| Lonaconing, Maryland | |
|---|---|
| — Town — | |
| Location of Lonaconing, Maryland | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Maryland |
| County | Allegany |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.4 sq mi (1.1 km2) |
| • Land | 0.4 sq mi (1.1 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,490 ft (454 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 1,205 |
| • Density | 2,875.8/sq mi (1,110.4/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 21539 |
| Area code(s) | 301 |
| FIPS code | 24-47875 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0590691 |
Lonaconing is a town in Allegany County, Maryland, United States located along the Georges Creek Valley. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,205 at the 2000 census.
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The first non-Native American settlers in the late 18th century were explorers, hunters and farmers. Names of some of the first settlers were Dye, Duckworth, Green, Fazenbaker, Grove, VanBuskirk, Knapp and Miller. The first stone house built in 1797 in Knapps Meadow just north of Lonaconing was owned by Samuel VanBuskirk. The house still stands as of 2010. The Lonaconing Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.[1] Lonaconing is the birthplace of Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Lefty Grove.
Iron and coal companies in Lonaconing built railroads in the 1840s, in anticipation of connecting with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. Some of these mining companies owned and operated their own railroad equipment. The Georges Creek Rail Road was built south from Lonaconing to connect with the Baltimore & Ohio at Piedmont(VA) [2] All of the rail lines were absorbed into the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad (C&P) by 1870.[3]
The Georges Creek Coal and Iron Company constructed and operated a blast furnace [4] in Lonaconing from 1836 to 1855 along with constructing and operating the related Georges Creek Railroad from 1851 to 1863. The Lonaconing Furnace was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.[1]
As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 1,205 people, 482 households, and 290 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,875.8 people per square mile (1,107.7/km²). There were 559 housing units at an average density of 1,334.1 per square mile (513.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.67% White, 0.66% African American, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.08% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.50% of the population. At 16.1 percent Scottish, Lonaconing is the most Scottish town in the United States.
There were 482 households out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.8% were non-families. 36.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the town the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 22.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 83.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.0 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $27,434, and the median income for a family was $37,083. Males had a median income of $27,315 versus $19,423 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,890. About 12.8% of families and 19.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.3% of those under age 18 and 17.7% of those age 65 or over.
Lonaconing is located at (39.564884, -78.979312)[6].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.4 square miles (1.0 km2), all of it land.
Westmar Middle School was opened in the fall of 2007 when it was relocated to Lonaconing after the closure of the Westmar Middle School facility in Westernport. Prior to the fall of 2007, the building was occupied by Westmar High School, originally Valley High School, which was established in 1953 and renamed "Westmar" during the 1989-1990 school year, three years after the consolidation of Bruce High School in 1986. Westmar High School closed, vacating the building for future use a middle school, following the 2006-2007 school year after which the populations of Westmar and Beall High schools consolidated into the newly-built Mountain Ridge High School in Frostburg. The mascot of Westmar Middle School is the Wildcat and school colors are red and gray, coinciding with those of the former Westmar High School.
Georges Creek Elementary was opened in 1975 with the closing of Central School. It combined populations with Barton Elementary in 2000. The school has approximately 380 students. The school colors are orange and black and the tiger is the mascot.
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