Forty Fort, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Forty Fort is a borough in Luzerne County
, Pennsylvania
, United States
. The population was 4,579 at the 2000 census. It neighbors the boroughs of Kingston
, Wyoming
, and Swoyersville
. The Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley Airport
and the Susquehanna River
dike are both located in the borough.
and in the American Revolution. In the vicinity of this fort occurred, in 1778, the Battle of Wyoming.
Forty Fort is home to perhaps the oldest building known in northeastern Pennsylvania
, the Forty Fort Meetinghouse
, located in the borough's cemetery. The meeting house was built in 1806-08. In late October, 2005, Forty Fort's Wyoming Seminary Lower School
launched a successful attempt to save the building from damage and preserve it as a recollection of past historic memories of Forty Fort. Forty Fort also hosts the historical Nathan Denison house. Denison served as colonel of the militia for the area during the American Revolution
.
Forty Fort has a strong council/weak mayor form of government
. Boyd Hoats Jr. is the current Mayor. The current Mayor's father, Boyd Hoats, Sr. died in 2005 after a courageous battle with cancer. His son was appointed by the Borough Council to fill the remainder of his father's term and was he later elected on his own to his current term.
Forty Fort has a proud sporting history including the Forty Fort Flyers double overtime championship game against the West Pittston Rams in 1980.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the borough has a total area of 1.5 square miles (3.9 km²), of which, 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square mile (0.517997622 km²) of it (12.99%) is water.
of 2000, there were 4,579 people, 1,989 households, and 1,261 families residing in the borough. The population density
was 3,418.3 people per square mile (1,319.4/km²). There were 2,098 housing units at an average density of 1,566.2 per square mile (604.5/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.47% White, 0.50% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.17% from other races
, and 0.41% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.52% of the population.
There were 1,989 households out of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.6% were married couples
living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the borough the population was spread out with 20.5% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 86.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.9 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $40,306, and the median income for a family was $50,667. Males had a median income of $36,696 versus $29,199 for females. The per capita income
for the borough was $20,558. About 5.4% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.7% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.
Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
- Demographics :As of the 2010 census, the county was 90.7% White, 3.4% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 3.3% were of some other race, and 1.5% were two or more races. 6.7% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino ancestry...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 4,579 at the 2000 census. It neighbors the boroughs of Kingston
Kingston, Pennsylvania
Kingston is a municipality located in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, on the Susquehanna River opposite Wilkes Barre. Kingston was incorporated as a borough in 1857. Kingston has adopted a home rule charter which became effective in January 1976. It is part of the greater metropolitan...
, Wyoming
Wyoming, Pennsylvania
Wyoming is a borough in the Greater Pittston area of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States five miles north of Wilkes Barre, on the Susquehanna River. Formerly, coal mining was the chief industry. In 1900, 1,909 people resided in Wyoming. There were 3,010 residents in 1910...
, and Swoyersville
Swoyersville, Pennsylvania
Swoyersville is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 5,157 at the 2000 census. Swoyersville is located within the Wyoming Valley West School District.-History:...
. The Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley Airport
Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley Airport
Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley Airport is a public airport located in Forty Fort, Pennsylvania, 3 miles north of the city of Wilkes-Barre in the Wyoming Valley region of northeastern Pennsylvania.- Facilities :...
and the Susquehanna River
Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At long, it is the longest river on the American east coast that drains into the Atlantic Ocean, and with its watershed it is the 16th largest river in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United...
dike are both located in the borough.
History
Forty Fort was named for a Revolutionary War era fort that the town's original settlers built; there were forty of these settlers from Connecticut, so the town was later named Forty Fort. Forty Fort was prominent in the Pennamite-Yankee WarPennamite-Yankee War
The Pennamite-Yankee War was the intermittent conflict between 1769 and 1799 between settlers from Connecticut who claimed the land along the North Branch of the Susquehanna River in the present Wyoming Valley, and settlers from Pennsylvania who laid claim to the same lands.-Grants to Connecticut...
and in the American Revolution. In the vicinity of this fort occurred, in 1778, the Battle of Wyoming.
Forty Fort is home to perhaps the oldest building known in northeastern Pennsylvania
Northeastern Pennsylvania
Northeastern Pennsylvania is a geographic region of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains and the industrial cities of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Hazleton and Carbondale....
, the Forty Fort Meetinghouse
Forty Fort Meetinghouse
Forty Fort Meetinghouse is a historic meeting house at River Street and Wyoming Avenue in the Old Forty Fort Cemetery in Forty Fort, Pennsylvania....
, located in the borough's cemetery. The meeting house was built in 1806-08. In late October, 2005, Forty Fort's Wyoming Seminary Lower School
Wyoming Seminary
Wyoming Seminary, founded in 1844 and currently led by President Kip P. Nygren, is a private college preparatory school located in the Wyoming Valley of Northeastern Pennsylvania, in Kingston and Forty Fort It is near the Susquehanna River and the city of Wilkes-Barre...
launched a successful attempt to save the building from damage and preserve it as a recollection of past historic memories of Forty Fort. Forty Fort also hosts the historical Nathan Denison house. Denison served as colonel of the militia for the area during the American Revolution
Revolution
A revolution is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time.Aristotle described two types of political revolution:...
.
Forty Fort has a strong council/weak mayor form of government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
. Boyd Hoats Jr. is the current Mayor. The current Mayor's father, Boyd Hoats, Sr. died in 2005 after a courageous battle with cancer. His son was appointed by the Borough Council to fill the remainder of his father's term and was he later elected on his own to his current term.
Forty Fort has a proud sporting history including the Forty Fort Flyers double overtime championship game against the West Pittston Rams in 1980.
Transportation
- The lengthy, famous U.S. Highway 11 that stretches out from Canada to Louisiana runs across Forty Fort on Wyoming Avenue, which is the longest non-highway road in all of northeastern PennsylvaniaNortheastern PennsylvaniaNortheastern Pennsylvania is a geographic region of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains and the industrial cities of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Hazleton and Carbondale....
. - Forty Fort is home to the Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley AirportWilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley AirportWilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley Airport is a public airport located in Forty Fort, Pennsylvania, 3 miles north of the city of Wilkes-Barre in the Wyoming Valley region of northeastern Pennsylvania.- Facilities :...
, a public facility serving mainly general aviation aircraft.
Education
Three schools are located in Forty Fort:- Wyoming Seminary Lower SchoolWyoming SeminaryWyoming Seminary, founded in 1844 and currently led by President Kip P. Nygren, is a private college preparatory school located in the Wyoming Valley of Northeastern Pennsylvania, in Kingston and Forty Fort It is near the Susquehanna River and the city of Wilkes-Barre...
, a private school suited for pre-K-8th grade - Dana Street Elementary Center, a public elementary school, part of the Wyoming Valley West School District
- Apple Tree Nursery and Primary School, private school
Geography
Forty Fort is located at 41°17′0"N 75°52′24"W.According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the borough has a total area of 1.5 square miles (3.9 km²), of which, 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square mile (0.517997622 km²) of it (12.99%) is water.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 4,579 people, 1,989 households, and 1,261 families residing in the borough. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 3,418.3 people per square mile (1,319.4/km²). There were 2,098 housing units at an average density of 1,566.2 per square mile (604.5/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.47% White, 0.50% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.17% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.41% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.52% of the population.
There were 1,989 households out of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the borough the population was spread out with 20.5% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 86.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.9 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $40,306, and the median income for a family was $50,667. Males had a median income of $36,696 versus $29,199 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the borough was $20,558. About 5.4% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.7% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.