Summit Hill, Pennsylvania

Last updated

Summit Hill, Pennsylvania
Borough
Hazard St, Summit Hill PA 01.JPG
Hazard Street in Summit Hill, July 2013
Summit Hill Seal.png
Seal
Motto: 
"Where it all began"
Carbon County Pennsylvania Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Summit Hill Highlighted.svg
Location in Carbon County, Pennsylvania
USA Pennsylvania location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Summit Hill
Location in Pennsylvania
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Summit Hill
Location in the United States
Coordinates: 40°49′39″N75°51′57″W / 40.82750°N 75.86583°W / 40.82750; -75.86583
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
County Carbon
Government
 • MayorPaul McArdle
Area
[1]
 • Total
9.11 sq mi (23.58 km2)
 • Land8.69 sq mi (22.51 km2)
 • Water0.41 sq mi (1.07 km2)
Elevation
1,510 ft (460 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total
3,034
 • Estimate 
(2019) [2]
2,954
 • Density339.89/sq mi (131.23/km2)
Time zone UTC-5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST) UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP Code
18250
Area code(s) 570 and 272
FIPS code 42-75248
Website www.summithillborough.com

Summit Hill is a borough in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 3,034 at the 2010 census. [3]

Contents

Summit Hill was the western terminus of the United States' second operational railway, the Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway. It was the site of some of the earliest coal mines developed in North America, where the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company began mining in 1792, establishing the town initially as little more than a mining camp with stables and paddocks.

History

Summit Hill High School, July 2013 Summit Hill High School, Summit Hill, PA 01.JPG
Summit Hill High School, July 2013

Anthracite coal was discovered on the ridgeline of Sharpe Mountain [4] (now known as Pisgah Mountain [5] ) in 1791 by a hunter. [4] News of the find led to the founding of the Lehigh Coal Mining Company, which in 1792 began exploring the area in earnest and buying up promising land. Coal was found in 1794 by Phillip Ginter [6] along the northeast-to-southwest-running ridgeline of Pisgah Mountain lying several hundred feet below the ridge on the north slope in an area that became the boroughs of Summit Hill and Lansford.

Summit Hill High School was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. [7]

Geography

Summit Hill is located in western Carbon County at 40°49′39″N75°51′57″W / 40.82750°N 75.86583°W / 40.82750; -75.86583 (40.827420, -75.865892). [8] The main development of the borough is on the crest of Pisgah Mountain, but the borough limits extend north to the ridgecrest of Nesquehoning Mountain, south to the far side of Mauch Chunk Mountain, and east to cover most of Mauch Chunk Lake. Also on the northern border is the borough of Lansford, while Tamaqua in Schuylkill County is on the western border.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Summit Hill borough has a total area of 9.1 square miles (23.6 km2), of which 8.7 square miles (22.5 km2) is land and 0.42 square miles (1.1 km2), or 4.54%, is water. [3] Summit Hill is located 6 miles (10 km) southwest of Jim Thorpe and 1 mile south of Lansford. Summit Hill's elevation varies from 1,520 feet (460 m) above sea level in the borough center to 1,620 feet (490 m) at the highest point on Pisgah Mountain to 1,010 feet (310 m) at Mauch Chunk Lake.

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1890 2,816—
1900 2,9866.0%
1910 4,20941.0%
1920 5,49930.6%
1930 5,5671.2%
1940 5,406−2.9%
1950 4,924−8.9%
1960 4,386−10.9%
1970 3,811−13.1%
1980 3,418−10.3%
1990 3,332−2.5%
2000 2,974−10.7%
2010 3,0342.0%
2019 (est.)2,954 [2] −2.6%
Sources: [9] [10] [11]

As of the census [10] of 2000, there were 2,974 people, 1,291 households, and 844 families residing in the borough. The population density was 333.7 inhabitants per square mile (128.8/km2). There were 1,451 housing units at an average density of 162.8 per square mile (62.9/km2). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.99% White, 0.07% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.07% from other races, and 0.61% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.40% of the population.

