Sewickley, Pennsylvania

Sewickley is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. It is a residential suburb of Pittsburgh. The population was 3,827 according to the 2010 census. The Sewickley Bridge crosses the Ohio River from Sewickley to Moon Township.

Etymology

Historian Charles A. Hanna suggested "Sewickley" came from Creek words for "raccoon" (sawi) and "town" (ukli). According to Hanna, the Asswikale branch of the Shawnee probably borrowed their name from the neighboring Sawokli Muscogee before the former's migration from present-day South Carolina to Pennsylvania. Contemporary accounts from noted anthropologist Frederick Webb Hodge and the Sewickley Presbyterian Church, as well as the current Sewickley Valley Historical Society concur to varying degrees with Hanna's etymology. Some locals alternatively consider Sewickley to be a Native American word meaning "sweet water."

Geography

Sewickley is located at 40°32.25′N 80°10.5′W (40.5390, -80.1807). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (11.11%) is water.

Surrounding and adjacent neighborhoods

Sewickley has four land borders with Edgeworth to the northwest, Glen Osborne to the southwest, Sewickley Heights to the northeast, and Aleppo Township to the east. Across the Ohio River, Sewickley runs adjacent with Moon Township and Coraopolis with the Sewickley Bridge as the direct link to the former.

Along with the four land borders, plus Bell Acres, Glenfield, Haysville, Leetsdale, Leet Township, and Sewickley Hills, Sewickley is located in the Quaker Valley School District. Together, these boroughs and townships constitute a loosely defined region in northwestern Allegheny County. Most of these municipalities – not including Leetsdale and parts of Leet Township – share the Sewickley post office and its 15143 zip code.

Demographics

The population of Sewickley peaked in the 1960 census, with over 6,000 residents. As of the 2010 census, there were 3,827 people with 1,765 households and 950 families residing in the borough's 1,965 housing units. The racial makeup of the borough was 88.8% White, 7.3% African American, with the remainder of other races or multi-racial. No other single race represented more than 2% of the population. Hispanics represented less than 2% of the population.

According to the 2011–15 American Community Survey, the median household income in the borough was about $91,735 and the median family income was $118,507. The per capita income for the borough was about $54,149.

Government and politics

Sewickley is divided into wards and is governed by a mayor and a nine-member borough council composed of three members from each ward. Members are elected to four-year terms. The current mayor of Sewickley is George Shannon.Borough Council & Mayor
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Councilmembers

The current members of council are Jeff Neff (President), Todd Renner (Vice President), Sean Figley (President Pro Tempore), Christine Allen, Julie Barnes, Ed Green, Cynthia Mullins, Larry Rice, and Thomas Rostek.

Education

There are several private schools in the area, including Sewickley Academy, St. James Catholic School, Eden Christian Academy, and Montessori Children's Community. The public school system, Quaker Valley School District, is renowned for an innovative laptop-technology grant received in 2000 from former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge. Quaker Valley School District is often regarded as one of the best and academically top-ranked school districts in the nation. In the spring of 2006, U.S. News & World Report ranked Quaker Valley High School among the top 2% of high schools nationwide. The Sewickley Public Library of the Quaker Valley School District is a Library Journal Star Library for the third year in a row and is continuously one of the top 25 largest libraries in the ''Pittsburgh Business Times'' Book of Lists.

Health care

Sewickley is home to Sewickley Valley Hospital, which is part of the Heritage Valley Health System. Heritage Valley Sewickley provides comprehensive health care for residents of Allegheny, Beaver, Butler and Lawrence counties in Pennsylvania; eastern Ohio and the panhandle of West Virginia.

Heritage Valley offers medical, surgical and diagnostic services at its hospitals, community satellite facilities and in physician offices.  Heritage Valley Health System's affiliated physician groups include Heritage Valley Medical Group, Tri-State Obstetrics and Gynecology and Heritage Valley Pediatrics.

Notable people

*Tom Barrasso, former Pittsburgh Penguins goalie
*Michael Cerveris, actor and musician
* Caitlin Clarke, Broadway and film star
* Dan Cortese, actor and former MTV VJ
*Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins player
* William Fitzsimmons, musician
*Sergei Gonchar, Pittsburgh Penguins assistant coach and former player
* Christa Harmotto, Olympic volleyball player
*Franco Harris, retired Pittsburgh Steelers player
* Chuck Knox, former NFL head coach
* Ray Krawczyk, professional baseball player
*Mario Lemieux, former Pittsburgh Penguins player
*Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins player
*Wentworth Miller, actor, graduated from Quaker Valley High School
* Charles I. Murray, Brigadier General, USMC; recipient of Navy Cross and Army Distinguished Service Cross
*Chuck Noll, longtime NFL head coach
*Rissi Palmer, country music artist
*Keith Rothfus, former U.S. Representative for Pennsylvania's 12th district
* Bianca Smith, professional baseball coach
* George R. Stewart, author
* Kathleen Tessaro, novelist
*Mike Tomczak, former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback
*Ken Whitlock, pro football player, first black player for the Toronto Argonauts

In popular culture

In 1995, the movie Roommates was filmed in and around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania including Sewickley. Roommates starred Peter Falk, D. B. Sweeney, and Julianne Moore, and was directed by Peter Yates. The same year, parts of the movie '' Houseguest'' was filmed in Sewickley including Sewickley's main streets, Broad Street and Beaver Street. The Bruegger's Bagels on Beaver Street was temporarily transformed into an operating McDonald's during shooting of Houseguest. In 2002, parts of '' The Mothman Prophecies'' were filmed in the Sewickley area. Scenes from the Netflix show ''Sweet Magnolias'' was also filmed at the intersection of Broad Street and Beaver Street. Scenes from ''Jack Reacher'', starring Tom Cruise, and '' The Lifeguard'', starring Kristen Bell, were filmed in the town near the Sewickley Manor apartments and condominiums. ''Foxcatcher'', starring Steve Carell, Mark Ruffalo, and Channing Tatum, began filming in the Sewickley area in October 2012.

The fictional 1/24 scale town of Elgin Park, by artist and photographer Michael Paul Smith, was loosely based on Sewickley.

Sid Lang, a primary character in Wallace Stegner's 1987 novel Crossing to Safety, grew up in Sewickley.

Sewickley Cemetery

In 1860 Sewickley Cemetery was opened. The cemetery is now the resting place of more than 12,000 people. There are also two war memorials located on the burial grounds.

Civil War Memorial

There is a monument celebrating the local Civil War veterans - it is 20 feet tall and was installed in 2005. There was an 1866 statue which depicted a soldier on bended knee; but that statue was damaged from many years of weather.

Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

The Tuskegee Airmen have been memorialized in the cemetery with 2 large black granite blocks. the blocks are inscribed with the names of Western Pennsylvania veterans. Another block shows a scene of 2 planes engaged in arial combat.

See also

* List of cities and towns along the Ohio River

References

External links

*
Borough of Sewickley website/ marketing campaign for Sewickley including a store directory and event calendarPost-Gazette article on Sewickley Garden Tour

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Pennsylvania populated places on the Ohio River
Populated places established in 1808
Pittsburgh metropolitan area
Boroughs in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
1808 establishments in Pennsylvania