Rice Township is a township in

Luzerne County Luzerne County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is Northeastern Pennsylvania's second-largest county by total area. As of ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, United States. The population was 3,626 at the 2020 census. WingFest Rice Township is home to many annual events. One in particular is held around the second weekend in October. Many gather for a Wingfest which has grown over the years. The fest includes daylong activities and nighttime shenanigans. Champions defend their crown for the best wing sauce. Wingfest was postponed due to Covid. It resumed in 2022. 2024 will mark the 10th Anniversary of WingFest.

History

The first recorded white settler in the vicinity of modern-day Rice Township was Conrad Wickeiser in 1798. Samuel B. Stivers and William Vandermark were the first known white settlers in what is now Rice Township. Additional settlers entered the territory and constructed the first houses and

sawmills A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

. The first

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

house was erected in 1840. Rice Township was originally part of

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

and

Wright Wright is an occupational surname originating in England. The term 'Wright' comes from the circa 700 AD Old English word 'wryhta' or 'wyrhta', meaning worker or shaper of wood. Later it became any occupational worker (for example, a shipwright is ...

Townships. Hanover was granted to Captain Lazarus Stewart in 1770. On April 12, 1851, Wright Township was formed from a segment of Hanover Township; it was named after the Hon. Hendrick B. Wright of

Wilkes-Barre Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the secon ...

. Rice Township was officially established in 1928 from a piece of Wright Township. In the 1920s and 30s, a major industry in Rice Township was the harvesting of ice, which was sold in both Wilkes-Barre and

Hazleton Hazleton may refer to: Places * Hazleton, British Columbia, Canada * Hazleton, Gloucestershire, a village in Gloucestershire, England ** Hazleton long barrows, Neolithic burial mounds at Hazleton, Gloucestershire, England ** Hazleton Abbey, a me ...

. The ice industry faded with the growing popularity of the electric

refrigerator A refrigerator, colloquially fridge, is a commercial and home appliance consisting of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump (mechanical, electronic or chemical) that transfers heat from its inside to its external environment so th ...

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the township has a total area of , of which is land and , or 2.24%, is water. Rice is part of the Mountain Top region of Luzerne County.

I-81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...

travels north to south through the western half of the township. Homes, businesses, thick forests, and lakes (e.g., Boyle Pond, Lake Blytheburn, Laurel Lakes, and The Ice Ponds) make up most of the municipality. There are several neighborhoods in Rice (one of which is Laurel Lakes). There are also several streams in the township (e.g.,

Big Wapwallopen Creek Big Wapwallopen Creek (also known as Wapwallopen Creek or Big Wap) is a tributary of the Susquehanna River in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Bear Creek Township, Pennsylvania, Be ...

Little Wapwallopen Creek Little Wapwallopen Creek is a tributary of the Susquehanna River in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Rice Township, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, Rice Township, Dorrance Township, Luz ...

, and

Nuangola Outlet Nuangola Outlet is a tributary of Little Wapwallopen Creek in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Rice Township. The watershed of the stream has an area of . Wisconsinan Till and bedrock ...

Law enforcement

Law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms governing that society. The term en ...

is provided by the Rice Township Police; they currently employ up to six full-time officers.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 2,460 people, 907 households, and 696 families living in the township. The population density was . There were 950 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 96.67%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 0.49%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 2.03%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.37% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.45% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.67% of the population. There were 907 households, out of which 37.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.2% were non-families. 19.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.14. In the township the population was spread out, with 26.7% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males. The median income for a household in the township was $52,888, and the median income for a family was $60,302. Males had a median income of $40,256 versus $24,952 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the township was $22,069. About 2.0% of families and 2.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 4.3% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

* {{authority control Townships in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Townships in Pennsylvania