Bradford, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Bradford is a small city
located in rural McKean County, Pennsylvania
, in the United States 78 miles (126 km) south of Buffalo, New York. Settled in 1823, Bradford was chartered as a city in 1879 and emerged as a wild oil boomtown in the Pennsylvanian oil rush
in the late 19th century. The area's Pennsylvania Grade crude oil has superior qualities and is free of asphaltic constituents, contains only trace amounts of sulfur and nitrogen, and has excellent characteristics for refining into lubricants. World-famous Kendall racing oils were produced in Bradford.
The population peaked at 17,691 in 1940, but as of the 2000 census had dropped to 9,175 and was still declining at mid-decade according to census bureau estimates. Two adjoining townships, home to approximately 9,000 people, make the population of Greater Bradford about 18,000. Famous Bradfordians include opera singer Marilyn Horne
, Hall of Fame baseball player Rube Waddell
, and five-time All-Star football player Stew Barber
. A famous Perpetual Motion machine hoax was created in Bradford in 1897 by J.M. Aldrich; it was exposed in the July 1, 1899 issue of the Scientific American
magazine, leading to a four-month prison sentence in the county jail.
, a manufacturer of collectible pocket lighters, and Case
, which is owned by Zippo and makes collectible knives. As of February 2009, the two companies employed 1,117 people, but significant layoffs have taken place since then. After Zippo and Case, the second largest employer is Bradford Regional Medical Center, which employed 759 as of February 2009. BRMC underwent a significant campus expansion in 2006. Other major employers as of February 2009 include Beacon Light (682), Bradford Area School District (474) and Wal-Mart (378). The nearby Federal Prison employed 301 as of that time.
The city also boasts an American Refining Group oil refinery, the oldest continuously operating refinery in the United States, which celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2006. Since ARG purchased the refinery in the mid 1990s, employment has almost doubled, to just less than 300 as of February 2009.
Bradford is home to a growing four-year college, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford
(Pitt-Bradford), which as of the fall term 2009 had 1,455 full-time students and 202 part-time students for a total enrollment of 1,657, with 217 full-time employees and 106 part-time employees. Almost 900 students live on campus. The university's campus has grown significantly in recent years. Current building projects include a new residence hall, a chapel and laboratory upgrades to the science building.
Annual festivals include Stinkfest (a festival promoting leek
cuisine), Summer Daze (formerly known as Summerfest), Autumn Daze, the Italian Festival, the Zippo/Case International Swap Meet (biennial, with Zippo Days held in off years) and the Crook Farm Country Fair. Bradford celebrates New Year's Eve with a First Night celebration. In early August, the annual Big 30 Charity high school all star football game takes place at Parkway Field, where a million-dollar artificial playing surface was installed in 2008. In 2009, for the first time, National Night Out was a significant event in Bradford, coinciding with Taste of Bradford.
of 2000, there were 9,175 people, 3,922 households, and 2,247 families residing in the city. The population density
was 2,659.7 people per square mile (1,026.8/km²). There were 4,371 housing units at an average density of 1,267.1 per square mile (489.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.74% White, 0.49% African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.52% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.27% from other races
, and 0.63% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.95% of the population.
There are 3,922 households, of which 29.4% have children under the age of 18, 36.9% have married couples
living together and 14.8% have a female householder with no husband present. 42.7% of households are non-families, 36.3% are made up of individuals and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27, and the average family size was 2.93.
25.4% of the population is under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.1% 65 years of age or older. The median age is 36 years. For every 100 females there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city in 1999, according to the 2000 census, was $26,463, and the median income for a family was $32,828. Males had a median income of $30,661 versus $21,250 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $17,537. About 16.9% of families and 20.7% of the population was below the poverty line, including 28.1% of those under age 18 and 9.5% of those age 65 or over. Median incomes were significantly higher, and poverty rates significantly lower, in the adjoining townships.
According to the 2000 census, in what is familiarly known as Bradford (City of Bradford, Foster Township and Bradford Township), participation in the labor force of those 16 years of age and older was 62.8%, with an unemployment rate of 6.5%. The national average was 63.9% in the labor force and 5.8% unemployed. Outside of Greater Bradford in the rest of McKean County, participation in the labor force was 56%.
