Rochesteris aboroughin centralBeaver County, Pennsylvania,United States, at the confluence of theBeaverandOhiorivers. Located 25 miles (40 km) northwest ofPittsburgh,it is part of thePittsburgh metropolitan area.The population was 3,472 at the2020 census.[3]
Rochester, Pennsylvania | |
|---|---|
 Downtown Rochester | |
 Location inBeaver Countyand the U.S. state ofPennsylvania. | |
| Coordinates:40°42′11″N80°17′0″W/ 40.70306°N 80.28333°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| County | Beaver |
| Settled | 1799 |
| Incorporated | 1849 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Borough Council |
| • Mayor | Keith Jackson |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.73 sq mi (1.89 km2) |
| • Land | 0.59 sq mi (1.52 km2) |
| • Water | 0.14 sq mi (0.36 km2) |
| Elevation | 810 ft (250 m) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 3,472 |
| • Density | 5,904.76/sq mi (2,279.52/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5(Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4(EDT) |
| Zip Code | 15074 |
| Area code(s) | 724,878 |
| FIPScode | 42-65392 |
Like many towns around Pittsburgh, Rochester was a former industrial hub, home to the H. C. Fry Glass Company, and was a major junction on thePennsylvania Railroad.Rochester has been a background for films, including the 1986 movieGung Ho,the 1996 movieKingpin,and the 2000 movieWonder Boys.
History
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What eventually became Rochester was originally aLenapevillage calledSawcunk.The area was settled in 1799 in what was then theAmerican frontierby white settlers and was known as EastBridgewater,Fairport, and Beaver Point. The borough adopted the name Rochester in 1834 when a local businessman who did regular business in Pittsburgh decided to christen his home with the name Rochester so he could have a unique name to stamp his goods; the borough was officially incorporated as such in 1849.[4]
Many of the streets that run through Rochester today had different names based on wild animals. Virginia Avenue and Adams Street—two of the city's main thoroughfares viaPennsylvania Route 68—were once known as Fox Lane and Tiger Lane, respectively. Deer Lane, which still exists today, is the last remnant of the original naming scheme for the street grid in the borough.[4]
Rochester is where Henry Clay Fry and his associates formed a glass manufacturing company following Fry's return from theAmerican Civil War.In 1897 the Rochester Tumbler Company (as the company was known) became the National Glass Company of Rochester.[5][6]The company helped to introducepressed glassproduction to America, pressing the glass into a mold where previously the technique ofcut glasshad been to blow it by hand.[7]At its height, the National Glass Company of Rochester employed over 1000 people but its bankruptcy during theGreat Depressionbegan a long decline in the town's population which continues up to today.
Rochester was a railroad junction for thePennsylvania Railroadand sat along the railroad's mainline from the Eastern United States to Chicago.
Geography
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Rochester is at40°42′11″N80°17′0″W/ 40.70306°N 80.28333°W(40.703146, -80.283420).[8]According to theU.S. Census Bureau,the borough has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km2), of which 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) (17.14%) is water.
Demographics
edit| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 993 | — | |
| 1860 | 1,376 | 38.6% | |
| 1870 | 2,091 | 52.0% | |
| 1880 | 2,552 | 22.0% | |
| 1890 | 3,649 | 43.0% | |
| 1900 | 4,688 | 28.5% | |
| 1910 | 5,993 | 27.8% | |
| 1920 | 6,957 | 16.1% | |
| 1930 | 7,726 | 11.1% | |
| 1940 | 7,441 | −3.7% | |
| 1950 | 7,197 | −3.3% | |
| 1960 | 5,952 | −17.3% | |
| 1970 | 4,819 | −19.0% | |
| 1980 | 4,759 | −1.2% | |
| 1990 | 4,156 | −12.7% | |
| 2000 | 4,014 | −3.4% | |
| 2010 | 3,657 | −8.9% | |
| 2020 | 3,472 | −5.1% | |
| 2021 (est.) | 3,437 | [3] | −1.0% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[9] | |||
As of the2000 census,[10]there were 4,014 people, 1,732 households, and 971 families residing in the borough. The population density was 6,861.5 inhabitants per square mile (2,649.2/km2). There were 1,900 housing units at an average density of 1,243.4 inhabitants/km2(3,247.8 inhabitants/mi2). Theracial makeupof the borough was 83.81% White, 13.38% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.57% from other races, and 1.82% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.92% of the population.
There were 1,732 households, out of which 25.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.3% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.9% were non-families. 37.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the borough, the population was spread out, with 21.6% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 85.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $30,970, and the median income for a family was $39,805. Males had a median income of $28,906 versus $21,576 for females. Theper capita incomefor the borough was $15,359. About 7.2% of families and 12.2% of the population were below thepoverty line,including 14.4% of those under age 18 and 11.1% of those age 65 or over.
Education
editChildren in Rochester are served by theRochester Area School District.The current schools serving Rochester are:
- Rochester Elementary School – grades K–5
- Rochester Middle School – grades 6–8
- Rochester Area High School– grades 9–12
Notable people
edit- Christina Aguilera,Grammy award-winning pop music singer
- Barney Cable,NBA basketball player 1958–1964
- Mickey Davis,basketball player
- Tony Dorsett,Pro Football Hall of Fame running back
- Henry Clay Fry, businessman, glassware manufacturer
- Mark Grater,Major League Baseball player
- Juliet Greer,educator, college dean
- Kirby Griffin,American football player
- Kris Griffin,Kansas City ChiefsandCleveland Brownslinebacker
- Babe Parilli,Vito "Babe" Parilli, All Star quarterback of theBoston Patriots' "Team of the 1960s"
- Major GeneralJoseph Henry Pendleton,war veteran after whomMarine Corps Base Camp Pendletonwas named
- Oliver B. Shallenberger,electrical engineer and inventor
- Mark Vlasic,American football quarterback
- Lauryn Williams,2005 100m World champion sprinter and Olympic gold medalist and silver medalist
- Robert Oliver Reese,author of "My Life in Technology" 2023, engineer, inventor of the Digital Watch/Calculator in 1974
See also
editReferences
edit
- ^"ArcGIS REST Services Directory".United States Census Bureau.RetrievedAugust 8,2023.
- ^"Census Population API".United States Census Bureau.RetrievedOctober 12,2022.
- ^abBureau, US Census."City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2021".Census.gov.US Census Bureau.RetrievedJuly 19,2022.
{{cite web}}:|last1=has generic name (help) - ^abThe Hub: Rochester’s formative days were once part of East BridgewaterThe Beaver County Times(July 14, 2015)
- ^"HC Fry Glass Co".RetrievedAugust 31,2008.
- ^"H. C. Fry Glass Company Advertisements".Archived fromthe originalon September 22, 2008.RetrievedAugust 31,2008.
- ^Kane, p. 211.The glass was pressed into a mold, the marks of the iron plunger remaining on the inside of the glass. Previously, cut glass had been blown by hand.
- ^"US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990".United States Census Bureau.February 12, 2011.RetrievedApril 23,2011.
- ^"Census of Population and Housing".Census.gov.RetrievedJune 4,2016.
- ^"U.S. Census website".United States Census Bureau.RetrievedJanuary 31,2008.