King of Prussia, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
King of Prussia is a census-designated place
in Upper Merion Township
, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 19,936. The community took its name in the 18th century from a local tavern named the King of Prussia Inn
, which was named after Frederick II, King of Prussia. Like the rest of Montgomery County, King of Prussia continues to experience rapid development. The largest shopping mall in the United States in terms of space and size, the King of Prussia Mall
, is located here. Also located here is the headquarters of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region I
.
Quakers William and Janet Rees, founders of nearby Reeseville. The cottage was converted to an inn
in 1769 and did a steady business in colonial
times as it was approximately a day's travel by horse from Philadelphia. Settlers headed west to Ohio
would sleep at the inn on their first night on the road. In 1774 the Rees family hired James Barry (or Jimmy Berry) to manage the inn, which henceforth became known as "Berry's Tavern". General George Washington
first visited the tavern on Thanksgiving Day
in 1777 while the Continental Army
was encamped at Whitemarsh; a few weeks later Washington and the army bivouacked at nearby Valley Forge
.
Parker's spy map, created by a Tory
sympathizer of the Kingdom of Great Britain
, listed the inn as "Berry's" in 1777, but a local petition in 1786 identified it as the "King of Prussia". It was possibly renamed in honor of Benjamin Franklin
's pro-American satirical essay "An Edict by the King of Prussia". At some point a wooden signboard of the inn depicted King Frederick II (Frederick the Great) of Prussia. The inn is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
The inn was forced to move with the expansion of U.S. Route 202
. US 202 is a major north-south highway that passes through the town from southwest to northeast. Its construction as a modern expressway would have caused the destruction of the King of Prussia Inn; however, historic preservationists managed to prevail upon the state of Pennsylvania to avoid this important structure by building north and southbound lanes on either side of it. For more than a quarter century the inn was marooned on a median island, with motor traffic whizzing past on both sides. It was sealed up for years, surrounded by a high fence. The inn was successfully relocated in 2000 and opened to the public in October 2002.
The extensive suburb
an development that has taken place since the 1960s in King of Prussia has led urban planning scholars like Joel Garreau
to label the area as an epitome of the edge city
phenomenon, a situation where the most vibrant economic growth and prosperity in a metropolitan area (in this case, Philadelphia) no longer occurs in the urban center, but rather at its periphery. Before 1960, the Greater King of Prussia area was known for little more than being the place of Washington's winter respite in 1777-8 (see Valley Forge National Historical Park
).
Daniel Berrigan
and his brother Philip Berrigan
began their Plowshares Movement
at the General Electric
Weapons Plant in King of Prussia in 1980.
office there still carries that name (since 1850). The zip code
is 19406. http://www.hipcodes.com/Pennsylvania/King_Of_Prussia/ King of Prussia's boundaries, as defined by the Census Bureau
, are the Schuylkill River
to the north, U.S. Route 422
to the west, Bridgeport
to the east, and I-76
to the south. However, the Greater King of Prussia Area is often cited to include Bridgeport, parts of Wayne
and Radnor Township
, King Manor, as well as most of Gulph Mills
. The local fire department carries the King of Prussia name, whereas the police department and the school district carry the Upper Merion name.
King of Prussia is located at 40°6′N 75°23′W (40.0946, -75.3781).
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the CDP
has a total area of 8.5 square miles (22 km²), of which 8.4 square miles (21.8 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 0.83%, is water.
The area is served by area codes 610 and 484
. 484 is an overlay area code
.
s meet in or near the center of King of Prussia. The Schuylkill Expressway (I-76) from Center City, Philadelphia
, ends in King of Prussia at the Pennsylvania Turnpike
, an east-west toll road across the southern portion of the state. US 422 begins near the center of town and heads west to Reading
; thanks to reconstruction in 2000, motorists can now travel directly from Reading to Philadelphia without passing onto US 202. US 202 is the only major highway that becomes a surface road through the area.
