Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania

History

Pine Grove was officially incorporated in 1832.

European settlement of the area by German Palatines, however, pre-dates this official founding date by at least several decades. Historical records document the Jacob Gunkle building was Lutheran church in the area as early as 1782.

The historic Nutting Hall was built between 1823 and 1825. Both Nutting Hall and the surrounding Pine Grove Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The 335-seat Pine Grove Theatre, which is also part of the Pine Grove Historic District, opened in 1910 and is still up and running {2021}.

Geography

Swatara Creek, a tributary of the Susquehanna River, runs through Pine Grove.

A 22 mi feeder branch of the Union Canal connected the Swatara Creek at Pine Grove to Union Water Works between 1830 (or 1832) and 1862, until its destruction when the Swatara flooded in June 1862. The branch canal was used to ship anthracite and supply water to the Water Works. Parts of Swatara State Park are located along the Swatara Creek within Pine Grove.

Demographics

At the 2000 census, there were 2,154 people,877 households, and 558 families residing in the borough. The population density was 1,997.0 PD/sqmi. There were 937 housing units at an average density of 868.7 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the borough was 98.75% White, 0.14% African American, 0.00% Native American, 0.51% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.09% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races. 0.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 877 households, 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.3% were non-families. 30.9% of households were one person, and 17.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.98.

In Pine Grove, the population was spread out, with 21.9% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% 65 or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.

The median household income was $35,865 and the median family income was $49,737. Males had a median income of $31,369 versus $21,818 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $19,547. 5.9% of the population and 2.6% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 2.9% are under the age of 18 and 5.6% are 65 or older.

Education

The school district is Pine Grove Area School District.

Notable people

• Susan Manbeck Corbett, wife of former Pennsylvania governor Tom Corbett and first lady of Pennsylvania
• David Horst, professional soccer player, Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer
• Conrad Richter, novelist
• Richard "Dick" Wheeler, author and historian

References

References

1. "Pine Grove Borough Officials".
2. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau.
3. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau.
4. "City and Town Population Totals: 2020—2021". US Census Bureau.
5. (2020). "About Us - Pine Grove Borough".
6. "[https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/e04b2f_98d5cf6bd4034a71883d30a39d3d4d8d.pdf 200 Years at Saint Peter's: Celebrating God's for All Creation]." Pine Grove, Pennsylvania: Saint Peter's Church, retrieved online August 23, 2019.
7. Margery Wheeler Mattox. (n.d.). "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania". CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System.
8. {{NRISref
9. Gabrielle Ramsauer and William Sisson. (1987). "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania". CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System.
10. Zerbe, Leah. (January 4, 2021). "New wetland gives Pine Grove gift of dry basements". Pottsville Republican Herald.
11. "Census of Population and Housing". U.S. Census Bureau.
12. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
13. "Incorporated Places and Minor Civil Divisions Datasets: Subcounty Resident Population Estimates: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012". U.S. Census Bureau.
14. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Schuylkill County, PA". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
15. "[https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/schuylkill/obituary.aspx?n=richard-wheeler-dick&pid=119431703 Richard 'Dick' Wheeler]" (obituary). Pottsville, Pennsylvania: ''Republican & Herald'', October 27, 2008 (retrieved online via Legacy.com, August 24, 2019).
16. Moskin, J. Robert. "[https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/entertainment/books/1983/12/18/to-the-sound-of-iwo-jima/7edf2624-9073-48db-a06f-92465b560a5c/ To the Sound of Iwo Jima]." Washington, D.C.: ''The Washington Post'', December 18, 1983.