Aliquippa

[al-i-kwip-uh]

Aliquippa, borough (1990 pop. 13,374), Beaver co., W Pa., in an industrialized region along the Ohio River N of Pittsburgh; inc. 1894. Aliquippa grew after the expansion of steel mills in 1909, but most of the plants closed in the 1970s and 80s. There is printing and publishing and the manufacture of food, precious metals, and chemicals.

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Aliquippa, Pennsylvania

Aliquippa is a city in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, and is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Formerly a borough, it was formally named a city in 1987 by the Aliquippa Council.

History

Aliquippa was founded by the merger of three towns: Aliquippa (now called West Aliquippa), Woodlawn, and New Sheffield. There is no evidence connecting the Seneca Queen Alliquippa with the location of the borough. This was one of several Indian names selected arbitrarily by the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad in 1878 for stations along the route. Aliquippa is best known as the location of a productive steel mill that the Jones and Laughlin Steel Company constructed there along the Ohio River beginning in 1905. Employment at the facility sustained a population of 27,023 in 1940. The mill closed during the collapse of the steel industry during the 1980s. This major economic loss alongside suburbanization caused a major population loss through the end of the 20th century. The oldest church without the current boundaries of Aliquippa is Mt. Carmel Presbyterian Church (formerly White Oak Flats Presbyterian Church), established about 1793 in the New Sheffield region on Brodhead Road. Much of the city's businesses have left since the closing of the mill, which has left the area economically depressed. Recently, there have been small initiatives undertaken to help rejuvenate Aliquippa. In early 2008, Geneva College students were sent on a mission trip to help restore old buildings in the community. One structure that was successfully repaired now houses the Uncommon Grounds CoffeeShop.

Geography

Aliquippa is located at (40.615066, -80.263059).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.5 square miles (11.6 km²), of which, 4.1 square miles (10.6 km²) of it is land and 0.4 square miles (1.0 km²) of it (8.48%) is water. The city originally included two islands in the Ohio River, Crow Island and Hog Island During the 1960s the back channels of the Ohio River were filled in by the Jones and Laughlin Steel Corporation, joining these islands to the mainland and obliterating them as distinct geographic features

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 11,734 people, 5,124 households, and 3,176 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,867.7 people per square mile (1,107.7/km²). There were 5,843 housing units at an average density of 1,428.0/sq mi (551.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 62.59% White, 35.52% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.18% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.00% of the population.

There were 5,124 households out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.7% were married couples living together, 21.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.0% were non-families. 35.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.5% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 22.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 82.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,113, and the median income for a family was $34,003. Males had a median income of $27,954 versus $21,358 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,718. About 17.7% of families and 21.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.3% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

Famous residents

Famous Aliquippans include former Surgeon General of the United States Jesse Steinfeld; National Football League Hall-of-Fame players Tony Dorsett and Mike Ditka; other NFL players include Ty Law, Danny Rains, Sean Gilbert, Paul Posluszny and Darrelle Revis; Henry Mancini, composer of "The Pink Panther Theme," "Moon River," "The Days of Wine and Roses," among other songs; basketball coach Press Maravich, National Basketball League Hall-of-Famer Pete Maravich, musician Jimmie Ross of The Jaggerz, Major League Baseball players George "Doc" Medich, Pete Suder, Ivor Parry Evans, one-time base commander of Walker Air Force Base at Roswell, NM, Gust Avrakotos, CIA Agent of "Charlie Wilson's War" fame, and George Sarris, who threw a record 19 touchdown passes and led Aliquippa to their first WPIAL football championship in 1951. Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President, Bill George, is also from Aliquippa.

Aliquippa has been home to some of the most influential political figures in Beaver County such as former United States Representative Eugene Atkinson, former Aliquippa Democratic Committee Chairman Charles "Hank" Frank and current Democratic Chairman Eugene "Salt" Smith. The youngest Aliquippa Council member in history was Joe Piroli, a protege of Frank and Smith. He was 23 years old when elected in 1995. He served on Council from 1996-1999, beginning a trend of younger individuals seeking elected positions in Beaver County. He was elected a second time to Council in 2007.