Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania
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Wilkinsburg is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 19,196, at the 2000 census.having lost more than 10,000 in 60 years since 1940, when 29,853 people were enumerated. The borough was named in honor of William Wilkins, Secretary of War under President Tyler.
In 1919, the world's first commercial radio station, KDKA, began broadcasting here from a small garage owned by Frank Conrad. In 1923, Wilkinsburg-based Russian immigrant Vladimir Zworykin designed and patented the iconoscope, the photocell "eye" of early television cameras. Today ABC affiliate WTAE-TV is located in the borough on Ardmore Blvd.
Wilkinsburg was founded and developed by highly religious European immigrants. The borough has a remarkably high concentration of churches, mostly Protestant, which is unusual in a predominantly Catholic region of the country. Also, bars are prohibited within the borough limits. In 1871, Wilkinsburg separated from the city of Pittsburgh in order to (according to borough leader James Kelly) maintain the religious integrity of the community.
In more recent years, the borough has fallen on harder times, with many of its residents living in public housing. On March 1, 2000, Wilkinsburg received unwanted national attention when Ronald Taylor, a man suffering from schizophrenia, killed three people and wounded two others in a spree that occurred (in part) at the local Burger King and McDonald's restaurants [1]. Other deaths caused by violent acts have been common occurrences, but are known only locally.
Wilkinsburg is also home to Mr. Roboto, a punk venue, since 1999.
Wilkinsburg was also home to the infamous Larimer Avenue-Wilkinsburg (LAW) Gang, which was featured in several newspapers as one of the most violent in the USA.
The gang was indicted by the federal government under the RICO Act, the same law that is used to disband organized crime syndicates such as the Italian Mafia. The indictment started in 1995 with the feds arresting many young black males in their late teens and early twenties, some of whom are still incarcerated over a decade later.
The LAW gang was started to combat the growing numers of Crips and Bloods in surrounding 'Hoods.
Some of the sets within the Law Hoods gang were: Hunter Park (HP), U-8, Taylor Way (TW), 187 Souljaz, JD, Gamble, JMW, G-Thugs, Da Set, Pound Hoodz, Full Skale, 125, 135,145 and Mill Street Mafia.
Since the Feds indicted the top members of the most violent sets, civil war has occurred in Wilkinsburg, with many of the recent killings happening at the hands of another Wilkinsburg resident.
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[edit] Geography
Wilkinsburg is located at (40.443827, -79.877371)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 6.0 km² (2.3 mi²), all land.
[edit] Demographics
Population in 1900, 11,886; in 1910, 18,924; and in 1920, 24,403.
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 19,196 people, 9,138 households, and 4,477 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,222.4/km² (8,335.1/mi²). There were 10,696 housing units at an average density of 1,795.5/km² (4,644.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough was 29.25% White, 66.51% African American, 0.38% Native American, 0.81% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.55% from other races, and 2.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.13% of the population.
There were 9,138 households out of which 22.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 24.3% were married couples living together, 20.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 51.0% were non-families. 44.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.91.
In the borough the population was spread out with 23.4% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 30.0% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 78.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 72.0 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $26,621, and the median income for a family was $33,412. Males had a median income of $26,813 versus $26,196 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $16,890. About 15.9% of families and 18.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.8% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government links
[edit] External links
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
