South Whitehall Township | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Dorneyville Crossroad Settlement in South Whitehall Township in April 2013 | |
 Logo | |
 Location of South Whitehall Township inLehigh County, Pennsylvania | |
  South Whitehall Twp Location in the United States Show map of the United States | |
| Coordinates:40°36′56″N75°33′01″W / 40.61556°N 75.55028°W /40.61556; -75.55028 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Pennsylvania |
| County | Lehigh |
| Established | 1810 |
| Area | |
• Township | 17.25 sq mi (44.67 km2) |
| • Land | 17.08 sq mi (44.23 km2) |
| • Water | 0.17 sq mi (0.44 km2) |
| Elevation | 443 ft (135 m) |
| Population | |
• Township | 19,180 |
• Estimate (2016)[3] | 19,794 |
| • Density | 1,159.1/sq mi (447.53/km2) |
| • Metro | 865,310 (US:68th) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP Codes | 18069, 18103, and 18104 |
| Area code | 610 |
| FIPS code | 42-077-72632 |
| Primary airport | Lehigh Valley International Airport |
| Major hospital | Lehigh Valley Hospital–Cedar Crest |
| School district | Parkland |
| Website | southwhitehall |
South Whitehall Township is atownship inLehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States. The township's population was 19,180 at the 2010 census.[2] It is a suburb ofAllentown and is part of theLehigh Valley, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th-most populousmetropolitan area in the U.S. as of the 2020 census.
South Whitehall Township borders Allentown to its east and is 59.3 miles (95.4 km) northwest ofPhiladelphia, and 94.5 miles (152.1 km) west ofNew York City.[4] The Lehigh Valley interchange of theNortheast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike andDorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom are both located in the township.
The first settlers of theLehigh Valley region wereGermans, who emigrated from earlier settlements alongPerkiomen Creek in present-dayLehigh andMontgomery counties. German settlers began arriving in present-day South Whitehall Township over a 20-year period beginning in about 1732. The immigration of the Germans and other European natives, including the Swiss andHuguenots, was aided byWilliam Penn and his friends. The land lying south ofSouth Mountain was given to William Penn in 1713 by theLenapeNative American tribe. The land of Lehigh County betweenBlue Mountain andLehigh Mountain was granted to Penn's sons by theLenape in 1732. European emigrants were drawn to the area because of its reputation for fertile land and its limestone flanking rivers and streams, including present-dayJordan Creek.
One of the earliest tracts of land purchased in the township was by Nicholas Kern, who bought property on December 3, 1735, and October 28, 1737. Some of this was sold to Lorenz Guth on February 27, 1739. Guth continued to buy land in the area of theReformed Church property and also in the Guthsville area. By 1769, his holdings totaled 759 acres (3.07 km2). The Lorenz Guth house near Wehr's Dam still stands in excellent condition and is an example of colonial architecture.
Much of the history of South Whitehall can be traced to the Walbert-Guthsville region, and especially the two Jordan churches. The first ministration to theLutherans in the township occurred in 1734 when Reverend John Casper Stoever baptized Margaret, the daughter of the John Lichtenwalners, on February 6.
In 1736, a Reverend Schmidt preached occasionally to the Lutherans. In 1739, Reverend John Justus Jacob Birkenstock became pastor of the Jordan Lutheran congregation. In 1845, the centennial of the congregation was observed, suggesting that the first building was likely erected in 1745. The first church building was of logs and stood near the north wall of the old burial ground. It was used jointly by the Lutheran and Reformed congregations until about 1752 when the Reformed erected a building half a mile to the east, within sight of the current municipal building.
The original name "Whitehall" dates to 1740 and encompasses the land now found inNorth Whitehall, South Whitehall, andWhitehall townships. Prior to the establishment ofNorthampton County in 1752, the area was part ofBucks County, and the land currently occupied by South Whitehall was known as "the back part ofMacungie" on the Heidelberg District. The name Whitehall is thought to be derived from one of two sources: either a place in England, or for a white house erected as a hunting lodge near Jordan and Cedar creeks.
The Lutherans built the present church in 1842–1843 at a cost of $3,581.24 (equivalent to $121,000 in 2024). It was renovated in 1868. In 1886, a fine, shapely, slate-covered steeple, 138 feet (42 m) high, was erected.
Members of theUnited Church of Christ religion settled in the area as early as 1738, and baptisms of their children during the period of 1740 to 1752 are recorded in the Lutheran record book. In 1752, Lorenz Guth presented the Reformed with a 50-acre (20 ha) tract of land, and a log church was erected in six weeks. The second and present church building, with its 110-foot (34 m) steeple, was built in 1808. It stands as one of the oldest church buildings in the country, and is a fine example of the architecture of that period.
The early schools of the township were connected with the two Jordan churches for many years, possibly extending back to 1739. According to the Roberts history, the congregations were at first supplied not by pastors, but by teachers who used to read sermons on Sundays. It is possible that church-sponsored schools taught by sermon readers existed in the earliest days of the congregations.
South Whitehall Township was established in 1810 following a petition to the Northampton County Court to divide former Whitehall Township into two areas,North Whitehall and South Whitehall. In 1812,Lehigh County was divided off from the original Northampton County, establishing South Whitehall Township within and nearly at the center of Lehigh County. Agriculture was the backbone of the economy of the township for many years. Much of the land today still is under cultivation. For over a century, at least six grain mills flourished onJordan and Cedar creeks.
