Shoemakersville is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,378 at the 2010 census, a decline from the figure of 2,124 tabulated in

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

History

Shoemakersville was named for the first settlers, Henry and Charles Shoemaker. It was a thriving apparel manufacturing town. The

Merit Underwear Company The Merit Underwear Company is an historic, American factory building that is located in Shoemakersville, Berks County, Pennsylvania, USA. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. History and architectural features Built ...

factory was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. The borough is home of the "Shoey Green Sox" Little League baseball team.

Geography

Shoemakersville is located in northern Berks County at (40.500042, -75.969047), on the east bank of the Schuylkill River. According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of , of which , or 3.96%, is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,124 people, 605 households, and 402 families residing in the borough. The population density was 4,272.8 people per square mile (1,640.2/km²). There were 638 housing units at an average density of 1,283.5 per square mile (492.7/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 92.84% White, 2.97% African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.52%

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 ...

, 2.87% from other races, and 0.52% from two or more races. Hispanic or

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 6.73% of the population. There were 604 households, out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.6% 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, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.6% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.87. In the borough the population was spread out, with 16.0% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 25.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.2 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $37,981, and the median income for a family was $47,917. Males had a median income of $30,833 versus $24,083 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $15,756. About 4.0% of families and 17.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.

Commerce

In 2018, there wer
306 businesses
located in Shoemakersville. Th
Glen-Gery
Brick Corporation, which began in Wyomissing, PA, in the 1890s moved their main manufacturing plant to its Pottsville Pike location in the early 20th century. It remains a major employment provider.

Education

Perry Elementary
is located on Fourth Street in Shoemakersville, and it is one of two elementary schools in the

Hamburg Area School District The Hamburg Area School District is a small, rural/suburban public school district serving parts of Berks County, Pennsylvania. It encompasses the communities of Shoemakersville, Perry Twp, Windsor Twp, Hamburg, Tilden Twp, Upper Bern Twp, ...

. Perry has a student to teacher ratio of 22:1, serving 380 students in grades kindergarten through fifth.

Police force

Currently, Shoemakersville is served by the

Pennsylvania State Police The Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) is the state police agency of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, responsible for statewide law enforcement. The Pennsylvania State Police is a full service law enforcement agency which handles both traffic and cr ...

- Hamburg Barracks. The borough had its own independent police force from 1924 until June 2006, when it was disbanded by the Borough Council due to funding issues.

Transportation

Pennsylvania Route 61 Pennsylvania Route 61 (PA 61) is an state highway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The route is signed on a north–south direction, running from U.S. Route 222 Business (US 222 Bus.) in Reading northwest to US 11/US 15/ ...

passes through the borough, leading south to Reading, and north to Interstate 78/ U.S. Route 22 in Hamburg.

Pennsylvania Route 662 Pennsylvania Route 662 (PA 662) is a state highway located in Berks County in eastern Pennsylvania. Its southern terminus is at U.S. Route 422 (US 422) in Douglassville and its northern terminus is at PA 61 in Shoemakersville. The route is a t ...

begins at PA 61 on the eastern border of Shoemakersville and heads southeast to an intersection with U.S. Route 222 in Moselem Springs and Fleetwood.

Berks Area Regional Transportation Authority Berks Area Regional Transportation Authority (BARTA), previously Berks Area Reading Transportation Authority, is a public transportation system serving the city of Reading and its surrounding area of Berks County, Pennsylvania. The South Central T ...

(BARTA) provides bus service to Shoemakersville along Route 20, which follows PA 61 on its route between Hamburg to the north and the

BARTA Transportation Center Berks Area Regional Transportation Authority (BARTA), previously Berks Area Reading Transportation Authority, is a public transportation system serving the city of Reading and its surrounding area of Berks County, Pennsylvania. The South Central T ...

in Reading to the south. SEPTA's

Pottsville Line The Pottsville line was a commuter rail service in the Delaware Valley, connecting Pottsville, Reading, and Pottstown with Philadelphia. It was the last vestige of passenger service on the former Reading main line. The service lasted into the SE ...

once provided passenger rail service to Shoemakersville, with service to

Pottsville Pottsville usually refers to the city of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Pottsville may also refer to: Other communities *Pottsville, New South Wales, Australia *Pottsville, Arkansas, United States *Pottsville, Kentucky, United ...

, Reading, and Philadelphia. The service ceased in 1981 after all diesel services were cancelled. Freight service in Shoemakersville is provided by the Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad, which operates a branch line between Hamburg and Temple through Shoemakersville and its

Reading Division The Reading Division is a rail line owned and operated by the Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The line runs from Reading, Pennsylvania north and east to Packerton, Pennsylvania along former Reading C ...

mainline through West Shoemakersville.

Gallery

File:Merit Underwear 2 Shoemakersville BerksCo PA.JPG,

. File:Ollie's Tavern, Shoemakersville BerksCo PA.JPG, Ollie's Tavern on Main St. File:Salem UMC, Shoemakersville BerksCo PA.JPG, Salem UMC.

References

External links

* {{authority control Populated places established in 1921 Boroughs in Berks County, Pennsylvania Populated places on the Schuylkill River 1921 establishments in Pennsylvania