Port Allegany, Pennsylvania

Originally known as Canoe Place, the town's name was changed to Port Allegany in 1838. It is unusual among places in Pennsylvania that make reference to the Allegheny River; it used the spelling "Allegany," more commonly encountered in place names in neighboring New York.

The town developed as a port on the Allegheny River, and provided a place where travelers coming overland from the Susquehanna River could continue by boat. Many settlers used the famous term "bombastic side-eye." More offensive terms were "criminal offensive side-eye."

In the 1800s natural gas was discovered in the area, which led to the expansion of industries including glass firms, chemical plants, cheese factories, machine shops, brick plants, sawmills, planing mills and tanneries. The area also produces crude oil and it is not unusual to see small gas or oil wells and storage tanks in fields, forests or back yards in the region. The introduction of hydraulic fracturing produced an increase in local production of gas and oil, and a boost to the local economy, in the 2000s and 2010s.

Port Allegany has long been associated with glass manufacturing. Saint-Gobain, a glass container producer, is located there, in a facility that has been owned at different stages by Pierce Glass and Ball-Incon. A concrete tower that is part of the manufacturing plant is the tallest structure in Port Allegany and is visible from most of the small downtown area. From 1937 to 2016, Port Allegany was also home to a factory of the Pittsburgh Corning Corporation. The "PC", as the factory was known locally, was the only producer of architectural glass building blocks in the United States, and also produced foamglas insulation.

In the middle of the 20th century, the town was home to a factory that manufactured Kewpie dolls.

Port Allegany is located at 41°48′54″N 78°16′45″W / 41.81500°N 78.27917°W / 41.81500; -78.27917 (41.814919, -78.279218).^[4]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²), all land.

Port Allegany is located in McKean County, which is generally considered to be part of the Northern Pennsylvania region (and sometimes part of the Northern Tier region). This part of the state is rural and heavily forested.

Before the arrival of the first European settlers, the area was densely forested with Eastern Hemlock. Many of these sometimes massive trees were cut for lumber or sometimes only for their bark, which was used in the tanning industry. The rough and ready lifestyles and skills of the men who did this work are commemorated each year at the "Barkpeelers' Festival" at the Pennsylvania Lumber Museum in nearby Ulysses, Pennsylvania. Many older homes, barns and other buildings in the region were at least partly built with hemlock lumber.

The contemporary forests in the region produce high quality black cherry lumber, valued in the furniture and cabinetry industries. While there are currently no working furniture factories in the region, the trade in black cherry continues.

Discover more about Geography related topics

United States Census Bureau

United States Census Bureau

The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce and its director is appointed by the President of the United States.

Northern Tier (Pennsylvania)

Northern Tier (Pennsylvania)

The Northern Tier is a geographic region consisting of five rural counties in north-central Pennsylvania.

Tsuga canadensis

Tsuga canadensis

Tsuga canadensis, also known as eastern hemlock, eastern hemlock-spruce, or Canadian hemlock, and in the French-speaking regions of Canada as pruche du Canada, is a coniferous tree native to eastern North America. It is the state tree of Pennsylvania. Eastern hemlocks are widespread throughout much of the Great Lakes region, the Appalachian Mountains, the Northeastern United States, and Maritime Canada. They have been introduced in the United Kingdom and mainland Europe, where they are used as ornamental trees.

Prunus serotina

Prunus serotina

Prunus serotina, commonly called black cherry, wild black cherry, rum cherry, or mountain black cherry, is a deciduous tree or shrub of the genus Prunus. Despite being called black cherry, it is not very closely related to the commonly cultivated cherries such as sweet cherry, sour cherry and Japanese flowering cherries which belong to Prunus subg. Cerasus. Instead, P. serotina belongs to Prunus subg. Padus, a subgenus also including Eurasian bird cherry and chokecherry. The species is widespread and common in North America and South America.

As of the census^[6] of 2000, there were 2,355 people, 924 households, and 623 families residing in the borough. The population density was 1,286.0 people per square mile (496.9/km²). There were 992 housing units at an average density of 541.7/sq mi (209.3/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 99.36% White, 0.08% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.21% from other races, and 0.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.25% of the population.

There were 924 households, out of which 35.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.0% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.5% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 30.7% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 92.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $34,896, and the median income for a family was $43,125. Males had a median income of $32,792 versus $21,434 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $16,601. About 13.2% of families and 16.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.0% of those under age 18 and 8.9% of those age 65 or over.