There were 1,291 households, out of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.86.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 20.1% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 22.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.9 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $37,287, and the median income for a family was $44,500. Males had a median income of $36,627 versus $23,507 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $21,166. About 4.0% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.4% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Summit Hill is part of the Panther Valley School District, along with the neighboring towns of Lansford, Nesquehoning and Coaldale (Coaldale is located in Schuylkill County).

Transportation

PA 902 eastbound in Summit Hill 2022-08-08 15 14 28 View east along Pennsylvania State Route 902 (Laurel Drive) at White Bear Drive in Summit Hill, Carbon County, Pennsylvania.jpg
PA 902 eastbound in Summit Hill

As of 2008, there were 23.53 miles (37.87 km) of public roads in Summit Hill, of which 9.26 miles (14.90 km) were maintained by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and 14.27 miles (22.97 km) were maintained by the borough. [12]

Pennsylvania Route 902 is the only numbered highway serving Summit Hill. It follows North Street, Pine Street, Amidon Street and Laurel Drive along a northwest-southeast alignment through the middle of the borough.

Notable people

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carbon County, Pennsylvania</span> County in Pennsylvania, United States

Carbon County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 64,749. The county is part of the Northeast Pennsylvania region of the state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beaver Meadows, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Beaver Meadows is a borough in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 897 at the 2020 U.S. census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania</span> Borough and county seat of Carbon County, Pennsylvania

Jim Thorpe is a borough and the county seat of Carbon County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is historically known as the burial site of Native American sports legend Jim Thorpe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lansford, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Lansford is a county-border borough (town) in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is located 37 miles (60 km) northwest of Allentown and 19 miles south of Hazleton in the Panther Creek Valley about 72 miles (116 km) from Philadelphia and abutting the cross-county sister-city of Coaldale in Schuylkill County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lausanne Township, Pennsylvania</span> Place in Pennsylvania, United States

Lausanne Township is a township in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The township dates back to 1808 when the first Lausanne settlement was organized with a local frontier government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mahoning Township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania</span> Place in Pennsylvania, United States

Mahoning Township is a township in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 4,305 at the 2010 census, up from 3,978 at the 2000 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nesquehoning, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Nesquehoning is a borough in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 3,336 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coaldale, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Coaldale is a borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States. Initially settled in 1827, it was incorporated in 1906 from part of the former Rahn Township; it is named for the coal industry—wherein, it was one of the principal early mining centers. Coaldale is in the southern Anthracite Coal region in the Panther Creek Valley, a tributary of the Little Schuylkill River, along which U.S. Route 209 was eventually built between the steep climb up Pisgah Mountain from Nesquehoning (easterly) and its outlet in Tamaqua, approximately five miles to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamaqua, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Tamaqua is a borough in eastern Schuylkill County in the Coal Region of Pennsylvania, United States. It had a population of 6,934 as of the 2020 U.S. census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lehigh Gorge State Park</span> State park in Pennsylvania, United States

Lehigh Gorge State Park is a 4,548 acres (1,841 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Luzerne and Carbon Counties, Pennsylvania. The park encompasses a gorge, which stretches along the Lehigh River from a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flood control dam in Luzerne County to Jim Thorpe in Carbon County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nesquehoning Creek</span> River

Nesquehoning Creek is an east flowing 14.9-mile-long (24.0 km) tributary of the Lehigh River in northeastern Pennsylvania in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panther Valley School District</span> School district in Pennsylvania, US

Panther Valley School District is a midsized, suburban public school district which is split across two counties in Pennsylvania. Panther Valley School District encompasses approximately 40 square miles (100 km2). Panther Valley School District serves students who reside in boroughs of Coaldale in Schuylkill County, Lansford, Nesquehoning, and Summit Hill in Carbon County. According to 2000 federal census data, the district serves a resident population of 12,516. In 2009, the district residents’ per capita income was $16,533 while the median family income was $39,133. In the Commonwealth, the median family income was $49,501 and the United States median family income was $49,445, in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway</span> Freight railroad in Pennsylvania

The Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway, also known as the Mauch Chunk and Summit Railroad and occasionally shortened to Mauch Chunk Railway, was a coal-hauling railroad in the mountains of Pennsylvania that was built in 1827 and operated until 1932. It was the second gravity railway constructed in the United States, which was used by the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company to transport coal from Summit Hill downhill to the Lehigh canal.

The Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company (LCAN) (1988–2010) was a modern-day anthracite coal mining company headquartered in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. It acquired many properties and relaunched the Lehigh Coal Companies brand in 1988. The LCAN ran strip mining operations in the Panther Creek Valley east of Lansford, Pennsylvania along U.S. Route 209 with vast properties dominating the coal areas of Tamaqua, Coaldale, and Lansford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panther Creek (Little Schuylkill River tributary)</span> River in Pennsylvania, US

Panther Creek is a 2 branch creek running through parts of Schuylkill and Carbon County. The west-draining branch tributary of the Little Schuylkill River's drainage basin and rises in the vicinity of the east side of Lansford and Coaldale in the plateau-like nearly flat terrain of the complex three-way saddle between Mount Pisgah. It continues to flow through the towns of Coaldale into Tamaqua where it meets the Little Schuylkill River. The Panther Creek branch to its east, Nesquehoning Ridge to the north and Pisgah Ridge to the south, both ridgelines flanking its entire course as it makes its way east-northeast to west-southwest. Starting in Nesquehoning it eventually runs into the Lehigh River just outside of Jim Thorpe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pisgah Mountain</span> Ridgeline in Pennsylvania

Pisgah Mountain, or Pisgah Ridge on older USGS maps, is a ridgeline running 12.5 miles (20.1 km) from Tamaqua to Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania from the Little Schuylkill River water gap to the Lehigh River water gap.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mauch Chunk Mountain</span>

Mauch Chunk Ridge or Mauch Chunk Mountain is a historically important barrier ridgeline north of the Blue Mountain escarpment and 3rd parallel ridgeline south of the Nesquehoning Creek after Nesquehoning Mountain and Pisgah Ridge in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

The Hauto Tunnel, dug in 1871–72, was a 1.1-mile-long (1.8 km) single-track railway tunnel crossing under the barrier ridge of Nesquehoning Mountain between Lansford, Pennsylvania, in the Panther Creek Valley and the Central Railroad of New Jersey trackage near the dam of the Hauto Reservoir impoundment about 1.3 miles (2.1 km) above Nesquehoning, Pennsylvania. The tunnel was significant for cutting nearly 15 difficult mountainous miles (24 km) off the trip to the Lehigh Canal terminal or, by rail, to other eastern coal companies, in the era when anthracite was the king of energy fuels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Room Run Railroad</span>

The Room Run Railroad was an early American gravity railroad with self-acting planes. It was built by the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company to transport coal from the Room Run Mine in Nesquehoning, Pennsylvania to landings at Mauch Chunk on the Lehigh River so it could be shipped on the Lehigh Canal to the Delaware River at Easton, Pennsylvania to markets in Philadelphia or New York City via the Delaware or Morris Canals.

The Panther Creek Railroad had its origins in 1849. The Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N) constructed it between Lansford, PA and the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad operating as the Little Schuylkill Railroad in Tamaqua, PA. LC&N believed a direct route to take Panther Valley coal to eastern markets and a tunnel connecting Lansford to Hauto would open up possibilities with the Nesquehoning Valley Railroad. It also allowed the LC&N to cease coal shipments to the Lehigh Canal on the Summit Hill & Mauch Chunk Railroad, operating since 1827.

References

  1. ↑ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Summit Hill borough, Pennsylvania". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2015.
  4. 1 2 Lee Mantz. "The Early Days of Summit Hill" . Retrieved September 9, 2013. In 1791 a hunter, Philip Ginter, discovered coal on Sharpe Mountain.
  5. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Pisgah Mountain
  6. ↑ The Early Days of Summit Hill, accessed: 7 September 2013
  7. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  8. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  10. 1 2 "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  11. ↑ "Incorporated Places and Minor Civil Divisions Datasets: Subcounty Resident Population Estimates: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012". Population Estimates. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 11, 2013. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Summit Hill Borough map" (PDF). PennDOT. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
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