In the early 19th century,iron ore was discovered at different places in the township, and mining operations were carried on from 1820 to 1890. In 1867, the eastern portion of South Whitehall and the southeastern portion of North Whitehall were detached and formed intoWhitehall Township.
In 1966, South Whitehall became a First Class Township. Four locations in the township,Dorneyville Crossroad Settlement,Haines Mill,Manasses Guth Covered Bridge, andWehr Covered Bridge, have been listed with theNational Register of Historic Places.[5]
In January 2024, South Whitehall Township Police Department Chief Glen Dorney announced a full staff of 43 sworn police officers.[6]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 17.3 square miles (44.7 km2), of which 17.1 square miles (44.2 km2) are land and 0.2 square miles (0.4 km2), or 0.98%, are water.[1] The township is located immediately west of Allentown and approximately 55 miles (89 km) northwest ofPhiladelphia. It is drained byJordan Creek andLittle Lehigh Creek into theLehigh River.
South Whitehall has a hot-summerhumid continental climate (Dfa) and is inhardiness zone 6b. Average monthly temperatures at Springhouse Middle School range from 28.6 °F (−1.9 °C) in January to 73.5 °F (23.1 °C) in July.[7]
South Whitehall's villages includeCetronia, Crackersport,Dorneyville (also in Salisbury Township), Greenawalds, Guthsville, Mechanicsville (also in North Whitehall), Meyersville (also in North Whitehall),Orefield (also in North Whitehall), Parkway Manor,Scherersville (also in Whitehall Township), Sterlingworth,Walbert, Wennersville, Westwood Heights, and Woodlawn.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 18,028 | — | |
| 2010 | 19,180 | 6.4% | |
| 2020 | 21,080 | 9.9% | |
| [8] | |||
As of the2010 U.S. census, there were 19,180 people, 7,814 households, and 5,339 families residing in the township. Thepopulation density was 1,115.1 inhabitants per square mile (430.5/km2). There were 8,180 housing units at an average density of 475.6 units per square mile (183.6 units/km2). The racial makeup of the township was 89.8%White, 2.8%African American, 0.1%Native American, 4.7%Asian, 1.3% fromother races, and 1.3% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 4.7% of the population.[9]
There were 7,814 households, out of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% weremarried couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families. 24.827% of all households were made up of individuals, and 35.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the township, the population was spread out, with 21.6% under the age of 20, 3.9% from 20 to 24, 20.8% from 25 to 44, 31.7% from 45 to 64, and 22% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.9 males. The median income for a household in the township was $64,854, and the median income for a family was $78,629. Males had a median income of $55,047 versus $41,610 for females. Theper capita income for the township was $36,274. About 2.6% of families and 3.8% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 5.73% of those under age 18 and 4.2% of those age 65 or over.[10]
South Whitehall Township is best known as the home ofDorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom, a popular amusement park. It also hosts the Lehigh County Soccer Fields, which are accessible from Broadway east of Route 309.
South Whitehall is represented by State SenatorJarrett Coleman in the16th Senatorial district and State RepresentativeMichael Schlossberg in the132nd State House district. At the federal level, South Whitehall is represented byRyan Mackenzie in the7th congressional district.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2024 | 6,163 | 46.44% | 6,895 | 51.96% | 212 | 1.60% |
| 2020 | 5,735 | 45.28% | 6,791 | 53.62% | 140 | 1.11% |
| 2016 | 5,125 | 48.05% | 5,198 | 48.73% | 343 | 3.22% |
| 2012 | 4,981 | 49.32% | 5,010 | 49.61% | 108 | 1.07% |
| 2008 | 4,701 | 45.10% | 5,590 | 53.63% | 133 | 1.28% |
| 2004 | 5,027 | 50.37% | 4,894 | 49.04% | 59 | 0.59% |
The township is served by theParkland School District. Students in grades 9 through 12 attendParkland High School, located onCedar Crest Boulevard in the township. Both of middle schools (Orefield and Springhouse) are in South Whitehall, as are Cetronia, Kratzer, and Parkway Manor Elementary Schools. Some of the township's students attend Kernsville Elementary just over the North Whitehall line, while others attend Ironton Elementary located in North Whitehall Township. Kratzer is located in Greenawalds.
As of 2022, there were 145.38 miles (233.97 km) of public roads in South Whitehall Township, of which 3.50 miles (5.63 km) were maintained by thePennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC), 33.68 miles (54.20 km) were maintained by thePennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and 108.20 miles (174.13 km) were maintained by the township.[14]
TheLehigh Valley interchange ofInterstate 476 andPennsylvania Turnpike's Northeast Extension withU.S. Route 22 is in the western part of the township.Interstate 78 crosses the southern portion of the township concurrent withPennsylvania Route 309. Additional thoroughfares includeCedar Crest Boulevard and Mauch Chunk Road north-to-south, and Walbert Avenue, Tilghman Street, Broadway, andPennsylvania Route 222, also known as Hamilton Boulevard, east-to-west.LANta serves multiple bus routes in South Whitehall Township, connectingAllentown with its western and northern suburbs.
Municipalities and communities ofLehigh County, Pennsylvania,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Region |  | |
| Cities | ||
| Boroughs | ||
| Townships | ||
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities |
| |
| Notable people | ||
| Culture | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