Five percent of households in Greater Bradford reported receiving public assistance income. Mean reported public assistance income was $1,884. The national average was 3.4% and $3,032.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²).3.5 square miles (8.9 km²) of it is land, and none of the area is covered with water. Bradford is situated in a valley in the Allegheny Mountains and is surrounded by woods and steep hills. Two branches of the Tunungwant Creek enter the city, merge and flow north into the Allegheny River just across the New York border.
Bradford Regional Airport
is located about 15 miles (24.1 km) south of the city, at Mount Alton. Because of its elevation, 1,443 feet (440 meters) above sea level,http://www.weather.com/outlook/weather-news/news/articles/final-four-bradford-pa_2011-03-25 the airport often has the coldest reported air temperatures in Pennsylvania. The airport has one of the few National Weather Service stations across the entire northern tier of the state. Temperatures in the city are typically three to seven degrees warmer than at the airport, and actual city temperatures are more representative of other communities in northern Pennsylvania and southwestern New York than are the airport's.
in New York
, the third-largest state park in the United States, and the Allegheny National Forest
, the only national forest in Pennsylvania.
The Tuna Valley Trails Association has constructed several miles of trails in the community, with a master plan of over 50 miles (80.5 km) currently being planned, funded and implemented.
Parks in the city include Callahan Park, with swimming pools, tennis courts and an enclosed ice skating rink, and Hanley Park, with a large playground, horseshoe pits and a skate park.
The immediate Bradford area is home to two golf courses, the Pennhills Club in Bradford Township and Pine Acres Golf Course near Marshburg.
) is a movie based on a true story described in a chapter of the book “Invisible Ink" by Carl A. Veno, with director Ron Ballard, writer Linda Veno, and commentator Michael Rispoli. It was filmed on location in Bradford, at The Option House, the Zippo Manufacturing Company, St. Bernard's Cemetery, Veterans Square and Old City Hall which are all prominently featured in the movie. It exists presently as “the last prohibition witnesses documentary” in a full, uncensored version.
Unstoppable
is an action film directed by Tony Scott, written by Mark Bomback and starring Denzel Washington and Chris Pine. The film was released on November 12, 2010. Unstoppable was not filmed in Bradford, but was filmed in nearby communities.
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
located in rural McKean County, Pennsylvania
McKean County, Pennsylvania
As of the census of 2000, there were 45,936 people, 18,024 households, and 12,094 families residing in the county. The population density was 47 people per square mile . There were 21,644 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile...
, in the United States 78 miles (126 km) south of Buffalo, New York. Settled in 1823, Bradford was chartered as a city in 1879 and emerged as a wild oil boomtown in the Pennsylvanian oil rush
Pennsylvanian oil rush
The Pennsylvanian oil rush was a "boom" in petroleum production which occurred in northwestern Pennsylvania from 1859 to about 1870. It was the first oil boom in the United States....
in the late 19th century. The area's Pennsylvania Grade crude oil has superior qualities and is free of asphaltic constituents, contains only trace amounts of sulfur and nitrogen, and has excellent characteristics for refining into lubricants. World-famous Kendall racing oils were produced in Bradford.
The population peaked at 17,691 in 1940, but as of the 2000 census had dropped to 9,175 and was still declining at mid-decade according to census bureau estimates. Two adjoining townships, home to approximately 9,000 people, make the population of Greater Bradford about 18,000. Famous Bradfordians include opera singer Marilyn Horne
Marilyn Horne
Marilyn Horne is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer. She specialized in roles requiring a large sound, beauty of tone, excellent breath support, and the ability to execute difficult coloratura passages....
, Hall of Fame baseball player Rube Waddell
Rube Waddell
George Edward Waddell was an American southpaw pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his thirteen-year career he played for the Louisville Colonels , Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Orphans in the National League, and the Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns in the American League...
, and five-time All-Star football player Stew Barber
Stew Barber
Stewart C. Barber is a former American collegiate and Professional Football player.An offensive tackle from Penn State University, He played his entire career in the American Football League with the Buffalo Bills from 1961 through 1969.He was an American Football League All-Star five consecutive...
. A famous Perpetual Motion machine hoax was created in Bradford in 1897 by J.M. Aldrich; it was exposed in the July 1, 1899 issue of the Scientific American
Scientific American
Scientific American is a popular science magazine. It is notable for its long history of presenting science monthly to an educated but not necessarily scientific public, through its careful attention to the clarity of its text as well as the quality of its specially commissioned color graphics...
magazine, leading to a four-month prison sentence in the county jail.
