Hepburn Township, Pennsylvania

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Hepburn Township,
Pennsylvania
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settlement_type = Township
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image_caption = Blooming Grove Dunkard Church, built ca. 1805


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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Map of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania highlighting Hepburn Township

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mapsize1 = 250x200px
map_caption1 = Map of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Pennsylvania
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Lycoming
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government_type = Board of Supervisors
leader_title = Chairman
leader_name = Rand Lepley
leader_title1 = Vice-chairman
leader_name1 = Larry Matty
leader_title2 = Supervisor
leader_name2 = Bob Fesemyer
leader_title3 =
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established_title = Settled
established_date = 1784
established_title2 = Formed
established_date2 = 1804
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area_magnitude =
unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =
area_total_km2 = 43.1
area_land_km2 = 43.1
area_water_km2 = 0.0
area_total_sq_mi = 16.6
area_land_sq_mi = 16.6
area_water_sq_mi = 0.0
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population_as_of = 2000
population_footnotes =
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population_total = 2836
population_density_km2 = 65.8
population_density_sq_mi = 170.4
population_metro =
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timezone = Eastern Time Zone (North America)
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
latd = 41 |latm = 18 |lats = 53 |latNS = N
longd = 77 |longm = 2 |longs = 34 |longEW = W
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 276
elevation_ft = 906
postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 17728
area_code = 570
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 42-33944GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 1216751GR|3
website = [http://www.hepburntownship.org Hepburn Township]
footnotes =

Hepburn Township is a township in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The population was 2,836 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Hepburn Township was formed from part of Loyalsock Township in 1804. It is named for William Hepburn who was a former state senator and one of the founding fathers of Lycoming County and Williamsport which is the largest city in Lycoming County. Hepburn Township was originally much larger in size than it is today. Lewis, Gamble, Eldred Township, and Cascade Townships all are formed from territory that was at least formerly part of Hepburn Township.cite book | last = Meginness | first = John Franklin | title = History of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania: including its aboriginal history; the colonial and revolutionary periods; early settlement and subsequent growth; organization and civil administration; the legal and medical professions; internal improvement; past and present history of Williamsport; manufacturing and lumber interests; religious, educational, and social development; geology and agriculture; military record; sketches of boroughs, townships, and villages; portraits and biographies of pioneers and representative citizens, etc. etc."
origdate = 1892
url = http://www.usgennet.org/usa/pa/county/lycoming/history/lyco-history-01.html
accessdate = 2007-04-28
edition = 1st Edition
publisher = Brown, Runk & Co.
location = Chicago, IL
id = ISBN 0-7884-0428-8
chapter =
chapterurl = http://www.usgennet.org/usa/pa/county/lycoming/history/Chapter-34.html
quote = (Note: ISBN refers to Heritage Books July 1996 reprint. URL is to a scan of the 1892 version with some OCR typos).]

An Indian village known as Eeltown played a prominent role in the early history of what is now Hepburn Township. This village located on Lycoming Creek near the present village of Hepburnville was an important village on the Sheshequin Path. The Indian name for Eeltown is unknown, but the whites named it for the plentiful eels that could be found in the waters of Lycoming Creek.cite book | last = Lloyd | first = Thomas W. | title = History of Lycoming County Pennsylvania | origdate = 1929 | url = http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~foulkrod/lloyd/LloydTOC.htm | accessdate = 2007-04-28 | publisher = HISTORICAL PUBLISHING COMPANY | location = Indianapolis, IN ]

Hepburn Township was settled by three distinct groups of European migrants. The western section along Lycoming Creek was largely settled by the Scots-Irish, the middle section known as Blooming Grove was settled by a German religious sect, the Dunkard Brethren, and the eastern section of the township was settled by the Quakers. John and Gottlieb Heim were among the first Dunkards to settle in Hepburn Township. The Heims were imprisoned in Wurtemberg, Germany as conscientious objectors. A condition of their release from prison was that they would agree to leave Germany forever. Upon their release John and Gottleig moved to the United States. They settled in Lycoming County and founded a religious community and village known as Blooming Grove. Soon other Dunkards from Germany were to join the Heim brothers. They built log cabins and quickly cleared the land for farming. In addition to clearing the land the Dunkards were also free to worship God in a manner that they saw fit. Their faith was banned in Germany. The newly arrived settlers worked hard to clear the land and credited their success on their faith in God. The new farms prospered almost immediately, they "bloomed like flowers". Hence the name Blooming Grove.

Balls Mills is a village in Hepburn Township. It is named for John Ball who migrated from England to the United States in 1893. He settled in Hillsgrove Township in Sullivan County. There he built a sawmill and was beginning to have success when he drowned while bathing. His son, William, then moved west to Hepburn Township and founded Balls Mills in 1818. He built a fulling mill soon after building his home. The Ball family quickly had success and expanded their milling operations to include a clover mill. The machinery at the clover mill was able to clean clover seed. Clover seed was very expensive at the time, a bushel of the seed sold for as much as $24.00. Clover was very important to farmers for providing ground cover and as a food supply for their grazing dairy cows. The Balls family also built a sawmill, a woolen mill, and a grain cradle manufacturing operation. A cradle is attached to a scythe to gather the harvested grains. The cradles were sold not just in Lycoming County but throughout the United States. The first major shipment to the west arrived in St. Louis, Missouri in 1866.

Geography

Hepburn Township is bordered by Gamble Township to the north, Eldred Township to the east and Loyalsock Township to the south. The western border with Lewis and Lycoming Townships is formed by Lycoming Creek. As the crow flies, Lycoming County is about convert|130|mi|km|0 northwest of Philadelphia and convert|165|mi|km|0 east-northeast of Pittsburgh.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 16.6 square miles (43.1 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 2,836 people, 1,082 households, and 840 families residing in the township. The population density was 170.4 people per square mile (65.8/km²). There were 1,138 housing units at an average density of 68.4/sq mi (26.4/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 98.77% White, 0.35% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.42% Asian, and 0.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.21% of the population.

There were 1,082 households out of which 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.7% were married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.3% were non-families. 18.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the township the population was spread out with 25.5% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 28.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.8 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $42,202, and the median income for a family was $46,932. Males had a median income of $36,118 versus $22,156 for females. The per capita income for the township was $20,044. About 8.5% of families and 8.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.2% of those under age 18 and 12.3% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

* [http://www.hepburntownship.org/ Hepburn Township Website]
* [http://www.hepburnfire.com/ Hepburn Township Volunteer Fire Company]