The construction of one of the nation's largest shopping malls, thousands of homes, various hotels and highrises, strip malls, restaurants, freeways, a convention center, and much more has caused King of Prussia to become a highly developed community. One unfortunate side effect of the rapid development over the last several decades is that the plumbing and water drainage infrastructure is now barely able to handle the volume, leading to periodic water back ups for homes. The depth of this was shown on a larger scale in October and November 2010 when the King of Prussia Plaza flooded, causing serious damage to many of the first floor areas. Despite this, King of Prussia is seen as an idyllic place to live with some homes and farmsteads older than 200 years still dotting the rolling countryside. Much is being done to protect King of Prussia's many historic sites. Valley Forge National Historical Park
, preserving the site
where General George Washington
and his Continental Army
spent the winter of 1777-1778, borders King of Prussia to the west.
King of Prussia is well served by many transit lines including buses, the Norristown High Speed Line
operated by SEPTA, and the Rambler operated by the Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association
.
, the largest shopping complex in the United States, based on shopping area square footage. (The Mall of America
in Bloomington, Minnesota
, is the largest when theme park square footage is included.) King of Prussia comprises two malls which are connected by a short covered crosswalk, originally developed and operated by Kravco Company, now owned and managed by Kravco-Simon.
The Plaza at King of Prussia originally opened in 1960, and was under a continual expansion until 1968. The Court at King of Prussia, comprising 900000 square feet (83,612.7 m²) GLA
connected by an open-air walkway to The Plaza, opened in 1980. The Plaza was renovated and expanded between 1991–1996, to include nearly 1900000 square feet (176,515.8 m²) GLA. The Court was renovated during 1996.
When the 180000 square feet (16,722.5 m²) Strawbridge's
department store at the far end of the Court became vacant in the late 1990s, the original Kravco partners bought the building. Kravco Company re-tenanted it with big-box store
s and restaurants such as The Cheesecake Factory
, reducing GLA slightly, renaming that portion of The Court "The Pavilion."
Thus the total GLA at King of Prussia is in the vicinity of 2800000 square feet (260,128.5 m²) GLA, depending on the source used, making it the largest shopping complex in terms of GLA under one ownership in the United States. The Mall of America has more GLA under one roof, but is actually smaller than King of Prussia in terms of GLA.
The King of Prussia shopping complex caters to a very broad spectrum of consumers. Sales per square foot averages $600, among the highest in the industry. Current department stores at The Plaza include Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom
, Lord & Taylor
, JCPenney, and Sears. Other notable Plaza tenants are Apple, Tiffany's
, Hermès
, Samsonite
, and Crate & Barrel. Current department stores at The Court include Macy's
and Bloomingdales.
Restaurant
s at the mall include California Cafe, Sullivan's Steakhouse, Ruby's, Maggiano's Little Italy
, TGI Fridays, Blue Pacific Chinese & Sushi, Rock Bottom
, Legal Sea Foods
, California Pizza Kitchen
, The Cheesecake Factory
, and three food court
s. All of Darden restaurants concepts are prominent in King of Prussia as well, including the flagship Red Lobster.
The King of Prussia shopping complex is rare among malls, because it is largely served by a modern energy-saving HVAC
central plant and a unique high tension dual automatic switching electrical feeds, attesting to the foresight and sophisticated management style of the original Kravco owners and developers.
Other prominent retail space developed by others on the periphery of the mall includes big box stores such as Best Buy
, and Costco Wholesale, Nordstrom Rack, a Regal Entertainment Group
theatre with IMAX
, and Bahama Breeze
, Champs
, Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, Lone Star Steakhouse and Chili's
, all directly across the street from the massive shopping mall. A large Home Depot is located within 1/4 mile and a Walmart. These retail outlets employ 6,000 people in the area. Visitor traffic on average shopping day is in the 25,000 range, while on Christmas season weekends, it reaches over 125,000 daily.
Lockheed Martin
has a large facility on a hill overlooking the mall as well. King of Prussia is also home to roughly 200 or more companies who have headquarters or regional offices in the area. AT&T Wireless
, Trane
, MAACO
, GSI Commerce
, General Electric
, GlaxoSmithKline
, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Cephalon
, Merck & Co, Fidelity Investments
, BNY Mellon, CSL Behring, MDS Pharma Services, Elan Pharmaceuticals, Hospira, Abbott Laboratories
, GHS Pharma and BNP Paribas
are a few examples. The Theodore Presser Company
, the United States's oldest music publisher, is also located in King of Prussia.
American Baptist Churches USA
has its administrative headquarters in King of Prussia.
of 2000, there were 18,511 people, 8,245 households, and 4,773 families residing in the CDP. The population density
was 2,202.4 people per square mile (850.8/km²). There is about 8,705 housing units at an average density of 1,035.7/sq mi (400.1/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 82.70% White, 10.62% Asian, 4.26% Black or African American
, 0.16% Native American
, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.84% from other races
, and 1.39% from two or more races. 1.91% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 8,245 households out of which 21.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.2% were married couples living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.1% were non-families. 33.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 17.6% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 35.1% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.1 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $62,012, and the median income for a family was $75,882. Males had a median income of $50,803 versus $37,347 for females. The per capita income
for the CDP was $32,070. 3.2% of the population and 1.6% of families were below the poverty line. 1.8% of those under the age of 18 and 2.1% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
. The schools include Caley Road, Roberts, Bridgeport, and Candlebrook Elementary, Upper Merion Area Middle School and Upper Merion Area High School
. King of Prussia also has a Private school, Mother of Divine Providence Catholic School.
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
in Upper Merion Township
Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Upper Merion Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 28,395 at the 2010 census.Located from Philadelphia, it consists of the villages of King of Prussia, Swedeland, Swedesburg, Gulph Mills, and Wayne....
, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Montgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2010, the population was 799,874, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania . The county seat is Norristown.The county was created on September 10, 1784, out of land originally part...
, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 19,936. The community took its name in the 18th century from a local tavern named the King of Prussia Inn
King of Prussia Inn
The King of Prussia Inn is a historic tavern in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.-History:...
, which was named after Frederick II, King of Prussia. Like the rest of Montgomery County, King of Prussia continues to experience rapid development. The largest shopping mall in the United States in terms of space and size, the King of Prussia Mall
King of Prussia Mall
The King of Prussia Mall is the largest shopping mall on the East Coast of the United States, and largest shopping mall in the United States of America in terms of leasable retail space....
, is located here. Also located here is the headquarters of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region I
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region I
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region I is one of the regions of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, oversees the north-eastern United States.Region I consists of 17 nuclear power plants.-New Jersey:...
.
History
The eponymous inn was originally constructed as a cottage in 1719 by the WelshWales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
Quakers William and Janet Rees, founders of nearby Reeseville. The cottage was converted to an inn
INN
InterNetNews is a Usenet news server package, originally released by Rich Salz in 1991, and presented at the Summer 1992 USENIX conference in San Antonio, Texas...
in 1769 and did a steady business in colonial
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were English and later British colonies established on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. They declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America...
times as it was approximately a day's travel by horse from Philadelphia. Settlers headed west to Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
would sleep at the inn on their first night on the road. In 1774 the Rees family hired James Barry (or Jimmy Berry) to manage the inn, which henceforth became known as "Berry's Tavern". General George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
first visited the tavern on Thanksgiving Day
Thanksgiving (United States)
Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a holiday celebrated in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. It has officially been an annual tradition since 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday,...
in 1777 while the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
was encamped at Whitemarsh; a few weeks later Washington and the army bivouacked at nearby Valley Forge
Valley Forge
Valley Forge in Pennsylvania was the site of the military camp of the American Continental Army over the winter of 1777–1778 in the American Revolutionary War.-History:...
.
Parker's spy map, created by a Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
sympathizer of the Kingdom of Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
, listed the inn as "Berry's" in 1777, but a local petition in 1786 identified it as the "King of Prussia". It was possibly renamed in honor of Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
's pro-American satirical essay "An Edict by the King of Prussia". At some point a wooden signboard of the inn depicted King Frederick II (Frederick the Great) of Prussia. The inn is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
The inn was forced to move with the expansion of U.S. Route 202
U.S. Route 202
U.S. Route 202 is a highway stretching from Delaware to Maine, also passing through the states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire....
. US 202 is a major north-south highway that passes through the town from southwest to northeast. Its construction as a modern expressway would have caused the destruction of the King of Prussia Inn; however, historic preservationists managed to prevail upon the state of Pennsylvania to avoid this important structure by building north and southbound lanes on either side of it. For more than a quarter century the inn was marooned on a median island, with motor traffic whizzing past on both sides. It was sealed up for years, surrounded by a high fence. The inn was successfully relocated in 2000 and opened to the public in October 2002.
The extensive suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
an development that has taken place since the 1960s in King of Prussia has led urban planning scholars like Joel Garreau
Joel Garreau
Joel Garreau is an American journalist, scholar and author of Radical Evolution: The Promise and Peril of Enhancing Our Minds, Our Bodies – And What It Means to Be Human, Edge City: Life on the New Frontier and The Nine Nations of North America.In 2010, Garreau became the Lincoln Professor of Law,...
to label the area as an epitome of the edge city
Edge city
"Edge city" is an American term for a concentration of business, shopping, and entertainment outside a traditional urban area in what had recently been a residential suburb or semi-rural community...
phenomenon, a situation where the most vibrant economic growth and prosperity in a metropolitan area (in this case, Philadelphia) no longer occurs in the urban center, but rather at its periphery. Before 1960, the Greater King of Prussia area was known for little more than being the place of Washington's winter respite in 1777-8 (see Valley Forge National Historical Park
Valley Forge National Historical Park
Valley Forge National Historical Park is the site where the Continental Army spent the winter of 1777–1778 near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, during the American Revolutionary War. The National Historical Park preserves the site and interprets the history of the Valley Forge encampment. ...
).
Daniel Berrigan
Daniel Berrigan
Daniel Berrigan, SJ is an American Catholic priest, peace activist, and poet. Daniel and his brother Philip were for a time on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list for their involvement in antiwar protests during the Vietnam war....
and his brother Philip Berrigan
Philip Berrigan
Philip Francis Berrigan was an internationally renowned American peace activist, Christian anarchist and former Roman Catholic priest...
began their Plowshares Movement
Plowshares Movement
The Plowshares Movement is an anti-nuclear weapons movement that gained notoriety in the early 1980s when several members damaged government property and were subsequently convicted.-History:...
at the General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
Weapons Plant in King of Prussia in 1980.
Geography
There is no incorporated city of King of Prussia, although the United States Postal ServiceUnited States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
office there still carries that name (since 1850). The zip code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
is 19406. http://www.hipcodes.com/Pennsylvania/King_Of_Prussia/ King of Prussia's boundaries, as defined by the 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...
, are the Schuylkill River
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River is a river in Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River.The river is about long. Its watershed of about lies entirely within the state of Pennsylvania. The source of its eastern branch is in the Appalachian Mountains at Tuscarora Springs, near Tamaqua in...
to the north, U.S. Route 422
U.S. Route 422
U.S. Route 422 is a long spur route of US 22 split into two segments in the U.S. states of Ohio and Pennsylvania. The western spur begins in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, and ends at Ebensburg, Pennsylvania...
to the west, Bridgeport
Bridgeport, Pennsylvania
Bridgeport is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, 18 miles north of Philadelphia on the Schuylkill River. The old-time industries were paper, flour, cotton, and woolen mills, steel works, brickyards, etc. Bridgeport is six miles east of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania...
to the east, and I-76
Interstate 76 (east)
Interstate 76 is an Interstate Highway in the United States, running 435 miles from an interchange with Interstate 71 west of Akron, Ohio, east to Interstate 295 near Camden, New Jersey....
to the south. However, the Greater King of Prussia Area is often cited to include Bridgeport, parts of Wayne
Wayne, Pennsylvania
Wayne is an unincorporated community located on the Main Line, centered in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. While the center of Wayne is in Radnor Township, Wayne extends into both Tredyffrin Township in Chester County and Upper Merion Township in Montgomery County...
and Radnor Township
Radnor Township, Pennsylvania
Radnor Township is a township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 30,878. Radnor Township lies along the Main Line, a collection of highly affluent Philadelphia suburbs....
