Washington Township 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 ...

in Westmoreland County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, United States. It was founded in 1789 from Salem Township. At that time, it included the present-day municipalities of Allegheny, Lower Burrell, Upper Burrell, and most of

Bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...

. In

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, the population of Washington Twp was 6,887.

History

The John Walter Farmstead was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1995.

Geography

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 32.6 square miles (84.4 km²), of which 31.7 square miles (82.1 km²) is land and 0.9 square mile (2.3 km²) (2.67%) is water.

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 7,384 people, 2,809 households, and 2,151 families living in the township. The population density was . There were 2,961 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 99.00%

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 ...

, 0.60%

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 ...

, 0.03%

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

, 0.09% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.19% 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 0.24% of the population. There were 2,809 households, out of which 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.2% 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, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.4% were non-families. 20.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 2.96. The population distribution by age was as follows: 22.3% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 28.2% from 45 to 64, and 17.1% aged 65 years or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 97.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males. The median income for a household in the township was $40,908, and the median income for a family was $48,508. Males had a median income of $39,265 versus $26,900 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 $19,804. About 5.0% of families and 7.5% 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 11.0% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

Industry

Natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...

is extracted from shale formations in the area through

hydraulic fracturing Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, fracing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of Formation (geology), formations in bedrock by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the ...

(commonly known as "fracking"). As of January 2022, about 40 Marcellus Shale gas wells were located in the township. A shale gas well blowout occurred in the township in 2019. CNX Natural Gas Co LLC was fined $175,000 for environmental violations associated with the incident.

Coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

was once a significant industry in the area. Deep mining was done underneath most of Washington Township, and strip mining took place near Beaver Run. The Roaring Run underground coal mine, constructed around 1905 by F. M. Graff, spanned Washington and Bell townships. Built to work the Freeport coal seam, by 1940 it employed approximately 300 miners, producing 1,500 tons of coal a day.

Education

Kiski Area School District The Kiski Area School District is a large, suburban/rural public school district located in Westmoreland County Pennsylvania. The district encompasses approximately and consists of nine municipalities in Armstrong and Westmoreland counties ...

References

External links

Township websiteTownship Map
{{Authority control Townships in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania 1789 establishments in Pennsylvania