Snydertown, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania

Snydertown is a borough in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 339.

Snydertown, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania
Borough
Snydertown, Pennsylvania
Keystone Marker
Location of Snydertown in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania.
Snydertown Location on Snydertown in Pennsylvania Show map of Pennsylvania Snydertown Snydertown (the United States) Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 40°52′24″N 76°40′14″W
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Northumberland
Incorporated	1871
Government
• Type	Borough Council
Area [1]
• Total	3.51 sq mi (9.08 km^2)
• Land	3.45 sq mi (8.94 km^2)
• Water	0.06 sq mi (0.14 km^2)
Elevation [2] (benchmark at borough center)	534 ft (163 m)
Highest elevation [2] (hill at northeast boundary)	1,042 ft (318 m)
Lowest elevation [2] (Susquehanna River)	470 ft (140 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	339
• Estimate  (2019)[3]	318
• Density	92.15/sq mi (35.58/km^2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
Zip code	17877
Area code(s)	570
FIPS code	42-71688
GNIS feature ID	1215518

History

The first owner of property in Snydertown was Godfrey Rockefeller. His land passed into the hands of Joseph Snyder, for whom Snydertown is named. Snydertown was incorporated from Shamokin Township in 1871.[4]

Geography

QR 4012 (Snydertown Road) in Snydertown

Snydertown is located at 40°52′24″N 76°40′14″W (40.873399, -76.670632).[5] According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.0 km²), all of it land.

Shamokin Creek passes through Snydertown. Most of Snydertown's terrain is hilly, but it is flat near Shamokin Creek. Most of the land in the borough is forest, but there is some farmland.[6]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1880	260		—
1890	242		−6.9%
1900	276		14.0%
1910	288		4.3%
1920	321		11.5%
1930	273		−15.0%
1940	342		25.3%
1950	314		−8.2%
1960	278		−11.5%
1970	267		−4.0%
1980	358		34.1%
1990	416		16.2%
2000	357		−14.2%
2010	339		−5.0%
Est. 2019	318	[3]	−6.2%
Sources:[7][8][9]

As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 357 people, 136 households, and 99 families residing in the borough. The population density was 102.4 people per square mile (39.5/km²). There were 143 housing units at an average density of 41.0 per square mile (15.8/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 99.16% White, 0.56% Asian, and 0.28% from two or more races.

There were 136 households, out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.0% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.5% were non-families. 22.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 23.8% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 113.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.0 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $40,250, and the median income for a family was $41,563. Males had a median income of $30,000 versus $20,625 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $15,107. About 5.9% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.4% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Education

Map of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania Public School Districts

The local public school system is the Shikellamy School District. The administrative offices are located at Administration Center, 200 Island Blvd, Sunbury, Pennsylvania. Shikellamy High School has a 78% graduation rate according to the district report card 2005-2006. In 11th grade, 49% were proficient in math. For reading 62% were proficient in 2005-2006. The high school is ranked 384th out of 606 public high schools in Pennsylvania.

In 2007, the Pittsburgh Business Times ranked the Shikellamy School District 434th out of 499 Pennsylvania school districts based on three years of Pennsylvania System of Student Assessment test scores.[10]

The Shikellamy School Board set the budget at $34.62 million for 2007-2008. The board levies a variety of taxes to support its programs. Taxes include 62.5 mills real estate tax in 2007.[11] Per capita taxes are $5 per resident. An earned income taxes of one-half of 1 percent of income yields a revenue of approximately $1.8 million. Additionally, the real estate transfer tax of one-half percent (Northumberland Borough, Point Township, Rockefeller Township) and one percent (Snydertown borough) is levied on real estate transfers.[12]

Voters rejected a tax referendum in May 2007 which would have increased local earned income tax by 0.5 percent to reduce property taxes for homeowners and farmers by $176.[13]

SUN Area Technical Institute is a regional vocational school, offering adult education classes, vocational education, and technical career training. SUN Tech serves over 1500 people annually. ISO9001 and Middle States Accredited. SUN Tech was presented with the Significant Achievement Award in Education for raising their Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award score to 648 points, a 345-point increase from 303 points in August, 2000.

Residents also have a wide selection of alternative schools. By law, the local public school must provide transportation to schools within 10 miles of the borders of the school district at no charge to the student.[14]

Parochial schools

Further information: Parochial school

• Sunbury Christian Academy offers pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The campus is located just north of the borough of Northumberland. The student population is nearing 160. Programs and student accomplishments are noted regularly in local media.
• Northumberland Christian School was founded in 1972 and is a ministry of the First Regular Baptist Church of Northumberland, Pa. The school offers an educational program for students from preschool through high school.

Charter Public Schools

Further information: Charter school

• Connections Academy provides a form of public school that students can attend from home. This is a unique program that combines strong parental involvement, the expertise and accountability of publicly funded education, and the flexibility of online classes. Centered on meeting students needs and goals. Has a K-11th program. Students are required to take all state mandated, standardized tests in person at locations designated by the school.[15]
• SusQ-Cyber Charter School provides students in grades 9-12 with an electronically delivered accredited high school curriculum.
• 21st Century Cyber Charter School is a state accredited, diploma granting school serving Pennsylvania students in grades 6 through 12. Modifications are made to suit individual student learning styles, varying academic levels and scheduling needs. Most classes are offered in honors, college prep, and career paths. All of the classes are designed to prepare the student for standardized tests such as the PSSAs.
• Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School provides a structured yet flexible, interactive environment in a program for Kindergarten through 10th grade. The rigorous instruction, high standards, informed guidance, and individual attention provide each student with the opportunity to be highly successful. Teachers interact with students via email. Additionally the Elluminate classroom gives the student access to his or her teachers during the teacher's office hours to ask questions related to content of a subject. "An independent audit of cyber-charter schools by KPMG Consulting, which was commissioned by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, praised PAVCS for offering a well-researched program and an appropriate assessment plan."[16]

References

1. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
2. "Snydertown Topo Map, Northumberland County PA (Riverside Area)". TopoZone. Locality, LLC. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
3. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
4. http://www.livingplaces.com/PA/Northumberland_County/Snydertown_Borough.html
5. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
6. https://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Snydertown,%20Northumberland,%20PA
7. "Census of Population and Housing". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
8. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
9. "Incorporated Places and Minor Civil Divisions Datasets: Subcounty Resident Population Estimates: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012". Population Estimates. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 11 June 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
10. Valley schools all over the chart, Daily Item June 6, 2007 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-07-30. Retrieved 2007-10-15.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
11. Shikellamy school board adopts $34.6M budget, Daily Item, June 20, 2007 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-09-13.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
12. Shikellamy budget approved Daily Item, May 19, 2007 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-07-30. Retrieved 2007-09-13.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
13. Tax reform proposal falls in all Valley school districts, Daily Item, May 19, 2007. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-07-23. Retrieved 2007-10-15.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
14. 24 PS 17-1726-A Transportation to charter schools http://www.pde.state.pa.us/transportation/lib/transportation/SchoolCode_Transportation_7-17-06.pdf
15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2007-09-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Connections Academy
16. Boss, Shira, "Virtual charters: public schooling, at home", Christian Science Monitor, January 2002.