Lebanon, Pennsylvania

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This article is about the city in Pennsylvania. For the 2010 film, see Lebanon, PA (film). For other uses of "Lebanon", see Lebanon (disambiguation).
Lebanon, Pennsylvania
City
Border detail of Lebanon and surrounding municipalities
Border detail of Lebanon and surrounding municipalities
Lebanon, Pennsylvania is located in Pennsylvania
Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Location within the state of Pennsylvania
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
County Lebanon
Laid out 1756
Incorporated 1821
Charter 1885
Government
 • Mayor Sherry Capello (R)
Area
 • Total 4.2 sq mi (10.9 km2)
Population (2010)
 • Total 25,477
 • Density 6,067/sq mi (2,337/km2)
Time zone EST (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
Website http://www.lebanonpa.org

Lebanon, formerly known as Steitztown,[1] is a city in and the county seat of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States.[2] The population was 25,477 at the 2010 census, a 4.2% increase from the 2000 count of 24,461. Lebanon is located in the central part of the Lebanon Valley, 26 miles (42 km) east of Harrisburg and 29 miles (47 km) west of Reading.

History

Central Square in Lebanon, 1895

Native tribes in the area of what is now Lebanon included the Shawnee, Susquehannock, Gawanese, Lenape (or Delaware), and Nanticoke peoples.[3] Lebanon was settled by European colonists in 1720, many with the family names of "Steitz" and "Light", along a creek that was then named "Steitz Creek". The Light patriarchs built a fort to protect against Indians and named it "Light's Fort". The town was laid out in 1753, incorporated as a borough on February 20, 1821, and became a city on November 25, 1885. It adopted the commission form of government, consisting of four councilmen and a mayor. In 1900, 17,628 people lived in Lebanon; in 1910, 19,240; in 1920; and in 1940, 27,206.

Lebanon bologna was first made here. Lebanon was formerly home to a major steel mill operated by Bethlehem Steel.

Points of interest

Reading Railroad station on Eighth Street

Local points of interest listed on the National Register of Historic Places[4] include:

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.2 square miles (11 km2), all of it land.

Lebanon is bordered to the north and east by North Lebanon Township (4.5 mi), to the south and east by South Lebanon Township (3.22 mi), to the west by West Lebanon Township (1.07 mi), and to the south and west by North Cornwall Township (4.38 mi). The Quittapahilla Creek drains the city westward into the Susquehanna River via the Swatara Creek.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1790 960 —
1800 1,439 49.9%
1810 1,434 −0.3%
1820 1,437 0.2%
1830 1,826 27.1%
1840 1,860 1.9%
1850 2,184 17.4%
1860 4,449 103.7%
1870 6,727 51.2%
1880 8,778 30.5%
1890 14,664 67.1%
1900 17,628 20.2%
1910 19,240 9.1%
1920 24,643 28.1%
1930 25,561 3.7%
1940 27,206 6.4%
1950 28,156 3.5%
1960 30,045 6.7%
1970 28,572 −4.9%
1980 25,711 −10.0%
1990 24,800 −3.5%
2000 24,461 −1.4%
2010 25,477 4.2%
Est. 2014 25,573 [5] 0.4%
Sources:[6][7][8][9]

As of the 2010 census, the city was 74.1% White, 5.9% Black or African American, 0.5% Native American, 1.1% Asian, and 3.2% were two or more races. 32.1% of the population were of Hispanic of Latino ancestry [2].

As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 24,461 people, 10,266 households, and 6,056 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,844.8 people per square mile (2,254.0/km²). There were 11,220 housing units at an average density of 2,681.0 per square mile (1,033.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 85.50% White, 3.23% African American, 0.28% Native American, 1.02% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 8.11% from other races, and 1.76% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 16.43% of the population.

There were 10,266 households, out of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.7% were married couples living together, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.0% were non-families. 35.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the city the population was spread out, with 25.0% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% 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 90.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,259, and the median income for a family was $34,045. Males had a median income of $26,957 versus $20,162 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,584. About 12.8% of families and 16.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.7% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public education is provided by the Lebanon School District and Cornwall-Lebanon School District. Private institutions include Lebanon Catholic High School, Blue Mountain Christian School, New Covenant Christian School and Lebanon Christian Academy. All three private institutions have a varsity sports department and an elementary, junior high, and senior high. Students in Lebanon School District also may attend the Lebanon County Career and Technology Center (LCCTC). The city is home to Harrisburg Area Community College's Lebanon Campus.

Culture

Lebanon's 12 ft, 150 pound New Year's Eve bologna

Lebanon is one of several Pennsylvania towns to drop or raise a unique item at midnight on New Year's Eve. Godshall's Quality Meats, owners of Weaver's Famous Lebanon Bologna, donates a huge (150-pound (68 kg)) Lebanon bologna for the annual festivity. It is encased in a metal frame and suspended from a fire department ladder truck, and donated to a local rescue mission after the celebration.[10]

An infamous 1878 murder in Fort Indiantown Gap resulted in a trial of six defendants who all had blue eyes. They were given the moniker the Blue-eyed Six by a newspaper reporter who attended the trial, held in the Lebanon county courthouse. Five of the six defendants were hanged at the county jail. The trial received worldwide publicity and provided inspiration to Arthur Conan Doyle in writing the Sherlock Holmes short story The Adventure of the Red-Headed League.[11]

At one point in history the Lebanon County courthouse and jail became the home of the Lebanon Farmers Market. However, the popular farmers market returned to the original 30,000 square foot Market House location on South 8th street in 2003. This popular indoor market includes vendors such as Candy Rama, Keener Poultry, The Pretzel Twist and TTT Star Sushi. In addition to the vendors, customers can sit down and dine upstairs in Niko's Restaurant.

In December 2008, the TV show Dirty Jobs, hosted by Mike Rowe, visited the Seltzer's Smokehouse Meats to film production of Lebanon bologna.[12] In 2008 the show featured the Wertz Candy Shop.[13][14]

In 2010, an independent film drama Lebanon, PA was made.[15] While the movie was set in Lebanon, all filming was done in other parts of Pennsylvania.

Lebanon, Pennsylvania, is named after the ancient Middle Eastern nation of Lebanon, which is commonly pronounced /ˈlɛbənɒn/, rhyming with the name "John." However, locals consistently pronounce the Pennsylvania city's name /ˈlɛbənən/ ("Leb-a-nin") and many shorten it to two syllables—"Leb-nin" or even "Lep-nin." The latter is particularly identified with Pennsylvania Dutch heritage.[16]

Notable people

References

  1. ↑ Lebanon: About Lebanon
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ A Brief History of Lancaster County. Web.archive.org (1999-02-03). Retrieved on 2013-07-27.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ WHT.com news story
  11. ↑ Ludwig, Gary (1979). The Blue Eyed Six, A Historical Narrative. Lebanon, PA: Hodge Podge USA.
  12. ↑ Discovery Channel hit to give bologna its 10 minutes of fame
  13. ↑ TV.com episode recap
  14. ↑ 'Dirty Jobs' star auctioning special candy from Wertz Candies of Lebanon
  15. ↑ [1]
  16. ↑ http://dailyapple.blogspot.com/2007/08/apple-260-wilkes-barre-pa.html

External links

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