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Newark, Delaware

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Template:Geobox City

Newark is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, USA, 12 miles (19 km) west-southwest of Wilmington. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 30,060.[1] Newark is the home of the University of Delaware.

Newark is Template:PronEng (with a broad A, as in "Noah's Ark"), in contrast to /ˈnuːərk/ or /ˈnjuːərk/ for Newark, New Jersey.

History

Newark was founded by Scots-Irish and Welsh settlers in 1694. The town was officially established when it received a charter from George II of Great Britain in 1758.

Schools have played a significant role in the history of Newark. A grammar school, founded by Francis Alison in 1743, moved from New London, Pennsylvania to Newark in 1765, becoming the Newark Academy. Among the first graduates of the school were three signers of the Declaration of Independence: George Read, Thomas McKean, and James Smith.

During the Revolutionary War, British and American forces clashed outside Newark at Battle of Cooch’s Bridge. The Battle of Cooch's Bridge is believed by some to be the first battle at which the Stars and Stripes was flown.

The state granted a charter to a new school in 1833, which was called Newark College. Newark Academy and Newark College joined together in following year, becoming Delaware College. The School was forced to close in 1859, but was resuscitated eleven years later under the Morill Act when it became a joint venture between the State of Delaware and the School's Board of Trustees. In 1913, pursuant to legislative Act, it came into sole ownership of the State of Delaware. Later, it would be renamed the University of Delaware in 1921.

Newark received a license to hold semi-annual fairs and weekly markets for agricultural exchange in 1758. A paper mill, the first sizable industrial venture in Newark, was created in 1798. Methodists built the first church in 1812 and the railroad arrived in 1837.

Geography

Newark is located at 39°40′45″N 75°45′29″W / 39.67917°N 75.75806°W / 39.67917; -75.75806Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (39.679111, -75.758040)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 8.9 square miles (23.1 km²), all of it land. Originally surrounded by farmland, Newark is now surrounded by housing developments in some directions, although farmland remains just over the state lines in Maryland and Pennsylvania. To the north and west are small hills, but south and east of the city, the land is flat (part of Newark falls in the Piedmont geological region and part of the city is in the Coastal Plain geological region, as is the majority of the land in the State of Delaware).

Despite the fact that Newark is located roughly halfway between Philadelphia (approximately 45 miles away) and Baltimore (approximately 55 miles away) and is part of densely populated New Castle County, there is a large amount of public parkland surrounding the city. To the south is Iron Hill Park (part of the New Castle County Park System), to the west (in Cecil County, Maryland) is Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area, and to the North is White Clay Creek State Park and White Clay Creek Preserve (in Chester County, Pennsylvania). Also nearby is Middle Run Natural Area, which is part of the New Castle County Park System. These parks provide ample hiking, mountain biking, and horse back riding opportunities. White Clay Creek State Park and Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area comprise land formerly owned by the DuPont family that was later ceded to the states of Delaware and Maryland, respectively.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 28,547 people, 8,989 households, and 4,494 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,198.6 people per square mile (1,235.7/km²). There were 9,294 housing units at an average density of 1,041.4/sq mi (402.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.29% Caucasian, 6.00% African American, 0.16% Native American, 4.07% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.86% from other races, and 1.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.53% of the population. 16.8% were of Irish, 13.5% Italian, 13.4% German, 10.2% English and 5.1% Polish ancestry according to Census 2000.

Of the 8,989 households, 20.7% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.5% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 50.0% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the city the population was spread out with 12.5% under the age of 18, 43.6% from 18 to 24, 19.8% from 25 to 44, 14.9% from 45 to 64, and 9.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females there were 85.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.3 males.

The median household income was $48,758, and the median family income was $75,188. Males had a median income of $45,813 versus $33,165 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,376. About 4.1% of families and 20.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.0% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

High schools

Public education in Newark is handled by the Christina School District and the Red Clay Consolidated School District. Within the city limits is Newark High School, which is the third largest public high school in the state. It has served the community since 1893. Additionally, there is Newark Charter School. It has received numerous awards and recognitions from the Delaware Department of Education.

Newark is also home to a private Democratic Free School, The New School, that serves all ages of students, including those of traditional High School age.

University of Delaware

Newark is home to the University of Delaware. The school has world-class[citation needed] programs in business, chemical engineering, chemistry and biochemistry, drawing as it does from the historically strong presence of the nation's chemical and pharmaceutical industries in the state of Delaware. In 2006, UD's engineering program was ranked number 10 in the nation by The Princeton Review. UD offers 23 varsity sports, which compete in the NCAA Division-I (FCS for football). The athletic teams at Delaware are known as the Fightin' Blue Hens. Newark is a recognized center of US and international figure skating, mostly due to the many national, world and Olympic champions (including many foreign nationals) that have trained at the University of Delaware Figure Skating Club (an independent club operating within UD facilities) and at The Pond Ice Rink. In 2008, based largely on the performance of the Fightin' Blue Hens play in the 2007 football season, Sporting News ranked Newark 186 in it's list of the 400 Best Sports Cities.[2] UD has an active ROTC program [1].

