Wampum, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Wampum is a borough in Lawrence County
, Pennsylvania
, United States
. The population was 678 at the 2000 census.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the borough has a total area of 1 square miles (2.6 km²), of which, 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it (4.17%) is water.
of 2000, there were 678 people, 290 households, and 182 families residing in the borough. The population density
was 736.1 people per square mile (284.5/km²). There were 310 housing units at an average density of 336.6 per square mile (130.1/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 97.05% White, 1.77% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.44% Asian, and 0.59% from two or more races.
There were 290 households out of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% were married couples
living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the borough the population was spread out with 23.0% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $29,205, and the median income for a family was $36,094. Males had a median income of $31,023 versus $26,071 for females. The per capita income
for the borough was $15,598. About 11.8% of families and 17.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.9% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over.
His older brother Hank was a reserve outfielder for three AL teams, and his younger brother Ron was briefly a first baseman with the 1972 St. Louis Cardinals..
Also the home of semi-professional hockey player Matthew Puntureri and US National Development Program player Stephen Johns. http://www.hockeydb.com
Wampum is also noted for its legendary High School basketball program from the 1950s where all sorts of state and national records where established and their coach L.Butler Hennon made the cover of life magazine and his son Don Hennon went on to national prominence University of Pittsburgh Panthers basketball team where he was a two-time Consensus All-American. A 5 feet 8 inches tall Hennon was noted for his prolific scoring ability and is a member of the Helms Athletic Foundation Basketball Hall of Fame .In high school, Hennon led Wampum High to an undefeated 31-0 record and a state championship in 1955. During his high school days he set a Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League four-year scoring record (1951–55) of 2,376 points that endured until 1993.
Hennon played in college at the University of Pittsburgh from 1956 to 1959 where he led the Panthers to the 1957 and 1958 NCAA Basketball Tournament. While there he became a First Team Consensus All-American selection in 1958( Elgin Baylor , Bob Boozer , Wilt Chamberlain , Oscar Robertson , Guy Rodgers and Don Hennon comprised the first team selections ) and a Second Team Consensus All-American in 1959, while being named to the United Press International and Helms Foundation first teams that season. Hennon's basketball career was highlighted by a 1957 contest where he scored a school record 45 points (scoring on 20 of 42 field goals and 4 of 5 free throws) leading Pitt to a 87-84 double-overtime victory over Duke University. He finished his career at Pitt, an era without the three point shot, as the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,841 points, and currently remains fifth on the school's all-time scoring list.
Hennon was named to the East team, coached by Adolph Rupp, of the 1959 East-West All-Star Contest.
Hennon was picked 41st by the Cincinnati Royals in the sixth-round 1959 NBA Draft, but turned down professional basketball in order to study medicine. He earned his MD in 1963 from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and went on to become a surgeon. Hennon spent time as a medical surgeon in the Army and later continued his medical career in the Pittsburgh area where he still resides. Hennon's number 10 jersey was retired by the University of Pittsburgh in 1968. He was named to the Helms Foundation Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970 and inducted into the Lawrence County Hall of Fame in 1984
In the movie Platoon
the narrator and main character mentions Wampum, Pennsylvania, as one of the small towns that U.S. soldiers in Vietnam typically hailed from.
The borough got some national attention in February 2009 when 26-year-old Kenzie Houk was murdered in nearby New Beaver Borough - which has a Wampum Zip code - and her boyfriend's 11-year-old son, Jordan Brown, was accused of killing her with a shotgun
that is legally allowed for use by children for hunting
purposes. Houk was pregnant
with her own son at the time (her third child overall, already a mother to two girls) and was expecting to give birth within the next couple of weeks. The unborn fetus also died. Despite Brown's age, by Pennsylvania state law juveniles between the ages of ten and eighteen can be charged as an adult for murder
.
Brown is currently being charged as an adult for a double homicide for both Houk and her unborn son, and if convicted could become the youngest person in United States
history to be sentenced life imprisonment
without the possibility of parole
. Because of the U.S. Supreme Court
ruling on Roper v. Simmons
in 2005, Brown will not be allowed to receive the death penalty
.
Lawrence County, Pennsylvania
Lawrence County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. In 2010, its population was 91,108. The county was added to the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area in 2003. The county seat is New Castle....
, 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 678 at the 2000 census.
Geography
Wampum is located at 40°53′19"N 80°20′23"W (40.888657, -80.339650).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 square miles (2.6 km²), of which, 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it (4.17%) 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 678 people, 290 households, and 182 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 736.1 people per square mile (284.5/km²). There were 310 housing units at an average density of 336.6 per square mile (130.1/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 97.05% White, 1.77% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.44% Asian, and 0.59% from two or more races.
