ALIQUIPPA, PENNSYLVANIA

'Aliquippa' is a city in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The city was founded via the merger of three pre-existing towns, Aliquippa (now called West Aliquippa), Woodlawn, and New Sheffield. There is no historical evidence connecting the Seneca Queen Alliquippa with the location of the borough. This was one of several Indian names selected arbitrarily by the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad in 1878 for stations along the route[1]. The population was 11,734 at the 2000 census. Aliquippa is best known as the location of a productive steel mill that J & L Steel constructed there along the Ohio River beginning in 1905. Employment at the facility sustained a population of 27,023 in 1940. The mill closed during the collapse of the steel industry during the 1980s. This major economic loss alongside suburbanization caused a major population loss through the end of the 20th century.
Famous Aliquippans include one-time Surgeon General of the United States Jesse Steinfeld, one-time National Football League Hall-of-Fame player and coach Mike Ditka, one-time National Football League player and Hall-of-Famer Tony Dorsett, Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Ty Law, Danny Rains of the Chicago Bears, one-time National Football League player Sean Gilbert, New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, music composer and writer (of such songs as "The Pink Panther Theme," "Moon River," "The Days of Wine and Roses," and many other songs) Henry Mancini, one-time Louisiana State University coach Press Maravich, current linebacker for the Buffalo Bills Paul Posluszny, one-time Louisiana State University and National Basketball League Hall-of-Famer Pete Maravich, musician B.E. Taylor, Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President Bill George, one-time major league baseball pitcher George "Doc" Medich, one-time Philadelphia and Kansas City Athletics major league baseball player Pete Suder, and Ivor Parry Evans, one-time base commander of Walker Air Force Base at Roswell, NM.
Aliquippa also has its share of notorious residents:

★ Edward Surratt, the notorious serial killer who admitted responsibility for 12 murders in the 1970's.^[1]

★ Walter "Big Guy" Stawarz IV, convicted of the brutal 2005 murder of a local teenager^[2]

★ Anthony "Tootsweet" Smith, an Aliquippa resident and career criminal who has been sentenced to 27 years in prison for cocaine distribution,^[3], additionally convicted of attempted homicide of a prosecution witness ^[4] and is known for his involvement in general jailhouse violence. ^[5][6], having been convicted of assault by a prisoner for which he was sentenced to an additional 13 to 26 years on August 22, 2007.^[7]

Contents

Geography

Demographics

References

See also

External links

Geography

Aliquippa is located at (40.615066, -80.263059).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.6 km² (4.5 mi²). 10.6 km² (4.1 mi²) of it is land and 1.0 km² (0.4 mi²) of it (8.48%) is water. The city originally included two islands in the Ohio River, Crow Island and Hog Island[2]. During the 1960s the back channels of the Ohio River were filled in by the Jones and Laughlin Steel Corporation, joining these islands to the mainland and obliterating them as distinct geographic features[3][4][5]

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 11,734 people, 5,124 households, and 3,176 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,107.7/km² (2,867.7/mi²). There were 5,843 housing units at an average density of 551.6/km² (1,428.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 62.59% White, 35.52% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.18% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.00% of the population.
There were 5,124 households out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.7% were married couples living together, 21.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.0% were non-families. 35.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.5% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 22.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 82.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,113, and the median income for a family was $34,003. Males had a median income of $27,954 versus $21,358 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,718. About 17.7% of families and 21.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.3% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

References

1. http://www.timesonline.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17894827&BRD=2305&PAG=461&dept_id=478569&rfi=6
2. http://www.timesonline.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18509618
3. DOJ Press release , December 13, 2006
4. ''Beaver County cocaine pipeline shut down'', Pittsburgh Post Gazette, April 10, 2002
5. ''Inmate In Court After Balcony Throwing Incident'' , kdka.com
6. ''Jail guard, left alone, is beaten by inmate'', Pittsburgh Post Gazette, February 2007
7. http://www.postgazette.com/pg/07234/811337-100.stm ''Inmate sentenced for assault'', Pittsburgh Post Gazette, August 22, 2007.

See also

★ List of cities and towns along the Ohio River

External links

★ History of Aliquippa

★ Brief History

★ City of Aliquippa website

★ Aliquippa School District