Shamokin, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Shamokin are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
“Schahamokink” "place of eels") is a city in Northumberland County
Northumberland County, Pennsylvania
There were 38,835 households out of which 27.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.40% were married couples living together, 9.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.10% were non-families. 30.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.50% had...
, 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...
, at the western edge of the Anthracite Coal Region
Coal Region
The Coal Region is a term used to refer to an area of Northeastern Pennsylvania in the central Appalachian Mountains comprising Lackawanna, Luzerne, Columbia, Carbon, Schuylkill, Northumberland, and the extreme northeast corner of Dauphin counties....
. (The original Saponi village of Shamokin
Shamokin (village)
Shamokin was a multi-ethnic Native American trading village on the Susquehanna River, located near the site of the modern Sunbury, Pennsylvania. Early in the eighteenth century, the village consisted of Iroquois migrants from the north, as well as Shawnee and Lenape settlers moving away from the...
was located near the current site of Sunbury
Sunbury, Pennsylvania
Sunbury is a city in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city is located on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, just downstream of the confluence of its main and West branches. The population was 9,905 at the 2010 census...
, the seat of Northumberland County.) At the 2000 census the population was 8,009 residents. The city of Shamokin is bordered by its sister community, Coal Township, Pennsylvania
Coal Township, Pennsylvania
Coal Township is a township in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,628 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water.-Demographics:As of the census of...
, and by the world's largest man-made mountain, the Glen Burn Colliery Cameron Culm Bank. The colliery was in operation until the 1970s and was later dismantled.
History
Shamokin was incorporated as a boroughBorough (Pennsylvania)
In the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, a borough is a self-governing municipal entity that is usually smaller than a city. There are 958 boroughs in Pennsylvania. All municipalities in Pennsylvania are classified as either cities, boroughs, or townships...
on November 9, 1864, and as a city on February 21, 1949. In addition to anthracite coal-mining, it also had silk and knitting mills (the Eagle Silk Mill became the largest textile building under one roof in America), stocking and shirt factories, wagon shops, ironworks, and brickyards.
Most notably, Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
, briefly a resident of Sunbury, established the Edison Illuminating Company
Edison Illuminating Company
The Edison Illuminating Company was established by Thomas Edison on December 17, 1880, to construct electrical generating stations, initially in New York City...
of Shamokin in the fall of 1882. Operation of the Shamokin station (located at the current Independence Street site of Jones Hardware Company) on September 22, 1883, at which time St. Edward's Catholic Church
St. Edward's Catholic Church
St. Edward's Catholic Church was the first church in the world to have electric lighting. The lighting was installed by Edison Illuminating Company. The church is located in Shamokin, Pennsylvania. The church burned down in 1972 and was rebuilt...
became the first church in the world to have electric lighting.
In the 1877 Shamokin Uprising
1877 Shamokin Uprising
The 1877 Shamokin Uprising occurred when desperation and starvation drove Pennsylvania's railroad workers and miners to join the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, America’s first nationwide strike....
, starvation wages and miserable working conditions prompted railroad workers and miners to join the Great Railroad Strike of 1877
Great railroad strike of 1877
The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 began on July 14 in Martinsburg, West Virginia, United States and ended some 45 days later after it was put down by local and state militias, and federal troops.-Economic conditions in the 1870s:...
. Vigilantes gathered by Mayor William Douty shot into a group of strikers, wounding twelve and killing two. Five strikers were jailed for up to eight months for their part in the uprising.
The National Ticket Company, located in Shamokin from 1907 until 1992, was at one time the largest ticket company in the United States. Their first production facility was built in 1911 at the corner of Pearl and Webster Streets; a 1942 fire gutted the plant, although the brick shell still stands. The replacement building at Pearl Street and Ticket Avenue was completed in 1950 and served as company headquarters for forty-two years.
"Murder at Hickory Ridge" was a fictionalized account of an unsolved murder in the Shamokin area, written by William A. Conway and printed by his two brothers, Alphonsus E. and John J., in the garage that served as the Conway Print Shop.
With the profits from the sale of the novel, the Conway brothers started the Black Diamond Publishing Company in 1905 to disseminate news of the anthracite coal region through the printing of Black Diamond Magazine.
Edgewood park also known as Indian Park existed in Shamokin from 1905 through the late 1950s. It consisted of 97 acres (392,545.4 m²) including a large pond. The land where the park existed is now where the Shamokin area school district built the Elementary and High school.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited 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 city has a total area of 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²), all of it land.
Shamokin has two small creeks that divide the town. Carbon Run merges with Shamokin Creek in the north of the town and ultimately empties into the Susquehanna River
Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At long, it is the longest river on the American east coast that drains into the Atlantic Ocean, and with its watershed it is the 16th largest river in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United...
just south of Shamokin Dam near Sunbury, PA.