There were 290 households out of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% 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, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the borough the population was spread out with 23.0% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $29,205, and the median income for a family was $36,094. Males had a median income of $31,023 versus $26,071 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 $15,598. About 11.8% of families and 17.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.9% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over.
Notable people
Richard Anthony Allen (born March 8, 1942 in Wampum, Pennsylvania) is a former Major League Baseball player. He played first and third base and outfield in Major League Baseball and ranked among his sport's top offensive producers of the 1960s and early 1970s. Most notably playing for the Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago White Sox, he led the American League in home runs twice, and led both leagues in slugging average (the AL twice) and on base percentage. His .534 career slugging average was among the highest in an era marked by low averages. He won the 1964 National League Rookie of the Year and 1972 AL MVP. He also spoke his mind, combatted racism, and bucked organizational hierarchy. Sabermetrician Bill James rated Dick Allen as the second-most controversial player in baseball history, behind Rogers Hornsby. Along with Dick ( Richie) Allen his two brothers Hank and Ron also played major league baseball but did not garner as much success as Richie ..His older brother Hank was a reserve outfielder for three AL teams, and his younger brother Ron was briefly a first baseman with the 1972 St. Louis Cardinals..
Also the home of semi-professional hockey player Matthew Puntureri and US National Development Program player Stephen Johns. http://www.hockeydb.com
Wampum is also noted for its legendary High School basketball program from the 1950s where all sorts of state and national records where established and their coach L.Butler Hennon made the cover of life magazine and his son Don Hennon went on to national prominence University of Pittsburgh Panthers basketball team where he was a two-time Consensus All-American. A 5 feet 8 inches tall Hennon was noted for his prolific scoring ability and is a member of the Helms Athletic Foundation Basketball Hall of Fame .In high school, Hennon led Wampum High to an undefeated 31-0 record and a state championship in 1955. During his high school days he set a Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League four-year scoring record (1951–55) of 2,376 points that endured until 1993.
Hennon played in college at the University of Pittsburgh from 1956 to 1959 where he led the Panthers to the 1957 and 1958 NCAA Basketball Tournament. While there he became a First Team Consensus All-American selection in 1958( Elgin Baylor , Bob Boozer , Wilt Chamberlain , Oscar Robertson , Guy Rodgers and Don Hennon comprised the first team selections ) and a Second Team Consensus All-American in 1959, while being named to the United Press International and Helms Foundation first teams that season. Hennon's basketball career was highlighted by a 1957 contest where he scored a school record 45 points (scoring on 20 of 42 field goals and 4 of 5 free throws) leading Pitt to a 87-84 double-overtime victory over Duke University. He finished his career at Pitt, an era without the three point shot, as the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,841 points, and currently remains fifth on the school's all-time scoring list.
Hennon was named to the East team, coached by Adolph Rupp, of the 1959 East-West All-Star Contest.
Hennon was picked 41st by the Cincinnati Royals in the sixth-round 1959 NBA Draft, but turned down professional basketball in order to study medicine. He earned his MD in 1963 from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and went on to become a surgeon. Hennon spent time as a medical surgeon in the Army and later continued his medical career in the Pittsburgh area where he still resides. Hennon's number 10 jersey was retired by the University of Pittsburgh in 1968. He was named to the Helms Foundation Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970 and inducted into the Lawrence County Hall of Fame in 1984
In the media
A former mine shaft located near Wampum was a filming location for the 1985 horror movie Day of the Dead.In the movie Platoon
Platoon (film)
Platoon is a 1986 American war film written and directed by Oliver Stone and stars Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen. It is the first of Stone's Vietnam War trilogy, followed by 1989's Born on the Fourth of July and 1993's Heaven & Earth....
the narrator and main character mentions Wampum, Pennsylvania, as one of the small towns that U.S. soldiers in Vietnam typically hailed from.
The borough got some national attention in February 2009 when 26-year-old Kenzie Houk was murdered in nearby New Beaver Borough - which has a Wampum Zip code - and her boyfriend's 11-year-old son, Jordan Brown, was accused of killing her with a shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
that is legally allowed for use by children for hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
purposes. Houk was pregnant
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
with her own son at the time (her third child overall, already a mother to two girls) and was expecting to give birth within the next couple of weeks. The unborn fetus also died. Despite Brown's age, by Pennsylvania state law juveniles between the ages of ten and eighteen can be charged as an adult for murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
.
Brown is currently being charged as an adult for a double homicide for both Houk and her unborn son, and if convicted could become the youngest person in United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
history to be sentenced life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
without the possibility of parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
. Because of the U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
ruling on Roper v. Simmons
Roper v. Simmons
Roper v. Simmons, was a decision in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that it is unconstitutional to impose capital punishment for crimes committed while under the age of 18. The 5-4 decision overruled the Court's prior ruling upholding such sentences on offenders above or at the...
in 2005, Brown will not be allowed to receive the death penalty
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
.