Jenkintown, Pennsylvania

History

The community was named for William Jenkins, a Welsh pioneer settler.

The borough was settled in about 1697 and incorporated on December 8, 1874, when approximately 248 acre was taken from Abington Township. Today, the Borough is approximately 0.58 sqmi and is home to 4,500 residents.

Elements of the British army passed through Jenkintown en route to the Battle of White Marsh in early December 1777.

From the mid-1950s until the early 1980s, Jenkintown was a major retail hub for the northern suburbs of Philadelphia.

Geography

Jenkintown is located just outside Philadelphia along the Route 611 corridor between Abington and Cheltenham Townships.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 0.6 sqmi, all land. Jenkintown is surrounded by Abington Township to the north, west, and east, and borders Cheltenham Township to the south.

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, the borough was 87.5% White, 5.7% Black or African American, 2.0% Asian, and 1.8% were two or more races. 3.0% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry.

As of the census of 2000, there were 4,478 people, 2,035 households, and 1,088 families residing in the borough. The population density was 7,844.0 PD/sqmi. There were 2,085 housing units at an average density of 3,652.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the borough was 93.61% White, 4.00% African American, 0.04% Native American, 0.94% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.49% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.30% of the population.

There were 2,035 households, out of which 24.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.2% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.5% were non-families. 40.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 3.08.

The age distribution of the borough's population is 22.9% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 78.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 73.2 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $47,743, and the median income for a family was $72,902. Males had a median income of $41,970 versus $35,625 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $29,834. About 1.9% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

The Jenkins' Town Lyceum Building, Jenkintown-Wyncote station, and Strawbridge and Clothier Store are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

WPHI-FM (103.9), the FM simulcast of all news radio station KYW (1060) in Philadelphia, is licensed to Jenkintown and does regularly cover events in the community.

Government

Jenkintown has a city manager form of government with a mayor and a twelve-member borough council. The current mayor is Gabriel Lerman. Jay Conners is the president of the borough council, and Christian Soltysiak is vice president.

The borough is part of the Fourth Congressional District, represented by Madeleine Dean. At the state level, Jenkintown is part of the Pennsylvania's 154th Representative District, represented by Napoleon Nelson, and the 4th Senatorial District, represented by Arthur L. Haywood III. All are Democrats. Jenkintown, like its surroundings of Abington and Cheltenham and their included towns, votes overwhelmingly Democratic.

Education

The Jenkintown School District includes Jenkintown Elementary School and Jenkintown Middle/High School. The district has an enrollment of over 700 students.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Highways and roads

As of 2017 there were 12.30 mi of public roads in Jenkintown, of which 1.50 mi were maintained by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and 10.80 mi were maintained by the borough.

PA Route 611 heads north–south through Jenkintown along Old York Road, heading south to Philadelphia and north to Willow Grove, where it has an interchange with the Pennsylvania Turnpike and Doylestown. PA Route 73 passes east–west along the southern edge of Jenkintown along Washington Lane and Township Line Road, heading west to Wyncote and east to Northeast Philadelphia. Greenwood Avenue runs east–west through the center of Jenkintown, heading west to Wyncote.

Trains and buses

The Jenkintown-Wyncote station is one of SEPTA's major Regional Rail stops; the Lansdale/Doylestown Line, Warminster Line, and West Trenton Line regional rail services all stop there. The Jenkintown-Wyncote station building with its Queen Anne-style architecture was designed by famous Philadelphia architect Horace Trumbauer. SEPTA provides City Bus service to Jenkintown along Route 55, which follows PA 611 south to Olney Transportation Center in North Philadelphia and north to Willow Grove and Doylestown, and Route 77, which heads west to the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia and east to Northeast Philadelphia.

Fire department

The Jenkintown Fire Department consists of two fire companies founded more than 125 years ago. The Jenkintown Fire Department is a volunteer department consisting of the Pioneer Fire Company #1 and the Independent Fire Company #2. The Pioneer Company was organized in 1884 and the Independent Company was organized in 1889, an artifact of the historical split between Catholics and Protestants in the population of the borough. The two fire companies have a total membership of approximately 150, with 50 members composing the active firefighting crew.

Notable people

• Friederike Baer, German-born award-winning American historian
• Bryan Cohen, American-Israeli basketball player
• Bradley Cooper, actor and filmmaker
• Lawrence Curry, educator and politician
• Wilmot E. Fleming, politician
• Adam F. Goldberg, television and film producer; creator of The Goldbergs, which is set in Jenkintown
• David Hungerford, cancer researcher, lived and died in Jenkintown
• Mark Khaisman, Ukrainian-born visual artist
• Mary Frances Lovell, writer, humanitarian, and temperance reformer
• George Low Jr., professional golfer
• George Low Sr., professional golfer
• Carol Polis, professional boxing judge
• Ezra Pound, poet and critic
• Max Ritter, Olympic swimmer
• Lessing J. Rosenwald, former chairman and president of Sears
• Allyson Schwartz, politician
• Carl J. Seiberlich, naval aviator
• Jennifer Su, radio and television personality and singer
• Horace Trumbauer, architect during the American Gilded Age
• Glenn Wallis, author and musician
• John Wanamaker, merchant and religious, civic and political figure

In popular culture

The television sitcom The Goldbergs is set in Jenkintown; it is based on the 1980s childhood of show creator Adam F. Goldberg, a Jenkintown native.

References

References

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13. "SEPTA (May 2014). ''Fiscal Year 2015 Annual Service Plan.'' p. 61".
14. "SEPTA Official Transit & Street Map Suburban". SEPTA.
15. "Going home with Bradley Cooper".
16. Neil Stook, ''The Life of Ezra Pound'' (2011), page 5
17. (September 23, 2021). "MAIN LINE HISTORY: Architect Horace Trumbauer's mansions". Main Line.