, King Manor, as well as most of Gulph Mills
Gulph Mills, Pennsylvania
Gulph Mills is an unincorporated community in Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is served by the Upper Merion Area School District....
. The local fire department carries the King of Prussia name, whereas the police department and the school district carry the Upper Merion name.
King of Prussia is located at 40°6′N 75°23′W (40.0946, -75.3781).
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 CDP
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
has a total area of 8.5 square miles (22 km²), of which 8.4 square miles (21.8 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 0.83%, is water.
The area is served by area codes 610 and 484
Area codes 610 and 484
Area codes 610 and 484 are telephone area codes which serve the eastern and southeastern regions of Pennsylvania. The area includes the cities of Allentown, Bethlehem, and Reading, along with much of the Delaware Valley , including most of the Philadelphia Main Line...
. 484 is an overlay area code
Overlay plan
In telephony, especially in North America, an overlay plan is the practice of introducing a new area code by applying it onto a geographic area that is already occupied by one or more existing area codes, resulting in two area codes serving the same area.- Methodology :Prior to the introduction of...
.
Infrastructure
King of Prussia has retained its role as an important crossroads throughout United States history. In addition to the Inn, from the earliest days, the intersection supported two general stores. Today, four major highwayHighway
A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...
s meet in or near the center of King of Prussia. The Schuylkill Expressway (I-76) from Center City, Philadelphia
Center City, Philadelphia
Center City, or Downtown Philadelphia includes the central business district and central neighborhoods of the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. As of 2005, its population of over 88,000 made it the third most populous downtown in the United States, after New York City's and Chicago's...
, ends in King of Prussia at the Pennsylvania Turnpike
Pennsylvania Turnpike
The Pennsylvania Turnpike is a toll highway system operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. The three sections of the turnpike system total . The main section extends from Ohio to New Jersey and is long...
, an east-west toll road across the southern portion of the state. US 422 begins near the center of town and heads west to Reading
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading is a city in southeastern Pennsylvania, USA, and seat of Berks County. Reading is the principal city of the Greater Reading Area and had a population of 88,082 as of the 2010 census, making it the fifth most populated city in the state after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown and Erie,...
; thanks to reconstruction in 2000, motorists can now travel directly from Reading to Philadelphia without passing onto US 202. US 202 is the only major highway that becomes a surface road through the area.
The construction of one of the nation's largest shopping malls, thousands of homes, various hotels and highrises, strip malls, restaurants, freeways, a convention center, and much more has caused King of Prussia to become a highly developed community. One unfortunate side effect of the rapid development over the last several decades is that the plumbing and water drainage infrastructure is now barely able to handle the volume, leading to periodic water back ups for homes. The depth of this was shown on a larger scale in October and November 2010 when the King of Prussia Plaza flooded, causing serious damage to many of the first floor areas. Despite this, King of Prussia is seen as an idyllic place to live with some homes and farmsteads older than 200 years still dotting the rolling countryside. Much is being done to protect King of Prussia's many historic sites. Valley Forge National Historical Park
Valley Forge National Historical Park
Valley Forge National Historical Park is the site where the Continental Army spent the winter of 1777–1778 near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, during the American Revolutionary War. The National Historical Park preserves the site and interprets the history of the Valley Forge encampment. ...
, preserving the site
Valley Forge
Valley Forge in Pennsylvania was the site of the military camp of the American Continental Army over the winter of 1777–1778 in the American Revolutionary War.-History:...
where General George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
and his Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
spent the winter of 1777-1778, borders King of Prussia to the west.
King of Prussia is well served by many transit lines including buses, the Norristown High Speed Line
Norristown High Speed Line
The Norristown High Speed Line is an interurban line system operated between Upper Darby and Norristown, Pennsylvania, USA by SEPTA...
operated by SEPTA, and the Rambler operated by the Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association
Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association
Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association is a transportation management association based out of King of Prussia, PA. GVF offers a forum in which the business community and municipal, county and state officials can collectively work on transportation issues affecting the Greater...
.
