Parker is a city located in

Armstrong County, Pennsylvania Armstrong County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,558. The county seat is Kittanning. The county was organized on March 12, 1800, from parts of Allegheny, Westmoreland and Lycom ...

, United States. It is in the extreme northwestern portion of the county. The population was 695 at the 2020 census. The city was named for Judge John Parker, a lead surveyor of Lawrenceburg and founder/owner of Parker's Landing, the two villages combined to create Parker. Parker is sometimes referred to as the "Smallest City in the USA". Parker was incorporated as a city on March 1, 1873, by special state legislation in the midst of the northwestern Pennsylvania

oil boom An oil boom is a period of large inflow of income as a result of high global oil prices or large oil production in an economy. Generally, this short period initially brings economic benefits, in terms of increased GDP growth, but might later lead ...

. The new municipality was called "Parker" and made up the earlier villages of Parker's Landing (on the Allegheny River) and Lawrenceburg (on the bluff above the river). Residents assumed that Parker would quickly become a major population center, and at the height of the oil boom, the population of Parker grew to over 20,000. The boom quickly went bust, however, and by the 1880s the "city" returned to its historic small village size—a population of approximately 1,000. Parker received national attention again in 2014 when a massive

ice jam Ice jams occur when the ice that is drifting down-current in a river comes to a stop, for instance, at a river bend, when it contacts the river bed in a shallow area, or against bridge piers. Doing so increases the resistance to flow, thereby in ...

along the Allegheny River formed and started some minor flooding. The jam was so massive that it attracted tourists to the area, and a local bar even named a drink after the ice jam. The ice jam was severe enough that the

National Weather Service The National Weather Service (NWS) is an Government agency, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weathe ...

issued a

flood warning A flood warning or flood alert is the task of making use of flood forecasts to make decisions about whether warnings should be issued to the general public or if previous warnings should be rescinded or retracted. The task of providing warning f ...

for the area in case the ice started melting.

Transportation

;Roads There are two highways that pass through Parker. From the east, PA 268 goes right through downtown, then proceeds north towards Foxburg, and Emlenton. There is also an intersection with PA 368 at the Parker Bridge.

;Waterways The

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ; ; ) is a tributary of the Ohio River that is located in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. It runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border, nor ...

, at this point is not used to transport goods and materials, but is still a navigable waterway for

boating Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, suc ...

. The first lock,

Allegheny River Lock and Dam No. 9 Allegheny River Lock and Dam No. 9 is a historic Lock (water transport), lock and fixed-crest dam complex located at Madison Township, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Madison Township and Washington Township, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Washin ...

, is located south of Parker, just past the borough of East Brady.

Geography

Parker is located at (41.094151, −79.682771). 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 city has a total area of , all land.

Surrounding and adjacent neighborhoods

Parker has two land borders, with the townships of Hovey to the north and

Perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

to the south. Across the Allegheny River to the east, Parker runs adjacent with Clarion County's Perry Township with a direct connection via Parker Bridge.

Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 799 people, 309 households, and 221 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 356 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.12% White and 1.88% African American. There were 309 households, out of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.9% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.09. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.0% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 21.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,844, and the median income for a family was $35,250. Males had a median income of $28,750 versus $21,875 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 city was $14,627. About 10.2% of families and 9.8% 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 9.7% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

History

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

called Parker's Landing was established in 1871. In 1894, its name was changed to Parkers Landing and in 1950, the name was changed to Parker. It remains in operation to the present. Parker appears in the 1876 Atlas of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania.

Cemeteries

*Grand Army of the Republic Cemetery *Parker Presbyterian Cemetery

References

External links

City website
{{authority control Cities in Pennsylvania Populated places established in 1836 Pittsburgh metropolitan area Cities in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania 1836 establishments in Pennsylvania