WILLIAMSPORT, PENNSYLVANIA

'Williamsport' is a city in and the county seat of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The population was 30,706 at the 2000 census. It is the principal city of and is included in the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Williamsport-Lock Haven, Pennsylvania Combined Statistical Area.

Contents

History

City "firsts"

Geography and climate

Demographics

Government

Mayors

Economy

Transportation

Current developments

Education

Libraries

Sports

Media

References

External links

History

Main articles: History of Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Williamsport was incorporated as a borough on March 1, 1806, and as a city on January 15, 1866. The city is the original home of Little League Baseball, founded in 1939 as a three-team league.
In the late 1800s, when Williamsport was known as "The Lumber Capital of the World" because of its thriving lumber industry, it also was the birthplace of the national newspaper ''Grit'' in 1882. Williamsport once had more millionaires per-capita than anywhere in the world. The area's local highschool, the Williamsport Area High School, uses The Millionaires as its mascot.

City "firsts"

'1778' - The first purpose built cemetery is opened on what is now the site of Calvary United Methodist Church on West Fourth Street.^[1]
'1786' - The first house was built in Williamsport. James Russell built is inn on what is now the corner of East Third and Mulberry Streets in downtown.
'1796' - The first recorded childbirth in Williamsport was James Russell the son of Mr. and Mrs. William Russell and grandson of James Russell of the Russell Inn.
'1796' - The first school is built as a one room log addition to the building that would eventually become the first Lycoming County Courthouse. Caleb Bailey was the first teacher.
'1799' - The first post office is built at the corner of Third and State Streets in what is now downtown. The post office was later converted to a saloon.
'1801' - The first store is opened by William Winter on Third Street.
'1849' - The first Market Street Bridge is built over the West Branch Susquehanna River. It was opened as a toll bridge to cover the state's costs of $23,797.
'1854' - The first brewery is opened. The brewery was sold to Henry Flock in 1865. This brewery was run by the Flock family until the 1940s. The Flock's business survived Prohibition by converting to a dairy.

Geography and climate

Williamsport is located at (41.244428, -77.018738), and is bordered by the West Branch Susquehanna River to the south (with Armstrong Township, South Williamsport, Duboistown and Susquehanna Township south of the river), Loyalsock Township to the east and north, Old Lycoming Township to the north and Woodward Township to the west. As the crow flies, Lycoming County is about northwest of Philadelphia and east-northeast of Pittsburgh.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 24.7 km² (9.5 mi²). 23.0 km² (8.9 mi²) of it is land and 1.7 km² (0.7 mi²) of it (6.92%) is water.

Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Rec High °F	69	71	87	92	96	102	103	100	102	91	83	69
Norm High °F	33.2	37.1	47.8	60.2	71.3	78.9	83.2	81.4	73.3	61.8	49	37.8
Norm Low °F	17.9	19.9	28.2	37.8	47.8	56.8	61.7	60.4	52.8	40.9	32.7	23.7
Rec Low °F	-20	-13	-2	15	28	36	43	38	28	20	8	-15
Precip (in)	2.85	2.61	3.21	3.49	3.79	4.45	4.08	3.38	3.98	3.19	3.62	2.94
''Source: USTravelWeather.com [1]''

Demographics

The eastern side of Williamsport, seen from the southeast on Bald Eagle Mountain. In the foreground is the west branch of the Susquehanna River. Beyond Williamsport can be seen the higher part of the dissected Allegheny Plateau

As of the census of 2000, there were 30,706 people, 12,219 households, and 6,732 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,335.1/km² (3,456.3/mi²). There were 13,524 housing units at an average density of 588.0/km² (1,522.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 84.11% White, 12.73% African American, 0.36% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.48% from other races, and 1.73% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.11% of the population.
There were 12,219 households out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.9% were married couples living together, 15.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.9% were non-families. 35.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 18.0% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,946, and the median income for a family was $33,844. Males had a median income of $26,668 versus $20,196 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,707. About 13.7% of families and 21.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.0% of those under age 18 and 11.6% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Williamsport operates on a "Strong Mayor" form of governing, meaning the mayor has the power to do something without consent of the city council. The current mayor of the City of Williamsport is Mary B. Wolf.

Mayors

Former mayors (1968-Present)

★ 'Richard J. Carey'

★ 'John R. Coder'

★ 'Daniel P. Kirby'

★ 'Steven J. Lucasi'

★ 'Jessie L. Bloom' - First female mayor.

★ 'Phillip E. Preziosi' - Previously member of the Williamsport Police Department. Second officer to win mayor's office. Served one term as mayor.

★ 'Steven W. Cappelli' - Currently State Representative

★ 'Michael R. Rafferty' - Mayor 2000-2004. Served nine years city council, six years city council president.

★ 'Mary B. Wolf'
''See also:'' List of Mayors of Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Economy

Williamsport is well known for the Lycoming aircraft engines made by Textron.

Transportation

The town is served by Williamsport Regional Airport (IPT), although the airport is located several miles east of the city in the town of Montoursville.

Current developments

The Business District

The Williamsport Downtown Gateway Revitalization Project, begun in 2004, has been set into place in order to attract more people (both citizens of the Williamsport community and visitors) to the Downtown Williamsport area, as the last major transit project sought to do the exact opposite and has rerouted people around the city for years.
Construction on the Market Street Bridge, the first of many projects, began in June 2004. Physical work is expected to take four years, ending in 2008; three planned for the new bridge, and the last is scheduled for work on Via Bella.
The first two-lane bridge has been built just upstream of the existing structure. Demolition of the old bridge has been completed. Another two-lane structure will be built at the same location as the old bridge. The new upstream bridge will carry Route 15 southbound traffic, while the new downstream bridge will carry Route 15 northbound traffic.
From the old Donut Deli next to the Basin Street Shops on Via Bella, a [http://www.starbucks.com/retail/locator/MapResults.aspx?a=1&StoreKey=104054&IC_O=41.256613624776%3a-77.0359209692004%3a32%3a17701+(postal+code)%2c+Pennsylvania%2c+United+States&GAD1_O=&GAD2_O=&GAD3_O=17701+(postal+code)%2c+Pennsylvania%2c+United+States&GAD4_O=&radius=5&countryID=244&dataSource=MapPoint.NA