Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

Demographics

The total population was 6,901 people according to 2020 Census figures.

The median household income in 2022 dollars was $121,135, the median family income was $158,000 and the median income for married-couple families was $180,189. The per capita income was $72,072.

Points of interest

• Beth Sholom Synagogue, the only synagogue designed by Frank Lloyd Wright
• Elkins Estate, former family summer home of Pennsylvania Railroad magnate William L. Elkins
• High School Park, an 11-acre park with four distinct ecosystems, was the original grounds of Cheltenham High School and became a township park in 1996 after the building burned down
• Lynnewood Hall, a 110-room, Gilded Age mansion
• St. Paul's Episcopal Church, added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982
• Richard Wall House Museum, a house listed on State and National Registers of Historic Places, had the distinction of being the oldest Pennsylvania house in continuous residence until rehabilitation work began, now a museum

Government

Elkins Park is split between Cheltenham and Abington Townships in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. It is represented by Madeleine Dean in Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district.

Schools

Public schools

The portion in Cheltenham Township is zoned to Cheltenham Township School District.

• Myers Elementary School (Kindergarten through 5th grade)
• Elkins Park School (5th and 6th grade)
• Cedarbrook Middle School (7th and 8th grade)
• Cheltenham High School (9th grade through 12th grade)

The portion in Abington Township is zoned to Abington School District.

• McKinley Elementary School (Kindergarten through 5th grade)
• Abington Middle School (6th grade through 8th grade)
• Abington High School (9th grade through 12th grade)

Private

• Mesivta Yesodei Yisroel of Elkins Park
• Perelman Jewish Day School
• Wyncote Academy

Tertiary

• Alvernia University's Philadelphia campus
• Gratz College
• Salus University
• Westminster Theological Seminary
• Yeshiva Gedolah of Elkins Park
• The former campus of the Tyler School of Art, the art school of Temple University. The site is currently being developed as "a center for artists and architects" for Creatio International.

Transportation

Public transportation

Elkins Park is served by SEPTA Regional Rail trains on the Glenside Line, Warminster Line, West Trenton Line and Lansdale/Doylestown Line at the Elkins Park station. The Jenkintown and Melrose Park stations are also found near the neighborhood of Elkins Park, and are served by the same regional rail lines. SEPTA bus routes 28, 55, 70 and 77 also provide service to Elkins Park.

Road

Toward the western end of Elkins Park is Pennsylvania Route 611 (Old York Road). In Elkins Park, Pennsylvania Route 73 runs along Township Line Road, mostly marking the border between Cheltenham and Abington townships.

Locale

Notable people

• Laurie Halse Anderson, American writer, lived in Elkins Park
• Jay Ansill, composer and folk musician
• Jenna Arnold, American businessperson, author, and a national organizer for the Women's March on Washington
• Melissa Bank, American author, grew up in Elkins Park
• Jan Berenstain and Stan Berenstain, writers and illustrators best known for creating the children's book series The Berenstain Bears
• Michael S. Brown, Nobel prize winner in medicine or physiology
• Ilene Chaiken, American television producer, director, writer, and founder of Little Chicken Productions
• Wilt Chamberlain, American professional basketball player who played center and is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the sport's history, lived in Elkins Park
• Bill Cosby, stand-up comedian, actor, and author
• Eleanor Widener Dixon, socialite and philanthropist
• Douglas Feith, former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, grew up in Elkins Park
• Marvin Harrison, NFL wide receiver for the Indianapolis Colts
• Lil Dicky, rapper and comedian
• William Lukens Elkins, oil and transport magnate
• William McIntire Elkins, rare book collector
• Mark Levin, radio talk show host
• Edgar Lee Masters, poet; spent his final years in Elkins Park
• Mary Ellen Mark, photojournalist
• Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel
• Yonatan Netanyahu, Israeli soldier and brother of Benjamin Netanyahu
• Raymond Perelman, American businessman and philanthropist
• Ike Richman, personal attorney for National Basketball Association player Wilt Chamberlain and a co-owner of the Philadelphia 76ers
• Ralph J. Roberts, co-founder of Comcast; father of current Comcast chief executive officer, Brian L. Roberts
• Jeffrey Solow, classical cellist and academic
• Richard Suckle, American film producer; one of several producers nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture for the 2013 film American Hustle
• Eleanor Elkins Widener, founder of Widener Library at Harvard University to honor her son
• Harry Elkins Widener, grandson of Peter A. B. Widener and namesake of Widener Library at Harvard University; born in Elkins Park and died on the Titanic
• Peter A. B. Widener, head of a wealthy and historically prominent family
• Bernard Wolfman, Dean of the University of Pennsylvania Law School

Fictional characters

• Betty Draper (January Jones), a main character on AMC's television series Mad Men

In popular culture

In the AMC period drama television series Mad Men, the character Betty Draper was raised in the "tiny Philadelphia suburb of Elkins Park, Pennsylvania". During the show's second season, Betty's father has a series of strokes, and is taken to "Elkins Park Hospital". This would have actually been the former Rolling Hill Hospital, which opened in 1953, and is now known as MossRehab and Einstein at Elkins Park, part of the Einstein Healthcare Network.

Ann Patchett's 2019 novel The Dutch House is primarily set in Elkins Park.

References

• George, John (November 10, 2003). "Einstein Rehabs Hospital". Philadelphia Business Journal. Retrieved December 31, 2015.

References

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