Brookville, Pennsylvania

History

The area was initially settled in the late 1790s upon the arrival of brothers Joseph and Andrew Barnett, as well as their brother-in-law Samuel Scott, who together established the first settlement at the confluence of the Sandy Lick and Mill Creeks in the area now known as Port Barnett. The first non-Native American settler of the land within the eventual town limits was Moses Knapp, who built a log house at the confluence of North Fork Creek and Sandy Lick Creek (which form Redbank Creek) in 1801.

The 105th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, also known as the Wildcat Regiment, was a volunteer infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Geography

Brookville is located in west-central Jefferson County, at the confluence of the North Fork and Sandy Lick Creek, forming Redbank Creek, a westward-flowing tributary of the Allegheny River.

U.S. Route 322 (Main Street) passes through the center of town. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 8.3 km2, of which 8.1 sqkm are land and 0.2 sqkm, or 2.83%, are water.

Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 4,230 people, 1,849 households, and 1,140 families residing in the borough. The population density was 1,312.6 PD/sqmi. There were 1,976 housing units at an average density of 613.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the borough was 98.35% White, 0.26% African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.71% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.47% of the population.

There were 1,849 households, out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.3% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the borough, the population was spread out, with 22.0% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 20.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 83.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.2 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $30,843, and the median income for a family was $38,438. Males had a median income of $29,940 versus $20,395 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $18,437. About 9.1% of families and 13.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.1% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

Historic district

Main article: Brookville Historic District (Brookville, Pennsylvania)

Education

Brookville Area School District provides kindergarten through 12th grade public education including Brookville Area Jr./Sr. High School.

Arts and culture

The Brookville Historic District, Brookville Presbyterian Church and Manse, Gray-Taylor House, Joseph E. Hall House, and Phillip Taylor House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Brookville has hosted the annual Western Pennsylvania Laurel Festival in June since 1957.

Notable people

• James G. Arner, judge
• Jack Arthurs, politician
• DeVeren Bookwalter, actor and director
• Carl C. Cable, engineer
• Thomas Canning, composer
• Mal Eason, baseball player
• James C. Harding, colonel
• Andy Hastings, American football player
• George A. Jenks, politician
• Bob Olderman, American football player
• Lewis Earle Sandt, pilot
• Bob Shawkey, baseball player
• Nathan Smith, golfer
• Albert C. Thompson, politician

References

References

1. "Government".
2. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau.
3. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Brookville borough, Pennsylvania (revision r48015, 10-10-2012)". U.S. Census Bureau.
4. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
5. Barnett, Andy. "Joseph Barnett". Reocities.com.
6. Knapp, Ernest O.. (April 27, 2005). "KNAPP, Moses 1778 - 1847". USGenWeb Archives.
7. McKnight, William James. (1917). "Jefferson County, Pennsylvania: Her Pioneers and People, 1800-1915". J.H. Beers & Company.
8. Scott, Kate M.. (1888). "History of Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers". D. Mason & Co..
9. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
10. "Census of Population and Housing". U.S. Census Bureau.
11. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau.
12. "Jeff Tech - Home".
13. {{NRISref
14. Shindledecker, Scott. "Brookville to Host 59th Annual Laurel Festival".