Sewickley Heights, Pennsylvania

Sewickley Heights is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 981 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Sewickley Heights is located at coor dms|40|33|40|N|80|9|20|W|city (40.561091, -80.155541)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 7.3 square miles (19.0 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 981 people, 336 households, and 273 families residing in the borough. The population density was 133.9 people per square mile (51.7/km²). There were 355 housing units at an average density of 48.5/sq mi (18.7/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 97.35% White, 0.92% African American, 0.61% Asian, 0.20% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.31% of the population.

There were 336 households out of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.0% were married couples living together, 4.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.5% were non-families. 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the borough the population was spread out with 20.6% under the age of 18, 3.5% from 18 to 24, 17.8% from 25 to 44, 30.1% from 45 to 64, and 28.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 50 years. For every 100 females there were 74.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.3 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $115,672, and the median income for a family was $158,756. Males had a median income of $89,473 versus $40,417 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $79,541 placing it at #99 on the list of highest-income places in the United States. About 5.2% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.0% of those under age 18 and 3.7% of those age 65 or over.

Culture and History

Sewickley Heights was established as a borough in 1935, however the area's character was largely established with the move of the Allegheny Country Club from Pittsburgh to its Sewickley Heights location in 1902. The establishment of the country club accelerated the settlement of the area as a haven for wealthy Pittsburgh residents. Many estates established in Sewickley Heights up through the 1930s occupied hundreds of acres with houses of immense proportions. Among the grandest estates was Thawmont, the estate of banker, shipper and investor William Thaw. Thawmont was featured in a 1903 print advertisement of the United States Battery Company that promoted electric lighting for country homes. Other notable estates included the Henry Robinson Rea residence, Farmhill, and B.F. Jones' 100-room mansion, Fairacres.

Many of the grand estates in Sewickley Heights began to fall into disrepair in the 1950s and 1960s. Many of the original massive houses were demolished and the lots subdivided. Sewickley Heights preserved the country character of the borough by requiring minimum lot sizes of convert|5|acre|m2, though many homes are on substantially larger parcels. Many "neighborhoods" of Sewickley Heights are named after the original estate and the clusters of homes on the estate parcel are marked by unique stone fences original to the old estate.

In the 1960s and 1970s, several parcels of land were donated or purchased to form the Sewickley Heights Borough park. The park now occupies approximately convert|600|acre|km2 and is renowned regionally for its hiking and horse-riding trails and other recreation areas. Sewickley Heights is also home to the Fern Hollow Nature Center and the Sewickley Heights History Center, which are co-located on a 33 acre site.

References

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