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 8,009 people, 3,742 households, and 2,028 families residing in the city. 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 9,601.9 people per square mile (3,725.7/km²). There were 4,674 housing units at an average density of 5,603.6 per square mile (2,174.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.8% White, 0.1% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.1% 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 0.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.6% of the population.
There were 3,742 households out of which 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.4% 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, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.8% were non-families. 41.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 22.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.13 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 21.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 86.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $20,173, and the median income for a family was $30,038. Males had a median income of $28,261 versus $19,120 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 city was $12,354. About 19.3% of families and 24.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.2% of those under age 18 and 21.3% of those age 65 or over.
Notable people
- Stan CoveleskiStan CoveleskiStanley Anthony Coveleski was a Major League Baseball player during the 1910s and 1920s. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969....
, Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
Hall of Famer, born in Shamokin - Harry CoveleskiHarry CoveleskiHarry Frank Coveleski was a Major League Baseball pitcher with the Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, and Detroit Tigers. Born in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, he began his career with the Phillies in 1907...
, Major League Baseball pitcher, Detroit TigersDetroit TigersThe Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
career ERA recordholder, born in Shamokin - George H. Cram, Union general in the American Civil War, born in Shamokin
- Jake DaubertJake DaubertJacob Ellsworth Daubert was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Brooklyn Superbas and Cincinnati Reds. His career lasted from 1910 until his death in 1924....
, Major League Baseball player, born in Shamokin won two National League batting titles and was MVP in 1913 - Kate Heffelfinger, suffragist who was held during the “Night of Terror”Silent SentinelsThe Silent Sentinels were a group of women in favor of women's suffrage organized by Alice Paul to protest in front of the White House during Woodrow Wilson's presidency. The protests started January 10, 1917 and lasted until June 1919 when the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution...
, 15 November 1917 - Herbert G. HopwoodHerbert G. HopwoodAdmiral Herbert Gladstone Hopwood was a four-star admiral in the United States Navy who served as commander in chief of the United States Pacific Fleet from 1958 to 1960.-Early career:...
, US Navy admiral and commander-in-chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet from 1958 to 1960, born in Shamokin - Eddie KorbichEddie KorbichEddie Korbich is an actor, singer, dancer. He was born in Washington, D.C. but grew up in Shamokin, Pennsylvania.-1980s:He graduated from the Boston Conservatory with a B.F.A...
, Broadway, film and television actor - Mary LeSawyerMary LeSawyerMary LeSawyer was an American opera singer of Ukrainian descent who had an active international career during the 1940s through the 1960s. A lyric soprano, LeSawyer studied opera at the Juilliard School before beginning her singing career...
, operatic soprano - Fred RhoadsFred RhoadsFred Rhoads was an American cartoonist best known for his contributions to George Baker's Sad Sack.Born in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, Rhoads studied illustration in New York from 1940 to 1942, at which time he joined the U.S. Marine Corps to serve during World War II...
, cartoonist of Sad SackSad SackThe Sad Sack is an American fictional comic strip and comic book character created by Sgt. George Baker during World War II. Set in the United States Army, Sad Sack depicted an otherwise unnamed, lowly private experiencing some of the absurdities and humiliations of military life. The title was a... - Daniel SternDaniel Stern (actor)Daniel Jacob Stern is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles in the Hollywood films C.H.U.D., Diner, City Slickers and the first two Home Alone films, and as the narrator for the television series The Wonder Years.-Early life:Stern was born in Bethesda, Maryland to a...
, actor - Thomas I. VanaskieThomas I. VanaskieThomas Ignatius Vanaskie is a United States circuit judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. From February 10, 1994 to April 26, 2010, he served as a United States district judge on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania...
, federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third CircuitUnited States Court of Appeals for the Third CircuitThe United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:* District of Delaware* District of New Jersey...
- Bud WeiserBud WeiserHarry Budson "Bud" Weiser was a professional baseball outfielder. He played two seasons in Major League Baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies. Weiser was 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighed 165 pounds.-Career:...
, Major League Baseball player, played for Philadelphia (1915-16); born (and died) in Shamokin - Joseph Zupicich, crewmember of the RMS CarpathiaRMS CarpathiaRMS Carpathia was a Cunard Line transatlantic passenger steamship built by Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson. Carpathia made her maiden voyage in 1903 and became famous for rescuing the survivors of after the latter ship hit an iceberg and sank on 15 April 1912...
, assisted in the rescue operation to save the passengers of the RMS Titanic on 15 April 1912.