Lancaster, is a city in the South Central part of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and is the
county seat of Lancaster County.
With a population of 55,351,[1] it is the 8th largest city
in Pennsylvania, behind Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, Reading, Scranton, and Bethlehem. The metropolitan area population stands at 494,486 making it the 101st largest
metropolitan area in the US.
Locally, Lancaster is pronounced as LANK-i-stir, rather than the more common pronunciation LANG-CAS-ter
(with the first two syllables more or less equally stressed).[citation needed]
History
- Land was part of the 1681 Penn's Woods Charter of William
Penn.
- Lancaster was a planned city, first laid out by James Hamilton in 1734, and chartered as a
borough in 1742, but not incorporated as a city until 1818.[2]
- Named after the English city of Lancaster by native John Wright. Its symbol,
the red rose, is from the House of Lancaster. The
Lancaster County Prison was built in the 1850s to
resemble Lancaster Castle in Lancashire.
- The oldest church in the city is the Trinity Lutheran Church, founded in 1729.
- The Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike, built in
1795 was the first long-distance, paved road in the United States. It linked Philadelphia to Lancaster.[3]
- Lancaster was capital of Pennsylvania from 1799 to 1812, when the
capital was moved to the more central location of Harrisburg.
- Before the famous Lewis and Clark Expedition began, Meriwether Lewis traveled to Lancaster to work with astronomer Andrew
Ellicott and to learn to plot latitude and longitude as part of his training so that he could lead the expedition to the
Pacific Ocean.[4]
- Lancaster was the capital of the American colonies on September 27, 1777 when the Continental Congress fled Philadelphia,
which had been captured by the British. After meeting one day, they moved still farther away, to York.
- The Fulton Opera House, finished in October 1852,
claims to be the oldest theater to give continuous performances in the United States, although after the owner was arrested for
offering burlesque - "exhibiting immoral shows" - in 1920, it was operated as a second-rate movie house, rather than a theatre,
for half a century. [5]
- In 1886, Milton S. Hershey founded the
Lancaster Caramel Company. In 1900, he sold the
Mount Joy, Pennsylvania business for $1 million to American Caramel Company
(incorporated in 1898 as a merger of York and
Philadelphia confectioners, and used the funds to build the
Hershey Chocolate factory by 1905 in nearby
Derry Church, his birthplace.[6]
- Frank W. Woolworth, opened his first "Woolworth 5¢ Store" store on Queen
Street on June 21, 1879;[7] an earlier nickel store, called
"Great 5c Store" in Utica, New York closed after 3 months. It wasn't until November 6,
1880, that the store became "Woolworth's 5 and 10". The original Lancaster store was replaced by a multistory building with a
garden on the roof. Although the last Woolworth dimestore closed in 1998, the company lives on as Sneaker Villa.
- Lancaster was one of the winning communities for the All-America City award
in 2000.
- In 1821, The Germanic custom of having a specially decorated Christmas tree at
Christmas time was introduced to America by Pennsylvania Dutch in Lancaster,
Pennsylvania. [8]
Geography
Lancaster is located at 40°2'23" North, 76°18'16" West (40.039860, -76.304366)1, and is 368 feet above sea level.
The city is located about 34 miles southeast of Harrisburg, 70 miles west of
Philadelphia, 55 miles north-northeast of Baltimore and 87 miles north of Washington, D.C.
The nearest towns and boroughs are Millersville (4.0 miles),
Willow Street (4.8 miles), East Petersburg (5.3 miles), Lititz (7.9
miles), Landisville (8.6 miles), Mountville (8.8 miles), Rothsville (8.9
miles), and Leola (8.9 miles).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area
of 19.2 km² (7.4 mi²). 19.2 km² (7.4 mi²) of it is
land and 0.14% is water.
Architecture
Here are the main types of architecture that still dominate the city of Lancaster, with a local example of each.
