Shavertown, Pennsylvania

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Shavertown is an unincorporated village located in both Kingston Township, Pennsylvania and Jackson Township, Pennsylvania, both being townships in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 8,544. The village is located approximately 7 miles (11 km) west of the city of Wilkes-Barre and approx. 24 miles (39 km) southwest of Scranton. It belongs to a contingency of towns known as the "Back Mountain." The village is adjacent to the towns of Dallas, Lehman, and Trucksville.

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[edit] Geography

Shavertown is located at 41°19′17″N 75°56′30″W / 41.32139, -75.94167Coordinates: 41°19′17″N 75°56′30″W / 41.32139, -75.94167.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village is 16.1 square miles (41.6 km²) or 99 percent land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) or 1 percent water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census of 2000, the village has a total population of 8,544 people, 3,373 households.

There are 4,327 males (49.1%) and 4,457 females (50.9%).

The median age being roughly 40 years old, 75.5% are 18 to 64 years old, 12.6% are 65 and older, 6.5% are 6 to 17 years old, and 5.4% are 5 and under. In terms of racial background, 98.7% are white, 0.6% are Asian, 0.4% are Hispanic or Latino, 0.3% are African American, 0.1% are what the Census defines as "other", and zero percent are Native-Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander or American-Indian/Alaskan Native.

The village's median household income is $53,435.

[edit] History

The village of Shavertown is named for an early settler, Philip Shaver.

[edit] Vice Presidential Visit

Shavertown came to national attention in October 2005 when U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney visited the village at the home of Ron and Rhea Simms for a fundraiser for the reelection campaign of Pennsylvania Republican U.S. Senator Rick Santorum, who was later defeated in the 2006 U.S. congressional elections by Scranton native and pro-life Democrat Bob Casey, Jr., the state's former treasurer. The fundraiser raised $300,000 for the Santorum campaign.