbert Morrison was an American radio reporter best known for his dramatic report of the Hindenburg disaster, a catastrophic fire that destroyed the LZ 129 Hindenburg zeppelin on May 6, 1937, killing 36 people.-Hindenburg disaster:...
(1905–1989), radio announcer, best known for his account of the Hindenburg disasterHindenburg disasterThe Hindenburg disaster took place on Thursday, May 6, 1937, as the German passenger airship LZ 129 Hindenburg caught fire and was destroyed during its attempt to dock with its mooring mast at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station, which is located adjacent to the borough of Lakehurst, New Jersey... - D. J. CoffmanD. J. CoffmanD. J. Coffman is an American cartoonist. Coffman is best known as the creator of the Hero by Night comic series and the webcomic Yirmumah. He has illustrated several other published comic books listed at this online comicography...
(1976-_) comic book illustrator, cartoonist, best known for creating Hero By Night - Chris ShipleyChris ShipleyChris Shipley is a writer, analyst, commentator, and strategist, and has tracked the technology industry for more than 25 years....
(1962- ) technology industry analyst and commentator. - Pro Football Hall of Famer Russ GrimmRuss GrimmRussell Scott Grimm is a former American football guard for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League. As a collegian, he was an All-American center at the University of Pittsburgh. As a professional, Grimm had multi-selections to both the All-Pro and Pro Bowl teams, and was...
(1959–Present) 3 time Super Bowl Champion with Washington Redskins, member of the famed "Hogs" offensive line.