New Kensington, Pennsylvania
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New Kensington, Pennsylvania | |
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Website | http://newkensingtononline.com |
New Kensington (known locally as New Ken) is a city that is located in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is situated along the Allegheny River, 18 miles (29 km) northeast of Pittsburgh.
The population was 12,170 at the time of the 2020 census.
History
Like much of Westmoreland County and surrounding areas, the region was a hunting ground for Native Americans of the
Originally part of Burrell (and later Lower Burrell) Township, the city of New Kensington was founded in 1891. In 1890, the Burrell Improvement Company considered the advantages of the level land south of its home in Lower Burrell, and deemed it a prime location for a city and named the area "Kensington"; this was later changed to "New Kensington" for postal reasons, to avoid confusion with the Philadelphia neighborhood of the same name.
In an attempt to make New Kensington comparable to Pittsburgh, the streets were named with numbers. Avenues ran parallel to the river, while streets were perpendicular. The main commercial streets were 4th and 5th avenues.
Once the land was surveyed, a public sale was held on June 10, 1891. Thousands of people flooded the area and investors began bringing industry with them. The first large company was the Pittsburgh Reduction Company, which later became Alcoa. It acquired a 3.5-acre (14,000 m2) property that allowed the company to utilize the riverfront. The Alcoa facility remained operational until 1971.
Eventually, other companies such as Adams Drilling, Goldsmith and Lowerburg, New Kensington Milling, New Kensington Brewing, Logan Lumber, Keystone Dairy, and many more were built late in the 19th century and continuing into the early 20th century. Early achievements included a railroad station, the 9th Street bridge, a passenger boat that navigated the Allegheny River, a street car line that ran to Natrona via the West Penn Railways, the Kensington Dispatch newspaper, a fire department, hotel, opera house, and a local chapter of the YMCA. New Kensington annexed the independent borough of Parnassus in 1939.
In 1941, New Kensington became the site of a modern workers' housing project—named the Aluminum City Terrace—designed by Marcel Breuer and Walter Gropius, which set new standards for federal housing design. Breuer and Gropius ascribed to the famous Bauhaus School of Design in Germany. Intended for Alcoa defense workers, it was subsequently used to rehouse displaced residents from other parts of the city. In 1948, tenants from the Terrace decided to purchase the housing project from the U.S. government to form a co-op, managed by a board of directors, elected by representatives from the 250 units. Relatively low-cost monthly fees continue to cover the costs of running the Terrace.
Today, New Kensington contains the neighborhoods of Parnassus, Mount Vernon, Valley Heights, Valley Camp, Pine Manor, and 40 Acres.
The
Climate
New Kensington has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa) climate, with cold, snowy winters, and warm to hot summers.
Climate data for New Kensington, Pennsylvania (Acmetonia Lock 3) 1991–2020 Normals (Temperature records 1978–Present, Precipitation 1905–Present) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 67 (19) |
75 (24) |
79 (26) |
87 (31) |
94 (34) |
97 (36) |
101 (38) |
96 (36) |
95 (35) |
89 (32) |
74 (23) |
67 (19) |
101 (38) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 35.8 (2.1) |
39.6 (4.2) |
48.6 (9.2) |
61.8 (16.6) |
71.8 (22.1) |
79.2 (26.2) |
83.2 (28.4) |
81.9 (27.7) |
75.5 (24.2) |
63.5 (17.5) |
51.4 (10.8) |
41.6 (5.3) |
61.2 (16.2) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 27.6 (−2.4) |
30.3 (−0.9) |
38.1 (3.4) |
49.9 (9.9) |
60.2 (15.7) |
68.4 (20.2) |
72.7 (22.6) |
71.2 (21.8) |
64.6 (18.1) |
53.1 (11.7) |
41.6 (5.3) |
33.6 (0.9) |
50.9 (10.5) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 19.4 (−7.0) |
20.9 (−6.2) |
27.5 (−2.5) |
37.9 (3.3) |
48.5 (9.2) |
57.5 (14.2) |
62.2 (16.8) |
60.5 (15.8) |
53.7 (12.1) |
42.6 (5.9) |
31.7 (−0.2) |
25.5 (−3.6) |
40.7 (4.8) |
Record low °F (°C) | −6 (−21) |
−9 (−23) |
0 (−18) |
20 (−7) |
29 (−2) |
40 (4) |
49 (9) |
39 (4) |
39 (4) |
30 (−1) |
11 (−12) |
0 (−18) |
−9 (−23) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 3.38 (86) |
2.87 (73) |
3.68 (93) |
3.70 (94) |
3.91 (99) |
4.45 (113) |
4.54 (115) |
3.56 (90) |
4.18 (106) |
3.32 (84) |
3.26 (83) |
3.66 (93) |
44.51 (1,131) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 18 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 15 | 142 |
Source: NOAA[4] |
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1900 | 4,665 | — | |
1910 | 7,707 | 65.2% | |
1920 | 11,987 | 55.5% | |
1930 | 16,762 | 39.8% | |
1940 | 24,055 | 43.5% | |
1950 | 25,146 | 4.5% | |
1960 | 23,485 | −6.6% | |
1970 | 20,312 | −13.5% | |
1980 | 17,660 | −13.1% | |
1990 | 15,894 | −10.0% | |
2000 | 14,701 | −7.5% | |
2010 | 13,116 | −10.8% | |
2020 | 12,170 | −7.2% | |
Sources:[5][6][7][8][2] |
As of the 2000 census,
There were 6,519 households, out of which 23.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.3% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.90.
