Beaver Falls, PA
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Beaver Falls is a city in
Beaver County, Pennsylvania Beaver County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 168,215. Its county seat is Beaver, and its largest city is Aliquippa. The county is part of the Greater Pittsburgh region of the commonw ...
, United States. The population was 9,005 at the 2020 census. Located 31 miles (50 km) northwest of
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
, the city lies along the Beaver River, six miles (9 km) north of its confluence with the
Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...
. It is a part of the
Pittsburgh metropolitan area Greater Pittsburgh is the metropolitan area surrounding the city of Pittsburgh in Western Pennsylvania, United States. The region includes Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County, Pittsburgh's urban core county and economic hub, and s ...
.


History

The area of present-day Beaver Falls was first mentioned in 1770 in the journals of David Zeisberger, a
Moravian Church The Moravian Church, or the Moravian Brethren ( or ), formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohemian Reformation of the 15th century and the original ...
missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...
who eventually settled in present-day Lawrence County. A
Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historica ...
chief named Pakanke took Zeisberger to the valley surrounding the Beaver River, where the Lenape owned a large tract of open land which Zeisberger was given access to. In April 1770, Zeisberger and his followers set out in 16 canoes down the Allegheny and
Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
rivers, reaching the mouth of the Beaver three days later. They made their way up to what was called the “Falls of the Beaver," where they encamped. The town originally formed around the middle falls area was named Brighton after
Brighton, England Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
, which was the hometown of the area's surveyors. Despite early promise through the
canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...
business on the falls, the town fell behind neighboring New Brighton after repeated poor economic periods. The earlier proprietors sold the land to the
Harmony Society The Harmony Society was a Christian theosophy and pietist society founded in Iptingen, Germany, in 1785. Due to religious persecution by the Lutheran Church and the government in Württemberg, the group moved to the United States,Robert Paul S ...
in 1859. The Harmonists immediately brought in surveyors to re-plan Brighton, laying out a town twice the size of the original, paving several main streets with brick and officially changing the name of the community to Beaver Falls. The rapid revitalization of the community allowed it to gain borough status on November 9, 1868. In the 1870s, Beaver Falls had a
Chinatown Chinatown ( zh, t=唐人街) is the catch-all name for an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, Asia, Africa, O ...
and had up to 225 Chinese residents, brought in to work at
Beaver Falls Cutlery Company Beaver Falls Cutlery Company, Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, is a former company which manufactured steel cutlery, razors and pocketknives. The company was founded as Binns & Mason in 1866 by skilled cutlers from Sheffield, West Riding of Yorksh ...
moved in to the borough by the Harmonists. On May 31, 1985, an F3
tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...
hit just north of the city as it went across northern portions of Beaver County, as part of the
1985 United States–Canada tornado outbreak The 1985 United States–Canada tornado outbreak, referred to as the Barrie tornado outbreak in Canada, was a major tornado outbreak that occurred in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ontario, on May 31, 1985. In all, 44 tornadoes were counted i ...
. The population declined nearly 50% between 1940 and 2000, which is attributed mostly to its central location in the
Rust Belt The Rust Belt, formerly the Steel Belt or Factory Belt, is an area of the United States that underwent substantial Deindustrialization, industrial decline in the late 20th century. The region is centered in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic (Uni ...
.


Geography


Climate

Beaver Falls experiences a
humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
with cold winters and hot summers. The hottest month is July with a mean temperature of and the coldest month is January with a mean temperature of .


Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 9,920 people, 3,798 households, and 2,259 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 4,380 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 78.82% White, 17.53% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.62% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races, and 2.37% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.06% of the population.


Government

Beaver Falls had been a third class city under the Pennsylvania local government structure until a home rule charter went into effect on January 3, 2022. The city's charter maintains a commissioned mayor-council form of government; a mayor and four city council members constitute the commission and serve as the governing body of the city. Since the 2021 election cycle, the mayor has been Kenya Johns. A
city manager A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city in the council–manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are referred to as the chief executive officer (CEO) or chief administ ...
is employed to oversee day to day operations and oversight of the city’s main departments: Administration, Department of Finance & Taxation, Department of Public Works, Fire Department, Police Department, and Community Development.


Education

Children in Beaver Falls are served by the Big Beaver Falls Area School District. The current schools serving Beaver Falls are: *Central Elementary School – grades K–5 *Beaver Falls Middle School – grades 6–8 * Beaver Falls High School – grades 9–12 Beaver Falls has been the home of
Geneva College Geneva College is a private Christian college in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1848 in Northwood, Ohio, the college moved to its present location in 1880. It enrolls about 1,400 undergraduates in over 30 majors, as wel ...
, a
private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on Undergraduate education, undergraduate study in the Liberal arts education, liberal arts of humanities and science. Such colleges aim to impart ...
, since 1880. Located in the city's College Hill neighborhood, the college has a student body of approximately 1,400 students. Their sports teams are called the Golden Tornadoes and compete as a member of the
Presidents' Athletic Conference The Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Of its 11 member schools, all private, liberal arts institutions of higher learning, nine are located in Western Penn ...
. The city has a public library, the Carnegie Free Library of Beaver Falls, which was the first dedicated library building in Beaver County. It was a financed Carnegie library, opening in 1899.