Companies
King of Prussia is home to the King of Prussia MallKing of Prussia Mall
The King of Prussia Mall is the largest shopping mall on the East Coast of the United States, and largest shopping mall in the United States of America in terms of leasable retail space....
, the largest shopping complex in the United States, based on shopping area square footage. (The Mall of America
Mall of America
The Mall of America, also called MOA and the Megamall, is a shopping mall located in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of the Twin Cities, in the United States. It is located southeast of the junction of Interstate 494 and Minnesota State Highway 77, north of the Minnesota River and is across the...
in Bloomington, Minnesota
Bloomington, Minnesota
Bloomington is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota in Hennepin County. Located on the north bank of the Minnesota River above its confluence with the Mississippi River, Bloomington lies at the heart of the southern...
, is the largest when theme park square footage is included.) King of Prussia comprises two malls which are connected by a short covered crosswalk, originally developed and operated by Kravco Company, now owned and managed by Kravco-Simon.
The Plaza at King of Prussia originally opened in 1960, and was under a continual expansion until 1968. The Court at King of Prussia, comprising 900000 square feet (83,612.7 m²) GLA
Gross leasable area
Gross leasable area in the retail development industry is a term applied to shopping malls, lifestyle centers, outlet malls and other retail centers to indicate the amount of floor space available to be rented...
connected by an open-air walkway to The Plaza, opened in 1980. The Plaza was renovated and expanded between 1991–1996, to include nearly 1900000 square feet (176,515.8 m²) GLA. The Court was renovated during 1996.
When the 180000 square feet (16,722.5 m²) Strawbridge's
Strawbridge's
Strawbridge's was a department store in the northeastern United States with stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. In its day a gracious urban emporium, the downtown Philadelphia flagship store added branch stores starting in the 1930s and together they enjoyed annual sales of over a...
department store at the far end of the Court became vacant in the late 1990s, the original Kravco partners bought the building. Kravco Company re-tenanted it with big-box store
Big-box store
A big-box store is a physically large retail establishment, usually part of a chain. The term sometimes also refers, by extension, to the company that operates the store...
s and restaurants such as The Cheesecake Factory
The Cheesecake Factory
The Cheesecake Factory, Inc. is a restaurant company in the United States. The company operates 165 upscale, casual, full-service dining restaurants: 151 under The Cheesecake Factory mark, 13 under the Grand Lux Cafe mark and one under the RockSugar Pan Asian Kitchen mark...
, reducing GLA slightly, renaming that portion of The Court "The Pavilion."
Thus the total GLA at King of Prussia is in the vicinity of 2800000 square feet (260,128.5 m²) GLA, depending on the source used, making it the largest shopping complex in terms of GLA under one ownership in the United States. The Mall of America has more GLA under one roof, but is actually smaller than King of Prussia in terms of GLA.
The King of Prussia shopping complex caters to a very broad spectrum of consumers. Sales per square foot averages $600, among the highest in the industry. Current department stores at The Plaza include Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom
Nordstrom
Nordstrom, Inc. is an upscale department store chain in the United States, founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin. Initially a shoe retailer, the company today also sells clothing, accessories, handbags, jewelry, cosmetics, fragrances, and in some locations, home furnishings...
, Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor, colloquially known as L&T, or LT, based in New York City, is the oldest upscale, specialty-retail department store chain in the United States. Concentrated in the eastern U.S., the retailer operated independently for nearly a century prior to joining American Dry Goods...
, JCPenney, and Sears. Other notable Plaza tenants are Apple, Tiffany's
Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. is an American jewelry and silverware company. As part of its branding, the company is strongly associated with its Tiffany Blue , which is a registered trademark.- History :...
, Hermès
Hermès
Hermès International S.A., or simply Hermès is a French high fashion house established in 1837, today specializing in leather, lifestyle accessories, perfumery, luxury goods, and ready-to-wear...
, Samsonite
Samsonite
The Samsonite Corporation makes luggage with its products ranging from large suitcases to small toiletries bags and briefcases. It was started in Denver, Colorado, USA in 1910 byJesse Shwayder, as the Shwayder Trunk Manufacturing Company. Shwayder named one of his initial cases "Samson", after the...
