New Wilmington 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 northern

Lawrence County, Pennsylvania Lawrence County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 86,070. The county seat and largest city is New Castle. The county was created on March 20, 1849, from parts of Beaver and Mercer cou ...

, United States, first

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted in 1824 and established as a borough on April 9, 1863. The population was 2,097 at the 2020 census. It is home to Westminster College and serves the

Old Order Amish The Amish (, also or ; ; ), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss and Alsatian origins. As they maintain a degree of separation from surrounding populations, and ho ...

community in the surrounding Wilmington Township. It is 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 town of New Wilmington was established in 1797–1798. In 1824, the first house was built and other buildings were soon erected. In 1847 an Amish settlement was established between New Wilmington and

Volant Volant may refer to: * Volant (heraldry), an attitude of heraldry, a position of a bird emblazoned as a charge, supporter or crest *Flying and gliding animals A number of animals are capable of aerial locomotion, either by powered flight or b ...

. On April 4, 1863, New Wilmington was established as a half-Borough, and on April 9, 1873, it was made a full borough. The population in 1874 was 500. As of the 2000 census, the population had grown to 2,452, which included 1,315 residents and 1,137 college students. A book on the complete history of New Wilmington was penned in 1999, which may be viewed at the Westminster College Library. The book includes 12 chapters of history, starting in 1797, and has over 100 photographs. In the fall of 2014, community members led by mayor Sherie Babb, formed the New Wilmington Economic Development Committee. This group was established to encourage not only economic health, but a variety of betterment initiatives around the town. In January 2016, ''LIVE New Wilmington'', a promotional campaign developed and supported by the New Wilmington Economic Development Committee (EDCOM), was officially launched. The goal of this project is to promote connection and celebration as the residents join in a community that is a hub for artists and quality education, picturesque environment, and caring neighbors. Because of this, the group has chosen to focus on these areas (arts, education, environment, people) as the pillars for nurturing and fostering growth. It is believed that these qualities are unique to the community, deserve to be recognized, and should be given a larger platform for actualization.

Geography

New Wilmington is located at (41.120713, -80.332807). 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 borough has a total area of , of which is land and , or 1.85%, is water. New Wilmington's ZIP code is 16142.

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 2,452 people, 577 households, and 324 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 611 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 98.21%

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 ...

, 0.57%

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 ...

, 0.20% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.24% from other races, and 0.33% 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 0.45% of the population. 26.0% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 12.6%

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, 11.8% Irish, 9.1% English and 7.3% Scotch-Irish ancestry according to Census 2000. 97.9% spoke English and 1.2%

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

as their first language. There were 577 households, out of which 23.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.4% 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, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.8% were non-families. 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.90. In the borough the population was spread out, with 10.4% under the age of 18, 48.5% from 18 to 24, 12.1% from 25 to 44, 12.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females there were 61.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 58.1 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $36,734, and the median income for a family was $56,736. Males had a median income of $36,250 versus $26,125 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 $12,749. About 4.2% of families and 15.6% 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 7.8% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over. New Wilmington is surrounded by farms of an Amish settlement which had 19 congregations i.e. about 2,500 people in 2013.

Education

The Wilmington Area School District serves the borough. Westminster College, Lawrence County's only private liberal arts college, is located in the borough.

Transportation

Major roads and highways

* * *

References

External links

* {{authority control Populated places established in 1824 Boroughs in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania 1863 establishments in Pennsylvania