Lehighton, Pennsylvania

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lehighton is a borough in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, 86 miles (138 km) north by west of Philadelphia. In the past, it was the site of silk and lace mills, a meat-packing house, shirt factory, automatic-press works, car shops, stoneworks, foundries, etc. In 1900, 4,629 people lived here; in 1910, 5,316 lived here; and in 1940, 6,615 lived here. The population was 5,537 at the 2000 census. Lehighton is the most populous borough in Carbon County and is the business hub of the county as well.

Lehighton is located in northeast Pennsylvania, on the Lehigh River, 26 miles north/northwest of Allentown and 35 miles south of Wilkes-Barre. Leighiton was built on the site of the Moravian Brethren's mission station Gnadenhütten [Tents of Grace] This was the site of the first Gnadenhütten Massacre on 24 November, 1755, during the French and Indian Wars when missionaries and native converts were slain by native allies of the French.. The town was the boyhood home of artist Franz Kline. For many years the Lehigh Valley Railroad was the town's largest employer, with several thousand residents working in the railroad's repair facilities or operating the railroad. The downtown declined after the Carbon Plaza Mall was built in nearby Mahoning Township, but is experiencing a rebirth after three decades.

One of the largest events every August in Lehighton is the "Bike Night" featuring 28,000 plus motorcycles. Lehighton Bike Night Website

In late September through October the Country Junction store hosts The Great Pocono Pumpkin Festival which features hayrides, haunted woods, and mazes.

[edit] Geography

Lehighton is located at 40°49′55″N, 75°42′53″W (40.831932, -75.714701)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 4.5 km² (1.8 mi²). 4.4 km² (1.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (1.71%) is water. Lehighton is located 3 miles south of Jim Thorpe and 8 miles northwest of Palmerton. Lehighton's elevation is 760 feet

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 7,537 people, 2,362 households, and 1,506 families residing in the borough. The population density was 1,250.2/km² (3,230.8/mi²). There were 2,546 housing units at an average density of 574.9/km² (1,485.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.32% White, 0.34% African American, 0.05% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.04% from other races, and 0.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.67% of the population.

There were 2,362 households out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.8% were married couples living together, 13.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.2% were non-families. 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.2% 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 2.87.

In the borough the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 21.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.5 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $28,566, and the median income for a family was $35,673. Males had a median income of $30,590 versus $22,466 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $14,861. About 10.8% of families and 14.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.9% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over.

Lehighton's annual snowfall is 52.6 inches per year

[edit] External links

• Lehighton official website
• Lehighton Area Chamber of Commerce

• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 40.831932° -75.714701°
  • 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