, and Crate & Barrel. Current department stores at The Court include Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
and Bloomingdales.
Restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s at the mall include California Cafe, Sullivan's Steakhouse, Ruby's, Maggiano's Little Italy
Maggiano's Little Italy
Maggiano's Little Italy is an Italian-style chain of casual dining restaurants with locations throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Northern Ireland founded in Chicago's River North neighborhood in 1991 by Richard Melman's Lettuce Entertain You and named for Melman's late partner,...
, TGI Fridays, Blue Pacific Chinese & Sushi, Rock Bottom
Rock Bottom
-Life:* The culmination of a descent to a place where a person has nothing left to lose in terms of possessions, status, wealth and perhaps even shelter, food and warmth as a result of self-destructive behaviour. Alcoholism and illegal drugs are some causes. Insomnia, paranoia...
, Legal Sea Foods
Legal Sea Foods
Legal Sea Foods is a Boston-based seafood restaurant group, with locations along the Eastern Seaboard. Besides Massachusetts, there are also locations in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Washington, DC, as well as in Warwick, RI, Boca Raton, FL and Atlanta, GA.-History:It was...
, California Pizza Kitchen
California Pizza Kitchen
California Pizza Kitchen , known within the food industry as CPK, is a casual dining restaurant chain that specializes in California-style pizza...
, The Cheesecake Factory
The Cheesecake Factory
The Cheesecake Factory, Inc. is a restaurant company in the United States. The company operates 165 upscale, casual, full-service dining restaurants: 151 under The Cheesecake Factory mark, 13 under the Grand Lux Cafe mark and one under the RockSugar Pan Asian Kitchen mark...
, and three food court
Food court
A food court is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dining. Food courts may be found in shopping malls and airports, and in various regions may be a standalone development...
s. All of Darden restaurants concepts are prominent in King of Prussia as well, including the flagship Red Lobster.
The King of Prussia shopping complex is rare among malls, because it is largely served by a modern energy-saving HVAC
HVAC
HVAC refers to technology of indoor or automotive environmental comfort. HVAC system design is a major subdiscipline of mechanical engineering, based on the principles of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer...
central plant and a unique high tension dual automatic switching electrical feeds, attesting to the foresight and sophisticated management style of the original Kravco owners and developers.
Other prominent retail space developed by others on the periphery of the mall includes big box stores such as Best Buy
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...
, and Costco Wholesale, Nordstrom Rack, a Regal Entertainment Group
Regal Entertainment Group
Regal Entertainment Group also known as REG is a movie theater chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. Regal operates the largest and most geographically diverse theater circuit in the United States, consisting of 6,775 screens in 548 locations in 39 states and the District of Columbia as of...
theatre with IMAX
IMAX
IMAX is a motion picture film format and a set of proprietary cinema projection standards created by the Canadian company IMAX Corporation. IMAX has the capacity to record and display images of far greater size and resolution than conventional film systems...
, and Bahama Breeze
Bahama Breeze
Bahama Breeze is an American restaurant specializing in Caribbean-inspired fresh seafood, chicken and steaks, and tropical drinks. Most locations are in suburban retail districts and tourist areas.-Locations:*Florida**Fort Lauderdale Sunrise...
, Champs
Champs Sports
Champs Sports, is the second-largest component retailer in the Foot Locker family of stores. Champs offers for sale footwear, apparel and sporting goods. The company sponsors the Champs Sports Bowl college football game...
, Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, Lone Star Steakhouse and Chili's
Chili's
Chili's Grill & Bar is a restaurant chain founded by Larry Lavine. The chain has more than 1400 casual dining restaurants, mostly located in the United States and Canada...
, all directly across the street from the massive shopping mall. A large Home Depot is located within 1/4 mile and a Walmart. These retail outlets employ 6,000 people in the area. Visitor traffic on average shopping day is in the 25,000 range, while on Christmas season weekends, it reaches over 125,000 daily.
Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....
has a large facility on a hill overlooking the mall as well. King of Prussia is also home to roughly 200 or more companies who have headquarters or regional offices in the area. AT&T Wireless
AT&T Wireless
AT&T Wireless Services, Inc., founded in 1987 as McCaw Cellular Communications, Inc., and now legally known as New Cingular Wireless Services, Inc., formerly part of AT&T Corp., is a wireless telephone carrier in the United States, based in Redmond, Washington, and later traded on the New York...
, Trane
Trane
Trane Inc. is a subsidiary of Ingersoll Rand and is the successor company to the American Standard Companies. It is a global provider of heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems and building management systems and controls under the Trane and American Standard brand names...
, MAACO
MAACO
MAACO Collision Repair & Auto Painting is an American franchisor of auto painting and collision repair shops based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1972 by Anthony A. Martino and Daniel I. Rhode. Maaco's reputation is low pricing and questionable quality...
, GSI Commerce
GSI Commerce
GSI Commerce is an eBay company specializing in creating, developing and running online shopping sites for brick and mortar brands and retailers....
, General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
, GlaxoSmithKline
GlaxoSmithKline
GlaxoSmithKline plc is a global pharmaceutical, biologics, vaccines and consumer healthcare company headquartered in London, United Kingdom...
, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Cephalon
Cephalon
Cephalon, Inc. is a U.S. biopharmaceutical company co-founded in 1987 by Dr. Frank Baldino, Jr., a pharmacologist and former scientist with the DuPont Company, who served as the company's chairman and chief executive officer until his death in December 2010...
, Merck & Co, Fidelity Investments
Fidelity Investments
FMR LLC or Fidelity Investments is an American multinational financial services corporation one of the largest mutual fund and financial services groups in the world. It was founded in 1946 and serves North American investors. Fidelity Ventures is its venture capital arm...
, BNY Mellon, CSL Behring, MDS Pharma Services, Elan Pharmaceuticals, Hospira, Abbott Laboratories
Abbott Laboratories
Abbott Laboratories is an American-based global, diversified pharmaceuticals and health care products company. It has 90,000 employees and operates in over 130 countries. The company headquarters are in Abbott Park, North Chicago, Illinois. The company was founded by Chicago physician, Dr....
, GHS Pharma and BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas S.A. is a global banking group, headquartered in Paris, with its second global headquarters in London. In October 2010 BNP Paribas was ranked by Bloomberg and Forbes as the largest bank and largest company in the world by assets with over $3.1 trillion. It was formed through the merger...
are a few examples. The Theodore Presser Company
Theodore Presser Company
The Theodore Presser Company is an American music publishing and distribution company located in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania and formerly based in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. It is the oldest continuing music publisher in the United States.-Theodore Presser:...
, the United States's oldest music publisher, is also located in King of Prussia.
American Baptist Churches USA
American Baptist Churches USA
The American Baptist Churches USA is a Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered mainline, although varying theological and mission emphases may be found among its...
has its administrative headquarters in King of Prussia.
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 18,511 people, 8,245 households, and 4,773 families residing in the CDP. 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 2,202.4 people per square mile (850.8/km²). There is about 8,705 housing units at an average density of 1,035.7/sq mi (400.1/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 82.70% White, 10.62% Asian, 4.26% Black or African American
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...
, 0.16% Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.84% 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 1.39% from two or more races. 1.91% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 8,245 households out of which 21.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.2% were married couples living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.1% were non-families. 33.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 17.6% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 35.1% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.1 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $62,012, and the median income for a family was $75,882. Males had a median income of $50,803 versus $37,347 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 CDP was $32,070. 3.2% of the population and 1.6% of families were below the poverty line. 1.8% of those under the age of 18 and 2.1% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Education
Public school students in the King of Prussia area attend schools in the Upper Merion Area School DistrictUpper Merion Area School District
The Upper Merion Area School District serves Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Bridgeport, Pennsylvania, and West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania...
. The schools include Caley Road, Roberts, Bridgeport, and Candlebrook Elementary, Upper Merion Area Middle School and Upper Merion Area High School
Upper Merion Area High School
Upper Merion Area High School is a high school of the Upper Merion Area School District located at 435 Crossfield Road in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania....
. King of Prussia also has a Private school, Mother of Divine Providence Catholic School.