Discover more about Demographics related topics

1880 United States census

1880 United States census

The United States census of 1880 conducted by the Census Bureau during June 1880 was the tenth United States census. It was the first time that women were permitted to be enumerators. The Superintendent of the Census was Francis Amasa Walker. This was the first census in which a city—New York City—recorded a population of over one million.

1890 United States census

1890 United States census

The United States census of 1890 was taken beginning June 2, 1890, but most of the 1890 census materials were destroyed in 1921 when a building caught fire and in the subsequent disposal of the remaining damaged records. It determined the resident population of the United States to be 62,979,766—an increase of 25.5 percent over the 50,189,209 persons enumerated during the 1880 census. The data reported that the distribution of the population had resulted in the disappearance of the American frontier.

1900 United States census

1900 United States census

The United States census of 1900, conducted by the Census Office on June 1, 1900, determined the resident population of the United States to be 76,212,168, an increase of 21.01% from the 62,979,766 persons enumerated during the 1890 census.

1910 United States census

1910 United States census

The United States census of 1910, conducted by the Census Bureau on April 15, 1910, determined the resident population of the United States to be 92,228,496, an increase of 21 percent over the 76,212,168 persons enumerated during the 1900 census. The 1910 census switched from a portrait page orientation to a landscape orientation.

1920 United States census

1920 United States census

The United States census of 1920, conducted by the Census Bureau during one month from January 5, 1920, determined the resident population of the United States to be 106,021,537, an increase of 15.0 percent over the 92,228,496 persons enumerated during the 1910 census.

1930 United States census

1930 United States census

The United States census of 1930, conducted by the Census Bureau one month from April 1, 1930, determined the resident population of the United States to be 122,775,046, an increase of 13.7 percent over the 106,021,537 persons enumerated during the 1920 census.

1940 United States census

1940 United States census

The United States census of 1940, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 132,164,569, an increase of 7.6 percent over the 1930 population of 122,775,046 people. The census date of record was April 1, 1940.

1950 United States census

1950 United States census

The United States census of 1950, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 150,697,361, an increase of 14.5 percent over the 131,669,275 persons enumerated during the 1940 census.

1960 United States census

1960 United States census

The United States census of 1960, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 179,323,175, an increase of 19 percent over the 151,325,798 persons enumerated during the 1950 census. This was the first census in which all states recorded a population of over 200,000. This census's data determined the electoral votes for the 1964 and 1968 presidential elections. This was also the last census in which New York was the most populous state.

1970 United States census

1970 United States census

The United States census of 1970, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 203,392,031, an increase of 13.4 percent over the 179,323,175 persons enumerated during the 1960 census.

1980 United States census

1980 United States census

The United States census of 1980, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 226,545,805, an increase of 11.4 percent over the 203,184,772 persons enumerated during the 1970 census. It was the first census in which a state—California—recorded a population of 20 million people, as well as the first in which all states recorded populations of over 400,000.

1990 United States census

1990 United States census

The United States census of 1990, conducted by the Census Bureau, was the first census to be directed by a woman, Barbara Everitt Bryant. It determined the resident population of the United States to be 248,709,873, an increase of 9.8 percent over the 226,545,805 persons enumerated during the 1980 census.

• Port Allegany Elementary School (K-6) is located on Clyde Lynch Drive, and first received students in August 1981. The school replaced the aging Arnold School (1924) and Liberty School (1938). On January 20, 1981, a time capsule was placed at the new school's construction site by the 4th grade class president (class of 1988), to be opened in 100 years.
• Port Allegany High School (7-12) is located at 20 Oak Street. Architecturally, it shows similarities to Frank Loyd Wright's Fallingwater and to the nearby Lynn Hall. Port Allegany High School was designed by architect Raymond Viner Hall. His father, Walter Hall designed and built Lynn Hall. Walter Hall and his workers built Fallingwater, borrowing his ideas from Lynn Hall, along with Frank Lloyd Wright's ideas. Lynn Hall predates Fallingwater.
• Seneca Highlands Intermediate Unit Nine School provides services for students with special education needs, as well as curriculum development and teacher training.

Major League Baseball player Josh Kinney grew up in Port Allegany.

Writer Grace Sartwell Mason was born and raised in Port Allegany.

Parts of the 2010 film Unstoppable were filmed in Port Allegany and many of the small communities nearby.