Economy
Bradford is well known as the home of ZippoZippo
A Zippo lighter is a refillable, metal lighter manufactured by Zippo Manufacturing Company of Bradford, Pennsylvania, U.S. Thousands of different styles and designs have been made in the seven decades since their introduction including military ones for specific regiments.-Establishment:George G...
, a manufacturer of collectible pocket lighters, and Case
W. R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co.
W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Company is an American manufacturer of traditional pocketknives, fixed blades/sporting knives, limited edition commemoratives and collectibles. The company originated in Little Valley, New York around the turn of the 20th century before relocating to its current home,...
, which is owned by Zippo and makes collectible knives. As of February 2009, the two companies employed 1,117 people, but significant layoffs have taken place since then. After Zippo and Case, the second largest employer is Bradford Regional Medical Center, which employed 759 as of February 2009. BRMC underwent a significant campus expansion in 2006. Other major employers as of February 2009 include Beacon Light (682), Bradford Area School District (474) and Wal-Mart (378). The nearby Federal Prison employed 301 as of that time.
The city also boasts an American Refining Group oil refinery, the oldest continuously operating refinery in the United States, which celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2006. Since ARG purchased the refinery in the mid 1990s, employment has almost doubled, to just less than 300 as of February 2009.
Bradford is home to a growing four-year college, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford
University of Pittsburgh at Bradford
The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, also known as Pitt-Bradford or UPB, is a comprehensive undergraduate college of the University of Pittsburgh that exists as a regional campus located in Bradford, Pennsylvania. Pitt-Bradford was listed among the Best Baccalaureate Colleges in the North by U.S...
(Pitt-Bradford), which as of the fall term 2009 had 1,455 full-time students and 202 part-time students for a total enrollment of 1,657, with 217 full-time employees and 106 part-time employees. Almost 900 students live on campus. The university's campus has grown significantly in recent years. Current building projects include a new residence hall, a chapel and laboratory upgrades to the science building.
Arts and entertainment
The Bradford Creative and Performing Arts Center season runs from September through March. The Bromeley is home to many events in the university's Spectrum Series that brings authors, artists, musicians, recitalists and performance groups to campus with all events open to the public. Theater productions are staged by the theater departments at Pitt-Bradford and the high school, and by the Bradford Little Theater, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2006. An annual community talent show, Kiwanis Kapers, occurs in the fall.Annual festivals include Stinkfest (a festival promoting leek
Leek
The leek, Allium ampeloprasum var. porrum , also sometimes known as Allium porrum, is a vegetable which belongs, along with the onion and garlic, to family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Allioideae...
cuisine), Summer Daze (formerly known as Summerfest), Autumn Daze, the Italian Festival, the Zippo/Case International Swap Meet (biennial, with Zippo Days held in off years) and the Crook Farm Country Fair. Bradford celebrates New Year's Eve with a First Night celebration. In early August, the annual Big 30 Charity high school all star football game takes place at Parkway Field, where a million-dollar artificial playing surface was installed in 2008. In 2009, for the first time, National Night Out was a significant event in Bradford, coinciding with Taste of Bradford.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 9,175 people, 3,922 households, and 2,247 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,659.7 people per square mile (1,026.8/km²). There were 4,371 housing units at an average density of 1,267.1 per square mile (489.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.74% White, 0.49% African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.52% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.27% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.63% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.95% of the population.
There are 3,922 households, of which 29.4% have children under the age of 18, 36.9% have married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together and 14.8% have a female householder with no husband present. 42.7% of households are non-families, 36.3% are made up of individuals and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27, and the average family size was 2.93.
25.4% of the population is under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.1% 65 years of age or older. The median age is 36 years. For every 100 females there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city in 1999, according to the 2000 census, was $26,463, and the median income for a family was $32,828. Males had a median income of $30,661 versus $21,250 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $17,537. About 16.9% of families and 20.7% of the population was below the poverty line, including 28.1% of those under age 18 and 9.5% of those age 65 or over. Median incomes were significantly higher, and poverty rates significantly lower, in the adjoining townships.