Transportation

The closest airport to the city is
Beaver County Airport Beaver County Airport or is a county-owned public airport three miles northwest of Beaver Falls, in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. Most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier for the FAA and IATA, but Beaver County Airpor ...
. Though located in
Allegheny County Allegheny County ( ) is a county in Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,250,578, making it the state's second-most populous county, after Philadelphia County. Its county seat and most populous city is Pit ...
,
Pittsburgh International Airport Pittsburgh International Airport —originally Greater Pittsburgh Airport and later Greater Pittsburgh International Airport—is a civil-military international airport in Findlay Township and Moon Township, Pennsylvania, United States. Abou ...
is within close proximity of Beaver Falls, and is easily accessible by way of
I-376 Interstate 376 (I-376) is a major auxiliary route of the Interstate Highway System in the US state of Pennsylvania, located within the Allegheny Plateau. It runs from I-80 near Sharon south and east to a junction with the Pennsylvania Turnp ...
(former PA 60). The following highways pass through Beaver Falls: * State Route 18 * State Route 588


Notable people

*
Papa John Creach John Henry Creach (May 28, 1917 – February 22, 1994), better known as Papa John Creach, was an American blues violinist who also played classical, jazz, R&B, pop and acid rock music. Early in his career, he performed as a journeyman musician w ...
, blues violinist * Darryl & Don Ellis, CMA and ACM nominated country music brother duo *
Ella M. George Ella M. George (, Martin; December 4, 1850 – March 31, 1938) was an American teacher, lecturer, and social reformer. For 25 years, she was a teacher in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A long-time leader in temperance and other moral reforms, George s ...
, teacher, lecturer, social reformer * Herbert A. Gilbert, inventor of the
electronic cigarette An electronic cigarette (e-cigarette), or vape, is a device that simulates smoking. It consists of an atomizer, a power source such as a battery, and a container such as a cartridge or tank. Instead of smoke, the user inhales vapor. As such ...
* Charles Keene, racing driver * Nate Lewis, artist *
Tony Lip Frank Anthony Vallelonga Sr. (July 30, 1930 – January 4, 2013), better known by his stage name Tony Lip, was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of crime boss Carmine Lupertazzi in the HBO series ''The Sopranos''. Lip portr ...
, actor * Thomas Midgley Jr., chemist and engineer, known for his role in the development of
leaded gasoline Gasoline (North American English) or petrol (Commonwealth English) is a petrochemical product characterized as a transparent, yellowish, and flammable liquid normally used as a fuel for spark-ignited internal combustion engines. When formulate ...
* Ryan "Archie" Miller, former NCAA Basketball coach for the
Dayton Flyers The Dayton Flyers are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Dayton of Dayton, Ohio. All Flyers intercollegiate sports teams participate at the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA Division I level. The football team ...
and
Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the demonym for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Coll ...
*
Joe Namath Joseph William Namath (; ; born May 31, 1943), nicknamed "Broadway Joe", is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for 13 seaso ...
, Hall of Fame
AFL AFL may refer to: Education * Angel Foundation for Learning, a Canadian Roman Catholic charity * Ankara Science High School, a high school in Ankara, Turkey, natively referred to as ''Ankara Fen Liesi'' * Assessment for learning Military * ...
and
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
*
Tom Tribone Thomas Tribone is the founder and CEO of Franklin Park Infrastructure Inc. Franklin Park owns and manages energy and infrastructure businesses worldwide. The firm's main operating companies are located in North and South America, India, China and ...
, energy entrepreneur, founded several major energy companies and early member of
AES Corporation The AES Corporation is an American utility and power generation company. It owns and operates power plants, which it uses to generate and sell electricity to end users and intermediaries like utilities and industrial facilities. AES, headquarte ...
*
Mike Veon Michael R. Veon (born January 19, 1957) is a former member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 14, 14th District from 1985 through 2006. Personal life Veon is a 1975 gra ...
, former member of the
Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...
, known for his involvement in the
2006 Pennsylvania General Assembly bonus controversy 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics A six-sided polygon is a hexagon, one of the three regular polygons capable of tiling the plane. A hexagon a ...
*
Joe Walton Joseph Frank Walton (December 15, 1935 – August 15, 2021) was an American professional football player and coach who retired after 20 years as the head coach and creator of the football program at Robert Morris University. Walton played eight ...
, former American football player and coach, creator and head coach of football program at
Robert Morris University Robert Morris University (RMU) is a private university in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1921 and is named after Robert Morris (financier), Robert Morris, known as the "financier of the American Revolution". It enr ...


References


External links


City website
* {{authority control Cities in Beaver County, Pennsylvania Cities in Pennsylvania Populated places established in 1868