- Germanic or Colonial, 1710-1770, the house at 125
Howard Avenue .
- Georgian, 1730-1790, Rock Ford Plantation.
- Federal,1790-1835, Jacob Eichholtz House.
- Classical Revival,1840-1860, John Black Mansion.
- Italianate,1850-1895, Reuben Baer Mansion.
- Second Empire,1860-1895, John Ives Hartman Mansion.
- Queen Anne Style architecture,1876-1910, William Zahm Sener
Mansion.
- Romanesque Revival architecture,1860-1900, Central Market in Penn Square.
- Beaux-Arts,1880-1930, Hager Building.
- Colonial Revival,1880-1955, the house at 43 North Shippen
Street.
- Art Deco,1925-1945, McNinch Building.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 56,348 people, 20,933 households, and 12,162 families
residing in the city. The population density was 2,940.0/km² (7,616.5/mi²). There
were 23,024 housing units at an average density of 1,201.3/km² (3,112.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 61.55%
White, 14.09% African American, 0.44% Native American, 2.46% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 17.44% from other races, and 3.94% from two or more races. 30.76% of the population
were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
In 2000, 24.34% of Lancaster residents were of Puerto Rican ancestry. The city has the highest concentration of Puerto Ricans
in Pennsylvania. For this reason, it is sometimes referred to as the "Spanish Rose." Lancaster celebrates its Hispanic heritage
once every year with the Puerto Rican Festival, which is in its 27th year[9].
There were 20,933 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.4% were married couples living together, 19.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.9% were
non-families. 33.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or
older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.23.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.5% under the age of 18, 13.9% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 17.7% from
45 to 64, and 10.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 95.2 males.
For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $29,770, and the median income for a family was $34,623. Males had a median
income of $27,833 versus $21,862 for females. The per capita income for the city was
$13,955. 21.2% of the population and 17.9% of families were below the poverty line.
29.2% of those under the age of 18 and 12.9% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Economy
Lancaster suffers from high unemployment, especially in the southeastern quadrant.[10]This area, which includes census tracts 8, 9, 15, and 16, had unemployment rates
of 10.9%, 10.1%, 3.5%, and 9.0% , respectively, in 1999, when the rest of the county was 4.9%. The Lancaster County Workforce
Investment Board sees a persistent problem in underemployment: "People are working but surviving just on the edge of poverty."
Outside the city, however, employment has increased 18% by adding 34,900 jobs between the years 1999 and 2002.
Lancaster City has been in the process of recreating itself recently with an explosion of specialty shops, boutiques, bars,
clubs, and reinvestment in downtown institutions and locations.
Since 1999,[1] the
Lancaster County Convention Center Authority, Penn Square Partners
and the City's Redevelopment Authority have pursued a controversial plan to build a 300-room Marriott Hotel and a
220,000-square-foot taxpayer funded convention venue in and near the space formerly occupied by the Watt & Shand department
store, preserving only the building's façade.[2] The project's supporters believe it would promote the revitalization of the city's
center. Its opponents, however, feel it poses a significant risk to taxpayers. [3][4] This plan also includes the demolition of significant portions of other
historic sites, including Thaddeus Stevens' home. [5]
There are also plans to convert an area of unused polluted industrial grounds, which were once occupied by Armstrong World
Industries, into playing fields for Franklin & Marshall College.
This action is expected to take up most of the former industrial site. The northeastern corner will be developed with funds from
Lancaster General Hospital. The hospital plans to create a mixed-use development which will add several city blocks to
Lancaster’s grid. F&M's president, John Fry, has also orchestrated the construction of new dormitories and apartments for
Franklin & Marshall students along Harrisburg Pike.
Public Transportation
The Red Rose Transit Authority (RRTA) provides local bus transit to
Lancaster City as well as surrounding areas in Lancaster County. RRTA is headquartered outside the City of Lancaster.
