Country United States County Perry Incorporated 1840 Area 78 ha Zip code 17074 Local time Sunday 6:40 AM | State Pennsylvania Settled 1804 Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC−5) Founded 1840 Population 1,562 (2013) Area code 717 | |
 | ||
Weather 6°C, Wind E at 11 km/h, 85% Humidity | ||
Newport is a borough in Perry County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,506 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Contents
Map of Newport, PA 17074, USA
History
The Bridge in Newport Borough and Newport Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Geography
Newport is located at 40°28′42″N 77°8′2″W (40.478260, -77.133997).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 0.3 square miles (0.78 km2), all land.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,506 people, 666 households, and 402 families residing in the borough. The population density was 4,604.8 people per square mile (1,762.0/km²). There were 743 housing units at an average density of 2,271.8 per square mile (869.3/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.54% White, 0.13% African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 0.27% from other races, and 0.66% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.66% of the population.
There were 666 households out of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.3% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.6% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.91.
In the borough the age distribution of the population shows 25.0% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.0 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $31,594, and the median income for a family was $39,545. Males had a median income of $31,413 versus $22,344 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $16,818. About 6.8% of families and 10.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.1% of those under age 18 and 11.4% of those age 65 or over.
History
Newport was originally known as Ryder's Ferry, as it was the site of an early ferry on the Juniata River. It was later renamed Newport after the canal came through.
Newport was the eastern end of the Newport and Shermans Valley Railroad. There was a freight yard where railcars and cargo could be transferred to standard gauge for the Pennsylvania Railroad.
Newport once had a large tannery that operated from the second half of the 19th century until the early part of the 20th. The town playground and youth baseball fields now occupy the site. The baseball field is named after Billy Cox, a town native who played third base for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Brooklyn Dodgers and Baltimore Orioles in the 1940s and 1950s. Other Newport natives include Jonathan Clay, who was awarded both a Purple Heart and Bronze Star with Valor for exemplary service in Afghanistan. Clay was injured on October 9, 2006 by a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) in Zabul Province, Afghanistan.
The high school which serves the borough as well as several surrounding townships is located at the northwest corner of town, and was remodeled in 2007. Their nickname is the Buffaloes, and their field is named after George Katchmer, who coached the school to their only undefeated campaign in 1953. The field is dual purpose and is used for football and baseball.