Shipoke (SHY-poke) is a
neighborhood
A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural area, ...
in
Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania. Shipoke is delineated by
I-83 to the south, Washington Street to the north, Second Street to the east, and the
Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...
to the west. It is Harrisburg Ward number one. Compared to the area of Harrisburg's other neighborhoods, Shipoke is small.
History
Shipoke was first settled by Europeans in 1710 as a small trading post before other areas of the current city. It was here that the
Harris Ferry and Tavern was originally located, which is the origin of the name Harrisburg. Because all of the neighborhood lies within the
flood plain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
of the
Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...
, most major storms lead to dangerous flooding in this area. After historic cycles of falling into disrepair, Shipoke was devastated by the flooding associated with
Hurricane Agnes
Hurricane Agnes in 1972 was the costliest hurricane to hit the United States at the time, causing an estimated $2.1 billion in damage. The hurricane's death toll was 128. The effects of Agnes were widespread, from the Caribbean to Canada, ...
in 1972. Many of the
Victorian
Victorian or Victorians may refer to:
19th century
* Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign
** Victorian architecture
** Victorian house
** Victorian decorative arts
** Victorian fashion
** Victorian literature ...
houses were abandoned after, and they were sold to developers for nominal costs. "Pancake Row" is a historic section of Carpenter Gothic row houses along Conoy Street built in 1888 by Jacob Pancake of Trullinger & Co. lumber. In more recent times, an electrical fire, caused by an ice flood, destroyed most of the houses in 1996, but the houses were restored and reconstructed through a citywide effort. More recently, the remnants of
Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and
Tropical Storm Lee The name Lee has been used for seven tropical cyclones worldwide. In the Atlantic, it replaced the name '' Lenny''.
In the Atlantic:
* Tropical Storm Lee (2005), a short-lived, minimal tropical storm
* Tropical Storm Lee (2011), a strong tropical ...
in 2011 led to severe flooding and damage in this area. After years of rehabilitation, Shipoke now is a picturesque, affluent neighborhood known for its beautiful river views. A number of festivals are held annually in
Riverfront Park along the river near Shipoke.
In 2018, historian and author Dr. Michael L. Barton wrote a satire fiction book of the neighborhood entitled ''Shitepoke: Venice on the Susquehanna''.
See also
*
List of Harrisburg neighborhoods
*
Dock Street Dam
The Dock Street Dam is a low-head dam that crosses the Susquehanna River between the Shipoke neighborhood of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on the east shore and Lemoyne on the west shore. It is constructed of hollow reinforced concrete buttress da ...
References
{{Reflist
Neighborhoods in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania