Mercersburg, Pennsylvania
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mercersburg is a borough in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, 73 miles (117 km) southwest of Harrisburg. Originally called Black Town, it was incorporated in 1831. In 1900, 956 people lived here, and in 1910, 1,410 people lived here. The population was 1,540 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] Famous people
- James Buchanan, the only Pennsylvanian to be elected President of the United States, was born in a log cabin near Mercersburg and grew up in the town.
- Academy Award-winning actors Jimmy Stewart and Benicio Del Toro both attended Mercersburg Academy.
[edit] Geography
Mercersburg is located at (39.829388, -77.901952)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 2.5 km² (1.0 mi²), all land.
Mercersburg is located at the foot of the Appalachian mountains just north of the Mason-Dixon Line, which serves as the state border with Maryland. Whitetail Ski Resort is located within the town, open all winter long
Pennsylvania state highways 16, 75 and 416 all pass through Mercersburg, which is approximately 10 miles west of Interstate 81.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 1,540 people, 686 households, and 439 families residing in the borough. The population density was 613.0/km² (1,581.0/mi²). There were 770 housing units at an average density of 306.5/km² (790.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough was 92.08% White, 6.49% African American, 0.58% Asian, 0.52% from other races, and 0.32% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.36% of the population.
There were 686 households out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.8% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.7% 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 2.80.
In the borough the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 88.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $32,619, and the median income for a family was $46,042. Males had a median income of $30,602 versus $23,000 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $18,934. About 7.2% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.
Mercersburg Academy has a rich athletic tradition that has produced 48 olympians, 9 of whom won gold medals. In the 1980s, Mercersburg had a dominant swimming program, with two of its students, Betsy Mitchell and Melvin Stewart, winning olympic gold. In this period, coach John Trembley led Mercersburg seven times to the National Prep School Championship, and six times to the Eastern Intercollegiate Swimming Championship.
More recently, Mercersburg has become known and respected for its Men's Cross Country team. The 2006 season was highlighted by a third place finish at the MAPL (Mid Atlantic Prep League) Championships. Mercersburg runners placed 1st and 2nd overall at the MAPL meet. The team is coached by Betsy Willis and assisted by Jeff Shamp.
[edit] External links
- Mercersburg Academy is a boarding school in Mercersburg, PA.
- Mercersburg Area Chamber of Commerce
- Maps and aerial photos
- 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
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Franklin County, Pennsylvania County Seat: Chambersburg |
|---|---|
| Boroughs |
Chambersburg | Greencastle | Mercersburg | Mont Alto | Orrstown | Shippensburg | Waynesboro |
| Townships |
Antrim | Fannett | Greene | Guilford | Hamilton | Letterkenny | Lurgan | Metal | Montgomery | Peters | Quincy | Southampton | St. Thomas | Warren | Washington |
| Communities and CDPs |
