Ross Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania

For other Pennsylvania townships of the same name, see Ross Township, Pennsylvania.

Ross Township
—  Township  —
Location within Allegheny County
Ross Township Location within the state of Pennsylvania
Coordinates: 40°31′35″N 80°1′19″W
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Allegheny
Area
• Total	14.4 sq mi (37.4 km2)
Population (2010)
• Total	31,105
• Density	2,200/sq mi (830/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes	15237, 15229, 15214, 15209
Area code(s)	412
FIPS code
GNIS feature ID
Website	ross.pa.us

Ross Township is a township of the first class in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 31,105 at the 2010 census. In September 2007, Ross Township adopted the Strong Mayor/Weak Council form of government allowed by Pennsylvania statutes for townships of its class.

The township is part of the North Hills School District and participates in the multi-municipality Northland Public Library.

Geography

Ross Township is located at 40°31′35″N 80°1′18″W (40.526418, -80.021823).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 14.4 square miles (37.4 km²). A small amount of land is covered with water.

Neighboring communities

Ross Township is bordered by McCandless to the north, Hampton Township to the northeast (touching at one point), Shaler Township to the east, Reserve Township and the Pittsburgh neighborhoods of Summer Hill, Perry North and Brighton Heights to the south, the borough of Bellevue to the southwest, Kilbuck Township and Ohio Township to the west, and the borough of Franklin Park to the northwest. Ross Township wholly surrounds the borough of West View.

History

The township was formed in 1809 from Pine Township and named for a prominent Pittsburgh attorney, James Ross. Ross' borders changed over the course of time when Allegheny City was formed to the south and Shaler Township was formed to the east. Both took place before the turn of the 20th century. In 1905 the borough of West View was formed in the southwest corner of Ross Township. Since then, the borders have remained relatively unchanged.

Communities

• Keown Station
• Berkeley Hills
• Kinvara
• Perrysville

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 32,551 people, 13,892 households, and 8,807 families residing in the township. The population density was 2,255.3 people per square mile (871.0/km²). There were 14,422 housing units at an average density of 999.2/sq mi (385.9/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 95.93% White, 1.42% Black or African American, 0.08% Native American, 1.80% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.73% of the population.

There were 13,892 households out of which 24.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.4% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the township the population was spread out with 19.4% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 21.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.0 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $46,542, and the median income for a family was $57,917. Males had a median income of $41,736 versus $31,304 for females. The per capita income for the township was $25,883. About 2.2% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.3% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

External links

• Ross Township official website
• The Boczkowski murders