Lower Salford Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
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| Lower Salford Township | |
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| Township | |
An old stone house in Lederach in Lower Salford Township
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| Location of Lower Salford Township in Montgomery County Location of Lower Salford Township in Montgomery County |
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 Lower Salford Township
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Lower Salford Township
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| Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| County | Montgomery |
| Founded | 1741 (split from Salford) |
| Founded by | Jacob Reiff |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council - Manager |
| • Body | Board of Supervisors |
| • Chairman | Douglas A. Gifford |
| • Vice-Chairman | Douglas Johnson |
| • Supervisors | Philip P. Heilman
Keith A. Bergman Christopher Canavan |
| Area | |
| • Total | 14.5 sq mi (38 km2) |
| • Land | 14.4 sq mi (37 km2) |
| • Water | 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2) 0.69%% |
| Dimensions | |
| • Length | 5.2 mi (8.4 km) |
| • Width | 5.7 mi (9.2 km) |
| Elevation | 276 ft (84 m) |
| Population | |
| • Estimate (2013) | 15,318 |
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 19438 |
| Area codes | 215, 610 |
| Website | lowersalfordtownship |
Lower Salford is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania located one mile west of the Kulpsville exit of the Pennsylvania Turnpike (exit 31). It is centered on the intersection of Route 63 (Sumneytown Pike), and Route 113 (Harleysville Pike).
Contents
Geography
The township has a total area of 14.5 square miles (37.5 km2), of which, 14.4 square miles (37.3 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km2) of it (0.41%) is water. The East Branch Perkiomen Creek and Skippack Creek are tributaries of the Perkiomen Creek draining the township.
History
Founding
Lower Salford was originally part of the larger Salford Township, until, in March of 1741 Jacob Reiff petitioned the Court of Quarter Sessions of Philadelphia County to split the Township into what are now called Lower Salford, Upper Salford, Marlborough, and Franconia Townships. Lower Salford contains the villages of Harleysville, Lederach, Mainland, and Vernfield.
The area around Lower Salford was originally settled in the early 1700s by farmers from Germany, Switzerland, and Holland. Because of this, most people at the time spoke primarily Pennsylvania Dutch, until the mid 1900s.[1]
Heckler Plains
Heckler Plains is a 36-acre farmstead, now park. It was once home to Major General Winfield Scott Hancock, a General at the Battle of Gettysburg. There still stands a barn from 1761, an 18th-century kitchen garden, and an outdoor bake oven from 1780. Hecklerfest is held annually and has soap making, butter churning, candle dipping, and other Colonial Era demonstrations.[2][3][4]
Klein Meetinghouse
The Klein Meetinghouse is a historic Dunkard (Schwarzenau Brethren or Church of the Brethren) meetinghouse in Harleysville, Pennsylvania built in 1843. The second oldest congregation of the Brethren in the United States, which was founded in the area in 1720, built the meetinghouse, and the adjoining cemetery contains the remains of Peter Becker, who led the Brethren to America in 1714.[5]
Dielman Kolb Homestead
The Dielman Kolb Homestead is a historic home located near Lederach. The house was built in 1717, and is a 2 1/2-story, gambrel roofed dwelling with a modified Germanic floor plan. It has an attached summer kitchen.[6] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.[7]
Entertainment and recreation
The Lederach Golf Club is a public, 18 hole golf course opened in 2006. It is owned by the township of Lower Salford. It has a par 71 layout with five sets of tees from 7,000 yards to 2,800 yards.[8][9]
Lower Salford has 12 parks as part of the federal, state and county sponsored "Open Space/Green Belt" program.[10]
Arts
The township flag and logo were designed by John H. Drenning, president of the Heckler Plains Folklife Society, in 1991. The center of the logo depicts a Pennsylvania Dutch couple in front of a wheat field. Above the depiction is the word “gemeinschaft,” which is German for “a sense of community." The background of the flag has three wavy stripes; brown for the fertile soil, green for the abundant grass and other plants, and gold for the bountiful crops and warm sunshine. On the sides of the flag are two cedar trees representing the much praised wood. The top of the flag has LOWER SALFORD on a field of blue sky with four stars to represent the four villages that make up the township.[11]
Lower Salford is home to The Mennonite Heritage Center. A museum and historical library dedicated to preserving and sharing the stories of Mennonite faith and life in eastern Pennsylvania.[12] Which holds an annual Apple Butter Frolic, an autumn festival featuring Pennsylvania Dutch foods, crafts, and farming demonstrations.[13]
Lower Salford is home to a large-scale exterior mural designed by Dana McMullin, residing on the side of Rann Pharmacy. McMullin executed the public work with a small team in 2006 from its concept to production, portraying a visually nostalgic history of Harleysville from settlement to modern day.