Capitol Trailways provides intercity bus transit from the Lancaster train
station to King of Prussia, Philadelphia, and New York City.
Amtrak also serves the Lancaster train station, located at 53 McGovern Ave. Lancaster is
served by Amtrak trains traveling between Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Pittsburgh. [6] The city is served by the Lancaster Airport,
located north of downtown and just south of Lititz.
Notable residents
- See also: Category:People from Lancaster,
Pennsylvania
- A. Raphael Beck, artist and muralist
- John Henry Augustus Bomberger, founder and first president of Ursinus College
- Andy Baldwin, lieutenant, doctor, and the bachelor of season 10 of The Bachelor
- James Buchanan, fifteenth President of the United
States
- Charles Demuth, painter
- Tristan Egolf, author
- Andrew Ellicott, surveyor, completed layout of Washington, D.C., established surveying baseline for Northwest
Territory, and taught surveying to Captain Meriwether Lewis in preparation for
the Lewis and Clark Expedition
- Robert Fulton, statesman, painter, and the creator of the Clermont steamboat
- Gene Garber, former professional baseball player
- Major General Edward Hand – early patriot
- Jonathan Groff, actor (Spring Awakening
(musical))
- William Henry, eighteenth-century gunsmith and patriot
- Tom Herr, former professional baseball player and former manager of the Lancaster Barnstormers, current manager of the Hagerstown
Suns
- Milton Hershey, founder of the The Hershey
Company
- Robert Lutz, former tennis player, born in Lancaster
- Helen Reimensnyder Martin (1868-1939) Novelist, born in and buried in the
city
- Thomas Mifflin, politician and a signer of the United States Constitution
- John Parrish, professional baseball player, Baltimore Orioles
- Major General John F. Reynolds,
American Civil War commander
- Brad Rutter, Jeopardy! champion
- Kevin Shaffer, professional football player, Cleveland Browns
- Jimmy Sheckard, former professional baseball player
- Thaddeus Stevens, a Radical Republican
congressman and abolitionist
- Lieutenant General Daniel B. Strickler, veteran of both World Wars and the Korean War; Lieutenant Governor of PA, 1947-1951
- Bruce Sutter, former professional baseball pitcher, inducted to Baseball's Hall of
Fame, 2006
- Timothy Truman, artist, comic book artist and writer
- Julian Valentin, Defender, U-20 men's national soccer team
- Junior Vasquez, New York City club DJ and remixer/producer
- Marianne Wiggins, author, and ex-wife of author Salman Rushdie
- Kris Wilson, professional football player, Kansas City Chiefs
- F. W. Woolworth, businessman, "5 & 10¢ store" F. W. Woolworth Company
Historical Landmarks
Hamilton Watch Company
Watt & Shand Building (since demolished, only the façade
remains)
W.W. Griest Building
Wheatland
Fulton Opera House
J. P. McCaskey High School
Rock Ford plantation
Sports
-
Baseball
The city of Lancaster has only one professional sports team, the Lancaster Barnstormers. After 44 years without professional
baseball, the Barnstormers arrived to fill the void left by the departed Lancaster Red
Roses. The Lancaster Barnstormers are named after the "barnstorming" baseball players who played exhibition games in the
surrounding county, as well as a reference to the county's many farms. The Barnstormers continue a couple of traditions of the
old Red Roses, as their official colors are navy blue, red, and khaki, the same colors used by the Red Roses. More importantly,
the Barnstormers continue the old baseball rivalry between Lancaster and the nearby city of York, as the York Revolution start their inaugural season in
2007.
