Lower Paxton is a

township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

Dauphin County, Pennsylvania Dauphin County (; Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: Daffin Kaundi) is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the populati ...

, United States. The population was 53,514 at the 2020 census. It is the most populous municipality in Dauphin County and the 17th-most populated municipality in the state. Lower Paxton Township is located southwest of

Allentown Allentown may refer to: Places * Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California * Allentown, Georgia, a city in four counties in Georgia * Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Tazewell County * Allentown, New Jersey, a boroug ...

, northeast of

Harrisburg Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...

, and northwest of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. The township was incorporated in 1767 from Paxton Township.

History

In 1729, the Paxtang Township was established within Lancaster County. The spelling "Paxtang" is from the original American Indian name ''Peshtank'', which meant "standing water". Today the word "Paxton" is used instead of Paxtang. On March 4, 1785, the boundaries of Paxtang Township also became the borders of Dauphin County, split from Lancaster County. "Dauphin" refers to the

Dauphin of France Dauphin of France (, also ; ), originally Dauphin of Viennois (''Dauphin de Viennois''), was the title given to the heir apparent to the throne of France from 1350 to 1791, and from 1824 to 1830. The word ''dauphin'' is French for dolphin and ...

, heir apparent to the French throne, whose country the area government wanted to honor for its assistance in the Revolutionary War. About two years later in August 1787 the legislature began to splinter Paxtang Township, first into Upper Paxtang, Middle Paxtang, and Lower Paxtang. In the years after Dauphin County was established, the township was slowly divided. Hanover Township was cut off to the east in 1736, and Upper Paxton Township was cut off to the north in 1767. What remained in 1767 was then renamed Lower Paxton Township. The divisions continued. Harrisburg Borough, now the city of

, was formed in 1791, and Swatara Township was created in 1799. In 1878, more land was cut off the north and became Middle Paxton Township. Lower Paxtang Township embraced the areas now occupied by Lower Swatara, Swatara, Lower Paxton,

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

, and Susquehanna townships. Lower Paxton has remained the same area since Susquehanna Township was formed from it on May 1, 1815.

Geography

Lower Paxton Township is located in south-central Dauphin County, bordered by Susquehanna Township to the west, Middle Paxton Township to the north, West Hanover and South Hanover townships to the east, and Swatara Township to the south. The eastern border of Lower Paxton Township is formed by Beaver Creek, a south-flowing tributary of

Swatara Creek Swatara Creek (nicknamed the Swatty) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 8, 2011 tributary of the Susquehanna River in east-central Pennsylvania in the United S ...

, which flows to the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...

. The northern border of the township follows or is close to the crest of Blue Mountain, the southernmost ridge of the

Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands division. The physiographic province is divided into three se ...

in this region. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the township has a total area of 28.1 square miles (72.8 km), all of it land. There are four

unincorporated communities An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

, all of which are

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

s, in Lower Paxton Township. Linglestown (population 6,334) is in the northeast part of the township, Paxtonia (population 5,412) is in the center, Colonial Park (population 13,229) is in the west and southwest, and a small portion of

Progress Progress is movement towards a perceived refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. It is central to the philosophy of progressivism, which interprets progress as the set of advancements in technology, science, and social organization effic ...

is in the far west, though it is mainly in Susquehanna Township.

Interstate 83 Interstate 83 (I-83) is an Interstate Highway located in the states of Maryland and Pennsylvania in the Eastern United States. Its southern terminus is at a signalized intersection with Fayette Street in Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland; its ...

runs through the western part of the township, terminating at

Interstate 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 Interstate 40, I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee, Dandridge, Tennessee; its nort ...

, which crosses the center of the township from west to east. I-83 access in the township is from Exit 50 ( U.S. Route 22/Jonestown Road) and Exit 48 (Union Deposit Road), while I-81 access is from Exit 72, between Linglestown and Paxtonia.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 44,424 people, 18,584 households, and 12,153 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 19,606 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 86.51%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 8.28%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.10% Native American, 2.69% Asian, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.04% from other races, and 1.35% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 2.37% of the population. There were 18,584 households, out of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.92. In the township the population was spread out, with 22.5% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 30.9% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males. The median income for a household in the township was $49,566, and the median income for a family was $61,017. Males had a median income of $41,147 versus $30,837 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the township was $26,116. About 3.2% of families and 4.1% 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 ...

, including 5.0% of those under age 18 and 2.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Children in the township attend the Central Dauphin School District.

References

External links

Lower Paxton Township official websiteLinglestown Gazette
online news service {{coord, 40, 20, 00, N, 76, 47, 59, W, type:city_region:US-PA_source:GNIS-enwiki, display=title 1767 establishments in Pennsylvania Harrisburg–Carlisle metropolitan statistical area Townships in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania Townships in Pennsylvania