Blakely, Pennsylvania

Blakely is a borough in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,564 at the 2010 census.

Borough of Blakely
House on Main Street
Location of Blakely in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania.
Blakely Location of Blakely in Pennsylvania Show map of Pennsylvania Blakely Blakely (the United States) Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 41°29′N 75°36′W
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Lackawanna
Government
• Mayor	Jeanette Acciare-Mariani
Area [1]
• Total	3.81 sq mi (9.88 km^2)
• Land	3.81 sq mi (9.88 km^2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km^2)
Elevation	856 ft (261 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	6,564
• Estimate  (2019)[2]	6,210
• Density	1,628.64/sq mi (628.85/km^2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
Zip Code	18452
Area code(s)	570
FIPS code	42-06928

The Lackawanna River flows through the borough of Blakely, and within the borough is the village of Peckville.

History

The borough is named after naval hero Johnston Blakely, who was captain of the sloop Wasp during the War of 1812. The "Johnston Blakeley Memorial" in Blakely is a large anchor from the aircraft carrier USS Wasp, decommissioned in the 1960s.

In the 1970s, Blakely was home to Masterpiece Inc., the seventh largest manufacturer of artificial Christmas trees.[3]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 3.8 square miles (9.8 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1870	659		—
1880	871		32.2%
1890	2,452		181.5%
1900	3,915		59.7%
1910	5,345		36.5%
1920	6,564		22.8%
1930	8,260		25.8%
1940	8,106		−1.9%
1950	6,828		−15.8%
1960	6,374		−6.6%
1970	6,391		0.3%
1980	7,438		16.4%
1990	7,222		−2.9%
2000	7,027		−2.7%
2010	6,564		−6.6%
Est. 2019	6,210	[2]	−5.4%
Sources:[4][5][6]

As of the census[7] of 2010, there were 6,564 people, 2,816 households, and 1,742 families in the borough. The population density was 1,727.4 people per square mile (667/km²). There were 3,024 housing units at an average density of 795.8 per square mile (310.9/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 96.6% White, 1% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.7% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.8% of the population.

There were 2,816 households, out of which 23% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.1% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 18.3% under the age of 18, 56.6% from 18 to 64, and 25.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47.2 years.

The median income for a household in the borough was $38,153, and the median income for a family was $60,341. Males had a median income of $48,170 versus $32,158 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $23,063. About 6.6% of families and 12.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.2% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

The "Blakely Borough Recreation Complex" is public sports complex located on the bank of the Lackawanna River. Formerly called "Mellow Park", the name was changed in 2013 after Bob Mellow was sent to prison.[8]

Notable people

• Gino J. Merli, awarded the Medal of Honor; moved to Peckville.[9]
• Stan Palys, professional baseball player.[10]
• Joe Shaute, professional baseball player; born in Peckville.[11]
• Bill Sienkiewicz, comic book artist.[12]

References

Baptist Church

1. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
2. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
3. "Merger Case Digest". American Bar Association. 1982.
4. "Census of Population and Housing". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
5. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
6. "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 17 June 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
7. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
8. Brown, Rebekah (March 19, 2013). "Blakely Council Votes to Change Name of Mellow Park". Scranton Times-Tribune.
9. Willbanks, James H. (2011). America's Heroes: Medal of Honor Recipients from the Civil War to Afghanistan. ABC-CLIO.
10. "Stan Palys". Baseball Reference. Retrieved December 2013. Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
11. "Joe Shaute". Baseball Reference. Retrieved December 2013. Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
12. Booker, M. Keith (2010). "Encyclopedia of Comic Books and Graphic Novels: Vol. 1". Greenwood.

External links

• Blakely Borough Website