Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
Borough
Motto(s):  "A good place to live since 1828"
Location of Mechanicsburg in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.
Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania Location in Pennsylvania Show map of Pennsylvania Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Cumberland
Settled	1806
Incorporated	1828
Government
• Type	Borough Council
Area
• Total	2.41 sq mi (6.25 km2)
• Land	2.41 sq mi (6.24 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation	446 ft (136 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	8,981
• Estimate  (2019)	8,990
• Density	3,730.29/sq mi (1,439.97/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	17055, 17050
Area code(s)	717
FIPS code	42-48376

Mechanicsburg is a borough in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States, 8 miles (13 km) west of Harrisburg. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle metropolitan statistical area. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 8,981.

Geography

Mechanicsburg is located in eastern Cumberland County at 40°12′44″N 77°00′22″W / 40.212089°N 77.006143°W / 40.212089; -77.006143. It is in a rich agricultural region known as the Cumberland Valley, a broad zone between South Mountain and the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians.

Mechanicsburg is bordered by Silver Spring Township to the northwest, Monroe Township to the southwest, Upper Allen Township to the south, Lower Allen Township to the east, and Hampden Township to the northeast. Pennsylvania Route 641 (Trindle Road) is the main east-west street through the borough, leading east 4 miles (6 km) to Camp Hill and west 10 miles (16 km) to Carlisle, the county seat. Pennsylvania Route 114 leads north out of town on York Street and south on Market Street. Interstate 76, the Pennsylvania Turnpike, passes just south of Mechanicsburg, with access to the southeast of town via Exit 236 (U.S. Route 15).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 2.41 square miles (6.25 km²), of which 1.1 acres (4,478 m²), or 0.07%, is water.

History

Mechanicsburg was settled in 1806 and incorporated as a borough on April 12, 1828. It was named in recognition of the number of mechanics who settled the area. Mechanicsburg was the site of Union Army recruitment during the early days of the Civil War. Specifically, Company C of the 16th Infantry regiment of Volunteers which trained at Camp Curtin was mustered there. It was involved in several early battles including the Battle of Williamsport in Maryland. During the Gettysburg Campaign Mechanicsburg was occupied by Confederate forces for two days. Mechanicsburg is home of Jubilee Day, the largest and longest-running one-day street fair on the East Coast. It is estimated as many as 60,000 people attend Jubilee Day annually.

Demographics

In 1900, 3,841 people lived here; in 1910, the population was 4,469, which increased to 5,709 in 1940. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 8,981.

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,042 people, 4,023 households, and 2,466 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,494.6 inhabitants per square mile (1,349.3/km²). There were 4,169 housing units at an average density of 1,611.3 per square mile (622.1/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 96.97% White, 0.43% African American, 0.09% Native American, 1.15% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 1.08% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.83% of the population.

There were 4,024 households, out of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.1% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.7% were non-families. Of all households, 32.8% were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $45,200, and the median income for a family was $54,228. Males had a median income of $37,130 versus $27,940 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $22,812. About 2.4% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.0% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

Points of interest

• Liberty Forge Arboretum
• Mechanicsburg Area Senior High School
• Cumberland Valley High School
• Williams Grove Speedway
• Union Church
• Stationmaster's House
• Frankeberger Tavern
• Hall's tower
• Juice & Java

Notable people

• Seth "Scump" Abner: professional eSports competitor, two-time COD World Series Champion, and player for OpTic Gaming
• Shawn Abner: former Major League Baseball outfielder, father of Call of Duty world champion Seth "Scump" Abner
• Lionel Bender, linguist
• Abner Carroll Binder: newspaper correspondent and editor for the Chicago Daily News and the Minneapolis Tribune
• Bobby Dall: Bassist for the group Poison
• Charles Forsman: comic book author, writer of the graphic novel TEotFW which was adapted to a TV series for Netflix.
• Shane Gillis: Comedian and podcaster.
• Luke Matheny: Academy Award-winning director, actor, and writer
• Bret Michaels: lead singer for the group Poison
• Jon Ritchie: former professional football player, currently a Philadelphia sports radio personality on WIP middays
• Rikki Rockett: Drummer for the group Poison
• Carla Thomas (basketball): former professional basketball player (2007, 1st Rd Draft Pick), first Mid-Penn Women's Basketball player to be drafted into the WNBA
• Andrew Kevin Walker: screenwriter noted for writing Seven and other films
• Bobby Warshaw: retired professional soccer player, author of the book When the Dream Becomes Reality

See also

In Spanish: Mechanicsburg (Pensilvania) para niños