Morton is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,778 at the 2020 census.

Geography

Morton is located in eastern Delaware County at (39.910612, -75.327273). It is bordered to the north, east, and west by Springfield Township and to the south by Ridley Township. 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 ...

, Morton has a total area of , all land.

Transportation

As of 2010, there were of public roads in Morton, of which were maintained by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and were maintained by the borough. Pennsylvania Route 420 traverses Morton, following a southeast-to-northwest alignment following Woodland Avenue through the southwestern portion of the borough. PA 420 leads north to U.S. Route 1 in Springfield Township and south to

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

in Tinicum Township.

Demographics

As of Census 2010, the racial makeup of the borough was 65.1%

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 ...

, 25.4%

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 6.0% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 2.7% 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 2.2% of the populatio

The current mayor is Amanda Hammock. 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 2,715 people, 1,145 households, and 687 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 1,209 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 69.87%

, 24.46%

, 0.07% Native American, 3.90% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 1.36% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.14% of the population. There were 1,145 households, out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.9% 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, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.0% were non-families. 34.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 3.10. In the borough the population was spread out, with 23.1% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 32.2% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 88.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $46,731, and the median income for a family was $64,271. Males had a median income of $38,720 versus $34,940 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 borough was $25,408. About 4.4% of families and 6.4% 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 ...

, including 4.4% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over.

History and prominent residents

Morton was named after Sketchley Morton, son of John Morton, a signatory of the Declaration of Independence and the delegate who cast the deciding vote in favor of American independence. In 1776, Morton became part of Ridley Township and Springfield Township. The borough houses the Morton train station, built in 1880 by Joseph Wilson of the Wilson Brothers architectural firm to serve the Morton stop on the Pennsylvania Railroad West Chester line that originated in 1854. It is currently used on the SEPTA Regional Rail Media/Wawa Line. The Piasecki Helicopter Corporation opened a manufacturing plant in Morton in 1947. The

Piasecki H-21 The Piasecki H-21 Workhorse/Shawnee is an American helicopter, the fourth of a line of tandem rotor helicopters designed and built by Piasecki Helicopter (later Boeing Vertol). Commonly called "the flying banana", it was a multi-mission helicop ...

and the Piasecki HUP-1 were both manufactured there.

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

incorporated the company in 1960, and the company moved the manufacturing to a site along the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

. The original Piasecki building is now a BJ's Wholesale Club, with the control tower on one corner. Mike Scioscia, former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

and former manager of the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

, is a native of Morton. The New York Times’ bestselling presidential historian J. Randy Taraborrelli was raised in Morton.

Education

Morton lies within the Springfield School District. The borough is served by Springfield Literacy Center (K-1), Sabold Elementary School (2-5), E.T. Richardson Middle School (6-8), and Springfield High School (9-12). The former Sidney Smedley School is now the borough hall. It was constructed in 1914 and closed in June 1979. Our Lady of Angels Regional School in Morton, Ridley Township, is the area Catholic school. It formed in 2012 from a merger of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Ridley Township and Our Lady of Fatima in Secane and in Ridley Township.

References

External links

Borough of Morton official website
{{authority control Populated places established in 1866 Boroughs in Delaware County, Pennsylvania 1866 establishments in Pennsylvania