Watsontown is a borough in Northumberland 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. The population was 2,237 at the 2020 census. It was named for John Watson, an early settler.

History

Land in the Watsontown area was first purchased by John Watson in 1792. The borough's post office was opened in 1828. There was a racetrack in Watsontown from 1830 to 1840. Railroad tracks first reached the borough in 1854. A sawmill was built in the area in 1856. Watsontown was a part of Turbot Township until its incorporation in 1867. Watsontown was an important part of a transportation network that included roads, railroads, and canals along the Susquehanna River. Watsontown served as a stop along the Underground Railroad for slaves escaping to Canada. Many businesses were located here because of this. Part of the old canal and the tow path used by mules at the time is visible along the river.

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 borough has a total area of , of which is land and (24.47%) is water. Watsontown's terrain is almost entirely flat except for a hill in the eastern part of the borough. The borough's land is mostly residential, with some forest and industrial areas. The West Branch Susquehanna River borders the western part of Watsontown. The borough is served by Pennsylvania Route 44 and Pennsylvania Route 405.

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 2,254 people, 967 households, and 591 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 1,017 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 98.66%

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 ...

, 0.40%

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 ...

, 0.18% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.13%

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 ...

, 0.09% from other races, and 0.40% 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 0.35% of the population. There are currently 8 registered sex offenders residing within the borough. There were 967 households, out of which 25.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.5% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.8% were non-families. 33.2% 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 2.21 and the average family size was 2.81. In the borough the population was spread out, with 21.1% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 21.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 79.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.6 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $31,094, and the median income for a family was $37,065. Males had a median income of $30,648 versus $20,972 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 $16,110. About 8.4% of families and 11.2% 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 15.7% of those under age 18 and 10.6% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

The Watsontown River Bridge is 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 ...

. The Watsontown Theater operated from 1940 to 2009.

References

External links

* Th
Dr. Van Fleet Climbing Rose
was created in Watsontown by Dr. Walter Van Fleet, a resident botanist. {{authority control Pennsylvania populated places on the Susquehanna River Populated places established in 1794 Boroughs in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania 1858 establishments in Pennsylvania