Catasauqua, Pennsylvania
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Borough of Catasauqua | |
|---|---|
| Borough | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| County | Lehigh |
| Area | 1.3 sq mi (3.4 km²) |
| - land | 1.3 sq mi (3.4 km²) |
| - water | 0.0 sq mi (0 km²), 0% |
| Center | |
| - coordinates | Coordinates: |
| - elevation | 279 ft (85 m) |
| Population | 6,588 (2000) |
| Density | 5,205.7 /sq mi (2,009.9 /km²) |
| Mayor | Barbara Schlegel |
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) |
| - summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| Area code | 610 |
 Location of Catasauqua in Lehigh County
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  Location of Catasauqua in Pennsylvania
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 Location of Pennsylvania in the United States
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| Website : http://catasauquaborough.govoffice.com | |
Catasauqua is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, settled in 1805 and chartered as a borough in 1853. Catasauqua is a suburb of Allentown, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of the state.
Historically, manufacturing was Catasauqua's principal industry, and, in 1839, it was the location of the first manufactured anthracite iron in the nation. Catasauqua's population in 1910 was 5,250. The population was 6,588 at the 2000 census.
Contents |
[edit] Borough officials
- Barbara Schlegel - Mayor
- Eugene Goldfeder - Borough Manager
- Susan Hein - Treasurer
- Alfred Regitis - Council President
- Brian Bartholomew - Council Vice-President
- Mica Smith - Council Member
- Vince Smith - Council Member
- Amanda Snyder - Council Member
- Wade Reinhard - Council Member
- Paul Zimbar - Council Member
[edit] Geography
Catasauqua is located at (40.652995, -75.467627)[1]. Nearby large communities include Allentown three miles (5 km) to the south and Bethlehem.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²), of which, 1.3 square miles (3.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (2.31%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 6,588 people, 2,616 households, and 1,750 families residing in the borough. The population density was 5,205.7 people per square mile (2,002.9/km²). There were 2,747 housing units at an average density of 2,170.6/sq mi (835.1/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 95.60% White, 1.18% African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.59% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.08% from other races, and 1.20% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.54% of the population.
There were 2,616 households out of which 33.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.5% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the borough the population was spread out with 25.0% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 32.1% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.1 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $42,432, and the median income for a family was $48,589. Males had a median income of $32,320 versus $45,730 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $18,906. About 5.4% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.7% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] History
George Taylor, signer of the Declaration of Independence, owned a vacation home in what is now the borough of Catasauqua. The structure still stands today and is the showpiece of the community's rich historical heritage.
In 1840, the anthracite iron industry was founded in what is now known as Catasauqua, originally Biery's Port, making it a birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the United States. Welsh immigrant David Thomas relocated to the area and opened the Crane Iron Works. Remembered as "the father of Catasauqua," Thomas initially named the community Craneville, after his former employer in Wales.
The wealthy, generous Thomases were responsible for many sweeping changes to the prosperity of the community. David Thomas founded the Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua, in which residents still worship today, and his wife Elizabeth donated money and land to found the Welsh Congregational Church, which no longer exists. Thomas organized Catasauqua's first fire company, installed its first public water system, and served as its first burgess.
In 1854, the town was formally titled Catasauqua (pronounced "Cat-uh-SAW-kwuh"), from the Lenni Lenape language, meaning "dry ground" or "thirsty ground."
Catasauqua is home to two different neighborhoods listed on the National Register of Historic Places. One is Biery's Port, located along the Lehigh River and named for an early family of prominence; the other is known as "the mansion district," and comprises Victorian homes once owned by wealthy residents.
By 1900, Catasauqua boasted 5,000 residents, and had the highest percentage of self-made millionaires of any town in the United States.
In 1917, while many of the young men of the town served in World War I, Catasauqua became the first community in the United States to raise $1 million in war bonds, earning it the nickname "The Million Dollar Town."
Catasauqua observed its 150th anniversary of incorporation in 2004.
[edit] Notable people from Catasauqua
- Thomas J. Lynch - World War II flying ace Thomas Lynch, flew P-39s and P-38s, 20 confirmed kills & 20th leading Ace in history of USA aviators.
- Lawrence "Larry" Miller - North Carolina Tar Heels; 1966 and 1967 ACC Basketball Player of the Year , 1968-69 ABA All-Rookie Team, Played in ABA 1968-1975.
- Buck Freeman, former professional baseball player, Washington Senators.[3]
- Pat Kelly, former professional baseball player, New York Yankees.
- Jonathan Linton, former professional football player, Buffalo Bills. [1]
- Anthony Recker, Professional Baseball Player - Oakland A's Minor League Affiliates, [2], [3]
- Joe Meeko 1984 Mr. America http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AAU_Mr._America
Noteable people who lived in Catasauqua.
- Bernard "Bert" Carl Kuczynski (January 8, 1920 - January 19, 1997) is a former pitcher for the Philadelphia Athletics and an American football tight end in the NFL for the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bert_Kuczynski
[edit] Public education
The Borough is served by the Catasauqua Area School District.
[edit] References
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ [1969] (1979) in Reichler, Joseph L.: The Baseball Encyclopedia, 4th edition, New York: Macmillan Publishing. ISBN 0-02-578970-8.
[edit] External links
- Borough of Catasauqua
- Catasauqua and North Catasauqua (a book on Catasauqua, Pennsylvania) (ISBN 0-7385-1103-X).
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