Government
| Year | Republican | Democratic |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 55.5% 4,388 | 43.2% 3,416 |
| 2008 | 51.4% 4,048 | 47.6% 3,750 |
| 2004 | 58.5% 4,138 | 41.0% 2,895 |
| 2000 | 60.0% 3,276 | 36.2% 1,946 |
Board of Supervisors
Douglas A. Gifford, Chairman, Douglas Johnson, Vice-Chairman, Philip P. Heilman, Keith A. Bergman and Christopher Canavan[14]
Montgomery County Commissioners
Josh Shapriro, Chairman, Leslie l. Richards, Vice Chairman & Bruce L. Castor, Jr., Commissioner
Representative in the Pennsylvania General Assembly
Representative Marcy Toepel of the 147th District
Senator in the Pennsylvania General Assembly
Senator Bob Mensch 24th District
Representative in the United States Congress
Congressman Michael G. Fitzpatrick 8th District
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1930 | 1,941 | — | |
| 1940 | 2,075 | 6.9% | |
| 1950 | 2,290 | 10.4% | |
| 1960 | 3,389 | 48.0% | |
| 1970 | 5,008 | 47.8% | |
| 1980 | 6,156 | 22.9% | |
| 1990 | 10,735 | 74.4% | |
| 2000 | 12,893 | 20.1% | |
| 2010 | 14,959 | 16.0% | |
| http://www.dvrpc.org/data/databull/rdb/db82/appedixa.xls. | |||
As of the 2010 census, the township was 90.6% White, 2.9% Black or African American, 0.1% Native American, 4.4% Asian, and 1.3% were two or more races. 2.6% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry [1].
As of the census[15] of 2000, there were 12,893 people, 4,432 households, and 3,541 families residing in the township. The population density was 894.0 people per square mile (345.2/km2). There were 4,531 housing units at an average density of 314.2/sq mi (121.3/km2). The racial makeup of the township was 93.42% White, 2.94% African American, 0.05% Native American, 2.34% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.31% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.42% of the population.
There were 4,432 households, out of which 45.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.0% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.1% were non-families. 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89 and the average family size was 3.27.
In the township the population was spread out, with 31.0% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 7.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $70,977, and the median income for a family was $78,473. Males had a median income of $51,837 versus $34,066 for females. The per capita income for the township was $28,408. About 2.0% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.8% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.
Schools
Lower Salford is part of the Souderton Area School District. The following public schools can be found in the town:
- Oak Ridge Elementary School
- Lower Salford Elementary School - closed in June, 2013
- Vernfield Elementary School
- EMC Elementary School
- Indian Valley Middle School
Notable people
- Drew Lewis - United States Secretary of Transportation under Ronald Reagan, chairman and CEO of Union Pacific, and president of Warner-Amex
- Preston Elliot - host of Preston and Steve radio show
- Danielle and Jennifer Brown - singer-songwriters
- Jesse Francis McClendon - chemist, zoologist, physiologist
- Bradley William Stone - perpetrator of the 2014 Montgomery County, Pennsylvania shootings
References
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- ↑ Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, 1972, NRHP Nomination Form for Klein Meetinghouse Enter "public" for ID and "public" for password to access the site.
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