Lower Providence Township, Pennsylvania

For other Pennsylvania townships with similar names, see Providence Township, Pennsylvania (disambiguation).

Lower Providence Township
Township
Evansburg Historic District
Location of Lower Providence Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Lower Providence Township Location of Montgomery County in Pennsylvania
Coordinates: 40°09′01″N75°25′05″W / 40.15028°N 75.41806°W / 40.15028; -75.41806
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Montgomery
Area [1]
• Total	15.46 sq mi (40.03 km2)
• Land	15.25 sq mi (39.49 km2)
• Water	0.21 sq mi (0.54 km2)
Elevation	354 ft (108 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	25,625
• Density	1,745.72/sq mi (674.02/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
Area code	610
FIPS code	42-091-45080
Website	www.lowerprovidence.org

Lower Providence Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The township is located approximately 17 miles northwest of Philadelphia. The population was 25,625 at the 2020 census. ^[2]

History

Lower Providence Township was established in 1805 by the division of the former Providence Township into Upper and Lower Providence along the Perkiomen Creek. ^[3]

Lower Providence is part of the historic homeland of the Lenape people, called the Delaware Indians by early European settlers.

It was part of a large tract of land, which was granted to William Penn, the founder and first governor of the colonial-era Province of Pennsylvania.

Skippack Bridge, built in 1792 in the township, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. ^[4]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 15.6 square miles (40.3 km²), of which 15.4 square miles (39.8 km²) is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km²) (1.29%) is water.

Lower Providence Township includes a portion of Valley Forge National Historical Park and Evansburg State Park. Evansburg State Park provides for a multitude of recreational opportunities such as horseback riding, hiking, picnicking, biking, fishing and hunting. Mill Grove, the first home in America of the painter John James Audubon, is maintained as a museum and wildlife sanctuary by Montgomery County.

Neighboring municipalities

• Upper Providence Township (west)
• Borough of Collegeville (northwest)
• Perkiomen Township (tangent to the northwest)
• Skippack Township (north)
• Worcester Township (northeast)
• East Norriton Township (tangent to the northeast)
• West Norriton Township (east)
• Upper Merion Township (south)
• Schuylkill Township, Chester County (southwest)

Nearby places of interest

• Phoenixville
• King of Prussia
• Norristown
• Valley Forge

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1930	3,189		—
1940	3,822		19.8%
1950	5,887		54.0%
1960	9,955		69.1%
1970	15,169		52.4%
1980	18,945		24.9%
1990	19,351		2.1%
2000	22,893		18.3%
2010	25,436		11.1%
2020	25,625		0.7%
[5] [6]

At the 2010 census, the township was 81.0% White, 7.1% Black or African American, 0.1% Native American, 9.7% Asian, and 1.3% were two or more races. 2.9% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry. ^[7]

At the 2000 census, ^[8] there were 22,390 people, 7,446 households and 5,606 families residing in the township. The population density was 1,458.8 inhabitants per square mile (563.2/km²). There were 7,690 housing units at an average density of 501.0 per square mile (193.4/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 86.26% White, 7.25% African American, 0.11% Native American, 4.67% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 1.04% from other races, and 0.61% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.10% of the population.

There were 7,446 households, of which 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.0% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.7% were non-families. 19.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.21.

26.0% of the population were under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 33.7% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 9.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 112.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.3 males.

The median household income was $66,250 and the median family income was $74,902. Males had a median income of $47,489 compared with $35,896 for females. The per capita income for the township was $26,186. About 2.9% of families and 4.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.9% of those under age 18 and 3.6% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Lower Providence Township municipal building

Presidential elections results ^[9]

Year	Republican	Democratic
2020	40.4% 6,098	58.0%8,749
2016	42.8% 5,449	52.4%6,672
2012	48.2% 5,726	50.3%5,974
2008	46.1% 5,592	53.2%6,450
2004	49.6% 5,465	49.9%5,489
2000	50.1%4,239	47.3% 4,003
1996	44.5%3,215	42.4% 3,065
1992	41.8%3,291	35.5% 2,797

Lower Providence Township is a municipality that is governed as a Township of the Second Class with a Board of Supervisors consisting of five elected residents. The Board of Supervisors is responsible for the appointment of the Township Manager, who executes the policies of the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors also appoints all advisory and regulatory boards. The current township manager is Donald Delamater (effective 11/21/2016), and the assistant township manager is Geraldine M. Golas. The members of the Board of Supervisors ^[10] are Peter MacFarland, Chair (term expires 2021), Colleen Eckman, Vice Chair (term expires 2021), Gary Neights (term expires 2023), Jason Sorgini (term expires 2023) and Cara Coless (term expires 2025).