According to the 2000 census, in what is familiarly known as Bradford (City of Bradford, Foster Township and Bradford Township), participation in the labor force of those 16 years of age and older was 62.8%, with an unemployment rate of 6.5%. The national average was 63.9% in the labor force and 5.8% unemployed. Outside of Greater Bradford in the rest of McKean County, participation in the labor force was 56%.
Five percent of households in Greater Bradford reported receiving public assistance income. Mean reported public assistance income was $1,884. The national average was 3.4% and $3,032.
Geography
Bradford is located on Route 219 just south of its junction with I-86 above the New York State border.According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²).3.5 square miles (8.9 km²) of it is land, and none of the area is covered with water. Bradford is situated in a valley in the Allegheny Mountains and is surrounded by woods and steep hills. Two branches of the Tunungwant Creek enter the city, merge and flow north into the Allegheny River just across the New York border.
Bradford Regional Airport
Bradford Regional Airport
Bradford Regional Airport is a public airport located in Lewis Run, 10 miles south of the central business district of Bradford, a city in McKean County, Pennsylvania, United States. The airport serves Pennsylvania and Western New York...
is located about 15 miles (24.1 km) south of the city, at Mount Alton. Because of its elevation, 1,443 feet (440 meters) above sea level,http://www.weather.com/outlook/weather-news/news/articles/final-four-bradford-pa_2011-03-25 the airport often has the coldest reported air temperatures in Pennsylvania. The airport has one of the few National Weather Service stations across the entire northern tier of the state. Temperatures in the city are typically three to seven degrees warmer than at the airport, and actual city temperatures are more representative of other communities in northern Pennsylvania and southwestern New York than are the airport's.
Recreation
Bradford is located within miles of the Allegany State ParkAllegany State Park
Allegany State Park is a state park in western New York State, located in Cattaraugus County just north of Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania. The park is divided into two sections: The Red House Area and the Quaker Run Area. It lies within the Allegheny Highlands forests ecoregion.The Red...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, the third-largest state park in the United States, and the Allegheny National Forest
Allegheny National Forest
The Allegheny National Forest is a National Forest located in northwestern Pennsylvania. The forest covers of land. Within the forest is Kinzua Dam, which impounds the Allegheny River to form Allegheny Reservoir. The administrative headquarters for the Allegheny National Forest is located in Warren...
, the only national forest in Pennsylvania.
The Tuna Valley Trails Association has constructed several miles of trails in the community, with a master plan of over 50 miles (80.5 km) currently being planned, funded and implemented.
Parks in the city include Callahan Park, with swimming pools, tennis courts and an enclosed ice skating rink, and Hanley Park, with a large playground, horseshoe pits and a skate park.
The immediate Bradford area is home to two golf courses, the Pennhills Club in Bradford Township and Pine Acres Golf Course near Marshburg.
Films
Little Chicago (20082008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
) is a movie based on a true story described in a chapter of the book “Invisible Ink" by Carl A. Veno, with director Ron Ballard, writer Linda Veno, and commentator Michael Rispoli. It was filmed on location in Bradford, at The Option House, the Zippo Manufacturing Company, St. Bernard's Cemetery, Veterans Square and Old City Hall which are all prominently featured in the movie. It exists presently as “the last prohibition witnesses documentary” in a full, uncensored version.
Unstoppable
Unstoppable (2010 film)
Unstoppable is a 2010 American action thriller film directed by Tony Scott, written by Mark Bomback, and starring Denzel Washington and Chris Pine. The film tells the story of a runaway freight train, and the two men who attempt to stop it.The film was released in the United States and Canada on...
is an action film directed by Tony Scott, written by Mark Bomback and starring Denzel Washington and Chris Pine. The film was released on November 12, 2010. Unstoppable was not filmed in Bradford, but was filmed in nearby communities.
External links
- Back to Bradford Image History of Bradford
- The Bradford Era
- City Of Bradford
- Bradford-Online.com
- TalkAboutBradford Community Forum
- Bradford Area Chamber of Commerce
- Tuna Valley Trail Association
- Bradford Creative and Performing Arts Center
- Bradford Landmark Society - local historical society
- Bradford Civil War Veterans
- Bradford Historical Post Cards and Photos
- Bradford Genealogy Information
- Bradford Today
- BradfordPA.info