Bern Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania

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Bern Township, Pennsylvania
Township
WERTZ'S COVERED BRIDGE.jpg
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
County Berks
Elevation 577 ft (175.9 m)
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Area 20.0 sq mi (51.8 km2)
 - land 19.1 sq mi (49 km2)
 - water 0.8 sq mi (2 km2), 4%
Population 6,797 (2010)
Density 352.8 / sq mi (136.2 / km2)
Timezone EST (UTC-5)
 - summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
Area code 610
Location of Bern Township in Pennsylvania
Location of Pennsylvania in the United States

Bern Township is a township in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population is 6,797. The township is in Schuylkill Valley School District.

History

The township was so named by Swiss settlers after Bern, in Switzerland.[1]

The Rieser Mill, Rieser-Shoemaker Farm, Spannuth Mill, and Wertz's Covered Bridge are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[2]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 20.0 square miles (52 km2), of which, 19.1 square miles (49 km2) of it is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km2) of it (4.06%) is water.

Adjacent townships

Adjacent city and boroughs

Demographics

As of the census of 2010,[3] there were 6,797 people, 2,080 households, and 1,560 families residing in the township. The population density was 355.9 people per square mile (138.7/km²). There were 2,168 housing units at an average density of 113.5/sq mi (44.2/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 91.0% White, 5.8% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 1.5% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.3% of the population.

There were 2,080 households, out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.3% were married couples living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.8% were non-families. 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.84.[3] Bern Township is the location of the Berks County Prison System, which held 1545 prisoners, 22.7% of the township's population.[3]

In the township the population was spread out, with 16.0% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 24.7% from 25 to 44, 29.4% from 45 to 64, and 21.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The township hosts three of the county's 12 nursing homes for seniors.[4][5][6] The median age was 45.3 years. For every 100 females there were 122.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 120.8 males.

Historical population
Census Pop.
1980 5,897
1990 5,748 −2.5%
2000 6,758 17.6%
2010 6,797 0.6%

The median income for a household in the township was $61,222, and the median income for a family was $68,636. Males had a median income of $46,731 versus $26,694 for females. The per capita income for the township was $25,969. About 1.2% of families and 2.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.

References