The population distribution by age was: 21.8% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,505, and the median income for a family was $37,952. Males had a median income of $32,692 versus $21,683 for females. The
Infrastructure and organizations
New Kensington maintains its own public works, fire department, police force, emergency rescue team, and water authority. Recreational facilities operated by the city include Memorial and Masa Harbison parks. People's Library of New Kensington offers
There are over thirty churches representing several denominations throughout the city.
Two radio stations, WMNY and WBZZ, are both licensed to New Kensington, and serve the Pittsburgh radio media market.
Since the 1970s, the city's downtown has been plagued by high vacancy rates. Starting in 2008, the New Kensington Redevelopment Authority moved to condemn and demolish abandoned commercial and residential properties. The city has also instituted a Weed and Seed urban renewal program, and provided tax abatement to businesses located or opened in designated Keystone Opportunity Zones.
Education
The city is served by the
Parochial schools include Mary Queen of Apostles and Harvest Baptist Academy (K–12). Former Catholic parochial schools, now consolidated, include: Mount St. Peter, St. Mary, and St. Joseph.
A branch campus of Pennsylvania State University was established in New Kensington in 1958. Since 1966, it has been located in suburban Upper Burrell Township, but retains the name Penn State New Kensington. In 2008, a satellite campus of Westmoreland County Community College opened in downtown New Kensington.
In popular culture
New Kensington is featured in
The city was also one of the filming locations for the movie Dogma, starring Ben Affleck and Matt Damon.[9]
Gallery
Notable people
- photojournalist
- Anthony Breznican, journalist and writer
- marine biologist, writer, and conservationist[10]
- Toney Clemons, former professional American football wide receiver
- visual artist
- Carmen Gentile, journalist, author, and public speaker
- Corey Graves, WWE commentator and former wrestler
- Jeffrey A. Hart, academic
- Stephanie Kwolek, chemist who is known for inventing Kevlar
- Lenita Lane, stage and film actress
- William Thomas McKinley, composer and jazz pianist
- defensive lineman
- Skyy Moore, professional American football wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs
- Elaine Noble, American politician and LGBT activist, Massachusetts House of Representatives
- Louie Pessolano, professional American football player
- Fannie Sellins, trade union and workers' rights leader
- Sam Tamburo, professional American football defensive end
- Willie Thrower, professional American football quarterback; first African American quarterback to be in the NFL in the modern era
- Charles Haskins Townsend, zoologist
- Andrea Velis, operatic tenor with the Metropolitan Opera
- Joe Zaleski, Canadian football player and coach
See also
References
- ^ "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
- ^ a b "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ "NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
- ^ "Number of Inhabitants: Pennsylvania" (PDF). 18th Census of the United States. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
- ^ "Pennsylvania: Population and Housing Unit Counts" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
- ^ a b "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "Incorporated Places and Minor Civil Divisions Datasets: Subcounty Population Estimates: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 11, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2013.
- ^ "Dogma (1999)" – via www.imdb.com.
- ^ "Rachel Carson". Chatham University.
External links
- Media related to New Kensington, Pennsylvania at Wikimedia Commons
- Official website
- Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921. .