Wilkins Township is a

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

in Allegheny County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, United States. The population was 6,357 at the 2010 census. It is served by

Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district was a district including the city of Pittsburgh and parts of surrounding suburbs. A variety of working class and majority black suburbs located to the east of the city were included, such as McKeesport ...

, the 43rd District of the Pennsylvania State Senate, and the 34th District of the

Pennsylvania State House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

. Wilkins Township was named for William Wilkins (1779–1865), a politician from Pennsylvania who served in both houses of Congress and as U.S. Secretary of War.

History

The township was created from the eastern part of Pitt Township on 10 November 1821. Its territory originally stretched between the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers; from it sprung most of the municipalities between

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

on the west and Plum and Monroeville on the east.

Geography

Wilkins Township is located at (40.422668, -79.823491). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the township has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.8 km²), all of it land.

Watershed

The southeastern border of the township is denoted by Thompson Run, a tributary of Turtle Creek. The township is drained by Thompson Run and its tributaries Sawmill Run and Chalfant Run, which in turn has a tributary, Lougeay Run, which flows into the township from

Penn Hills Penn Hills is a township with home rule status in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 41,059 as of the 2020 census. Penn Hills is the second-largest municipality in Allegheny County, after Pittsburgh. History In 178 ...

. The entire township lies within the Turtle Creek Watershed.

Transportation

Interstate 376 Interstate 376 (I-376) is a major auxiliary route of the Interstate Highway System in the US state of Pennsylvania, located within the Allegheny Plateau. It runs from I-80 near Sharon south and east to a junction with the Pennsylvania T ...

passes through the northern limb of the township, where it has an exit just as it enters eastbound from Churchill Borough, number 81 onto PA 791/Rodi Road/ Yellow Belt northbound into Penn Hills Township. The business spur of

U.S. Route 22 U.S. Route 22 (US 22) is a west–east route and is one of the original United States highways of 1926, running from Cincinnati, Ohio, at US 27, US 42, US 127, and US 52 to Newark, New Jersey, at U.S. Route 1/9 in the Newark Airport Intercha ...

enters eastbound from Churchill, and is where the main commercial section of Wilkins township is located, including the ''Penn Center East'' shopping center. US Business 22 crosses Thompson Run from Wilkins Township to Monroeville over the Hall Station Bridge.

PA 130 Pennsylvania Route 130 (PA 130) is a state highway located in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties in Pennsylvania. The western terminus is at PA 8 in Pittsburgh, and the eastern terminus is at PA 381 near Kregar. The hig ...

serves the southern portion of the township. The Union Railroad, following the Thompson Run valley, passes through the eastern fringe of the township. Soon you will be able to take PA 43 to

Surrounding neighborhoods

Wilkins Township has eight borders, including Penn Hills to the north, Monroeville to the east, Turtle Creek to the southeast, East Pittsburgh to the south,

North Braddock North Braddock is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. North Braddock was organized from a part of Braddock Township in 1897. The borough prides itself in being the "Birth Place of Steel" as the home of Andrew Carnegie's ...

to the south-southwest, Chalfant to the southwest, Forest Hills to the west and Churchill to the northwest and north-northwest.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 6,917 people, 3,235 households, and 2,012 families residing in the township. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 2,637.6 people per square mile (1,019.3/km²). There were 3,432 housing units at an average density of 1,308.7/sq mi (505.8/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 92.79%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 4.38%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.09% Native American, 1.52%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.06%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.19% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.98% from two or more races. 0.45% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. There were 3,235 households, out of which 19.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.8% were non-families. 33.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.73. In the township the population was spread out, with 16.9% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 25.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females there were 89.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.6 males. The median income for a household in the township was $37,439, and the median income for a family was $47,882. Males had a median income of $37,127 versus $31,101 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the township was $24,515. About 3.8% of families and 6.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 7.8% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Wilkins Township is served by the Woodland Hills School District.

Government and Politics

References

External links

Wilkins Township official website1850 map of Allegheny County
showing Wilkins Township at its maximum extent {{Authority control Townships in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania