Swoyersville, Pennsylvania

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Pagename
other_name =
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settlement_type = Borough
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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Pennsylvania
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Luzerne
government_footnotes =
government_type = Borough Council
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name =
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established_title = Settled
established_date =
established_title1 = Incorporated
established_date1 = 1888
area_magnitude =
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unit_pref = Imperial
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area_total_sq_mi = 2.2
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population_as_of = 2000
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population_total = 5157
population_density_km2 =
population_density_sq_mi = 2386.4
timezone = Eastern (EST)
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
latd = 41
latm = 17
lats = 41
latNS = N
longd = 75
longm = 52
longs = 36
longEW = W
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postal_code_type = Zip code
postal_code =
area_code = 570
website =
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Swoyersville is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 5,157 at the 2000 census.

The borough of Swoyersville, Pennsylvania was named for mine owner John Henry Swoyer. Originally called Swoyerville, the town held a special vote in the 1950s to decide whether to add an "s" to the town's name. The measure passed and the town name became Swoyersville.

Swoyersville's economy was formerly based on coal mining, until most of the town's mines ceased production in the 1950s. Work continued at the colliery on Main Street in Swoyersville well into the 1960s. In 1972, the town was severely flooded by Susquehanna River in the aftermath of Hurricane Agnes. There was great concern at that time, that many of the flooded abandoned mine tunnels, running underneath Swoyersville, would cave-in. Fortunately, the cave-ins never occurred.

A number of professional athletes grew up in Swoyersville, including Lou Michaels (former kicker for the Baltimore Colts), Walt Michaels (former head coach of the New York Jets), and Joe Holup (forward for the NBA's Syracuse Nationals and Detroit Pistons).

Geography

Swoyersville is located at coor dms|41|17|41|N|75|52|36|W|city (41.294602, -75.876684)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.6 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 5,157 people, 2,243 households, and 1,484 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,386.4 people per square mile (921.8/km²). There were 2,356 housing units at an average density of 1,090.3/sq mi (421.1/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 99.22% White, 0.10% African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.08% from other races, and 0.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.16% of the population.

There were 2,243 households out of which 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.8% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the borough the population was spread out with 18.5% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 23.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.4 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $30,434, and the median income for a family was $39,188. Males had a median income of $29,101 versus $26,304 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $16,449. About 10.4% of families and 10.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.3% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links