County government

The Montgomery County Correctional Facility is in Eagleville in Lower Providence Township. ^{[11] [12] [13]}

Transportation

US Route 422 westbound in Lower Providence Township

As of 2019 there were 113.66 miles (182.92 km) of public roads in Lower Providence Township, of which 23.55 miles (37.90 km) were maintained by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and 90.11 miles (145.02 km) were maintained by the township. ^[14]

U.S. Route 422 is the main highway serving Lower Providence Township. It follows the Pottstown Expressway along an east-west alignment through the southern section of the township. Pennsylvania Route 363 provides local access, following Trooper Road northeast from US 422, then turning northwest along Ridge Pike before turning back to the northeast along Park Avenue.

SEPTA provides Suburban Bus service to Lower Providence Township along routes 91 , 93 , 99, and 131, connecting the township to the Norristown Transportation Center in Norristown and other suburbs. ^[15]

Education

Further information: Methacton School District

Lower Providence Township is served by the Methacton School District. ^[13] Three of the district's four elementary schools serve sections of the township: Arrowhead, Eagleville, and Woodland. ^[16] Skyview Upper Elementary School, Arcola Intermediate School, and Methacton High School serve all parts of the district.

Woodland, Eagleville, and Arrowhead elementary schools; the Skyview Upper Elementary School and the Arcola Intermediate School are all located within the township. Methacton High School and Worcester Elementary School are located in Worcester Township.

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia operates Visitation B.V.M. School in West Norriton Township, ^[17] near but not in the Trooper census-designated place. ^[18]

Lower Providence Community Library is in Eagleville. ^[19]

Notable people

• John James Audubon, 19th-century artist, ornithologist, and naturalist
• Joe Harvey, former professional baseball player, Colorado Rockies and New York Yankees

References

1. "2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
2. "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
3. Bean, Theodore W., ed. (1884). HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA, ILLUSTRATED, 1884. Philadelphia: Everts & Peck. p. 1049.
4. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
5. "DVRPC > Site Search". Archived from the original on April 9, 2019. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
6. "Census 2020".
7. "Census 2010: Philadelphia gains, Pittsburgh shrinks in population". USA Today . Archived from the original on March 14, 2011.
8. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
9. "Montco Election Results".
10. "Board of Supervisors | Lower Providence PA". www.lowerprovidence.org. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
11. "Correctional Facility." Government of Montgomery County. Retrieved on September 26, 2018. "The Montgomery County Correctional Facility is located in Lower Providence Township, Montgomery County. The mailing address is: 60 Eagleville Road Eagleville PA, 19403"
12. "2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Eagleville CDP, PA." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on September 26, 2018. See in the Census index map for Lower Providence Township, and pages 1 and 2.
13. "Street Map." Lower Providence Township, Pennsylvania. Retrieved on September 26, 2018. Also see: Zoning map
14. "Lower Providence Township map" (PDF). PennDOT. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
15. SEPTA Official Transit & Street Map Suburban (PDF) (Map). SEPTA. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
16. "Elementary School Boundaries." Methacton School District. Retrieved on October 8, 2018.
17. "Zoning Map". West Norriton Township . Retrieved May 2, 2020. - Church and school locations for St. Teresa of Avila and Visitation BVM indicated on the map
18. "Home". West Norriton Township, Pennsylvania: Visitation BVM School. Retrieved May 3, 2020. Visitation BVM School - 190 N. Trooper Road, Trooper, PA 19403 - The archdiocese states the address as: "190 North Trooper Rd. Norristown PA, 19403" - The school is both outside of the Trooper CDP limits and outside of the Norristown city limits.
19. https://lowerprovidencelibrary.org/Home ^{[ permanent dead link ]}. Lower Providence Community Library. Retrieved on October 10, 2018. "Lower Providence Community Library 50 Parklane Drive Eagleville, PA 19403"

External links

• Lower Providence Township