The city of Lancaster is the hometown of Major League alumnus, Tom Herr. Herr played for the Philadelphia Phillies, the
New York Mets, the San Francisco Giants, and
finally with the St. Louis Cardinals. After his time in the Majors, he coached the
Black Knights baseball team of Hempfield High School for several years. During
this time, Tom Herr had the pleasure of coaching his son, Aaron (who now plays at the AAA
level), at Hempfield. Herr joined the Lancaster Barnstomers for their inaugural season in 2005 as the manager. After a dismal
2005 season, he lead the Barnstormers to their first-ever championship in 2006, against the Bridgeport Bluefish. Immediately following Lancaster's Atlantic League victory, Tom Herr piqued the
interest of the Washington Nationals, who later assigned him to their A-level
Hagerstown Suns.
The Lancaster Barnstormers employ another Major League alumnus, Rick Wise, as their
pitching coach.[11] He was the winning pitcher for the
Boston Red Sox in Game 6 of the 1975 World
Series. Other than his experience with the Red Sox, he pitched for the Cleveland
Indians, the Philadelphia Phillies, the San Diego Padres, and the St. Louis Cardinals.
Other sports
- The Dutchland Derby Rollers, an all-female roller derby team which plays to raise money for various charities, opened their
first season in 2006. The team plays at the Overlook Roller Skating Rink. [7]
Lancaster Classic
The city of Lancaster hosts the Tom Bamford Lancaster Classic, a professional
bicycle racing event held each June since 1992. It is part of the 2006-2007 UCI
America Tour and the 2007 USA Cycling Professional Tour.
Inventions
- The first battery-powered watch, the Hamilton Electric 500, was released in 1957 by the
Hamilton Watch Company.
- Peeps, an Easter confection shaped as marshmallow chicks
covered with yellow sugar, were invented by the Rodda Candy Company of Lancaster in the 1920s. In 1953, Rodda was purchased by
Sam Born, the Russian immigrant who invented ice cream "jimmies", and production was moved to Nazareth, Pennsylvania.
Colleges and universities
Media
- Lancaster Intelligencer Journal, the county's morning edition
- Lancaster New Era, the county's afternoon edition
- Lancaster Voice
- La Voz Hispana, the city's Spanish-language edition
- The Sunday News, the county's weekly edition
- WGAL, the local NBC affiliate serving the Lancaster,
York, and Harrisburg area.
- WLYH, the local CW affiliate serving the
Lancaster, York, and Harrisburg area.
- WHP, the local CBS affiliate serving the Lancaster, York, and
Harrisburg area.
- WHTM, the local ABC affiliate serving
the Lancaster, York, and Harrisburg area.
- WITF, the local PBS affiliate serving
the Lancaster, York, and Harrisburg area.
- WPMT, the local FOX affiliate serving the
Lancaster, York, and Harrisburg area.
- WLAN-FM, the local Radio Station serving the lower Susquehanna Valley.
- WLAN-AM, the local Radio Station serving the Lancaster, area on the AM Dial.
- WFNM-FM, the student-run radio station of Franklin & Marshall.
Sites of interest
Local Businesses
References
- ^ Lancaster (city) QuickFacts. Census Bureau. Retrieved on June
30, 2006.
- ^ Lancaster County History. PHMC. Retrieved on Aug
1, 2006.
- ^ Lancaster Turnpike. PHMC. Retrieved on May 26, 2006.
- ^ Lewis &
Clark Timeline. NPS. Retrieved on October 12, 2006.
- ^ OperaHouse.
FultonFoundation. Retrieved on Aug 1, 2006.
- ^ Caramel. Scriptophily. Retrieved on Aug 1, 2006.
- ^ Woolworth. WoolworthWalk. Retrieved on Aug 1,
2006.
- ^ The History of Christmas. Gareth Marples. Retrieved on Dec
2, 2006.
- ^ Puerto Rican Festival. Lancaster Online. Retrieved on September
18, 2006.
- ^ Workforce
Profile for Lancaster City. Jobs 4 Lancaster. Retrieved on May 9, 2006.
- ^ Barnstormers' Pitching Coach. Lancaster Barnstormers. Retrieved on May 26, 2006.
Further reading
External links
Coordinates:
40.03986° N 76.304366°
W