Description of Newark

Newark has a central area, which is compact and walkable, consisting of the University of Delaware, Main Street, and surrounding residential neighborhoods. The city limits also include less densely developed areas with shopping centers, suburban developments, and apartment complexes. All city streets in Newark are served by sidewalks. Newark was a small town until about World War II, but grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s. Several of the city's neighborhoods were built during this era, such as Devon, Nottingham Green, and Fairfield (some of which was also built during the 1970s). Because of its later growth compared to other comparably sized towns in the region, Newark has fewer pre-World War II houses, especially outside of the downtown area.

The center of Newark is a lively place, due in large part to the University and its students. Much of the city's economy revolves around the presence of the University. During the summer, when there are fewer students living in Newark, the town is much quieter. Local young people consider Main Street a popular "hangout", but the City is now encouraging shopping, services and housing for a more diverse age group. Newark's Main Street in the past served as a place for teenagers and young adults to "go cruising", repeatedly driving down Main Street. In the late 1980s, this led to a very successful ordinance forbidding driving down Main Street more than three times in a row. In an effort to limit cruising, parking was also forbidden on much of Main Street after certain hours on weekends. The success of these efforts led the city to restore parking on Main Street and helped contribute to an on-going downtown renaissance.

The Deer Park Tavern is a favorite of UD students, faculty and townsfolk. It was built in 1851 at the western end of the Main Street commercial district, to replace an earlier inn which had been built in 1747. Mason and Dixon stayed at that earlier inn while carrying out the survey work on the Mason Dixon boundary line, which forms most of the western border of Delaware, running due south from the Newark area to Delaware's southern border. Writer Edgar Allan Poe is reputed to have stayed at the inn, and local legend says he may have both written parts of "The Raven" while staying there and been thrown out for becoming drunk. The legend also states that he cursed the inn, causing the owners to change the symbol to that of a raven.[3]

Many manufacturing industries that once existed in Newark have moved elsewhere. Some mills along White Clay Creek like the National Vulcanized Fiber factory have been turned into shops, restaurants, and condominiums -- featured in the New York Times as an outstanding example of local land use planning for adaptive reuse of vacant mill sites. The large factory that once dominated South Chapel Street (Continental Fiber) was torn down and replaced by a large private "dormitory" residential facility. Redevelopment is also planned for the Curtis Paper Mill, a closed paper mill now owned by the city. There is a Chrysler plant on the southwestern side of the city — now slated for closure. The factory was originally built by Chrysler in 1952 to manufacture tanks for the Korean War.

Transportation

Several highways pass through the Newark area. Interstate 95, the main interstate highway through the BosWash corridor, passes to the south of Newark on the tolled Delaware Turnpike. Delaware Route 896 serves as the main north-south route through the Newark area, interchanging with I-95 to the south and continuing north through the city, bypassing the University of Delaware campus to the west. Major east-west highways through the Newark area include Delaware Route 273, which passes through the heart of Newark, Delaware Route 2, which bypasses the city to the south on the Christina Parkway and to the east on Delaware Route 72, with Delaware Route 2 Business passing through the city, and Delaware Route 4, which also bypasses Newark to the south on the Christina Parkway.

The closest airport to Newark is the New Castle County Airport in New Castle. However, commercial air service currently does not exist at this airport. The nearest airport to Newark with commercial air service is the Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Newark has a Rail Station (Map, via Google Maps) located to the south of downtown near the University of Delaware campus that is serviced by both SEPTA and AMTRAK on the Northeast Corridor. Newark is the last stop on the R2 (SEPTA) line, one of the farthest points out on the system. SEPTA service to Newark involves 4 trains both directions with the morning and evening rush hours, weekdays only. Fare is $5.50 one way to downtown Philadelphia and $2.50 to Wilmington. The AMTRAK service in Newark is less practical; there is only one train per day in each direction. However, the Acela Express stops in nearby Wilmington, Delaware. Newark is also served by two freight railroads: Norfolk Southern, which provides freight service on the Northeast Corridor line, and CSX, which passes through the northern part of Newark.

Newark's access to public transportation is outstanding for a community of its size, although this public transportation is underutilized. Newark is served by DART First State buses, routes #6, 16, 33, 34, and 65, providing service to Wilmington, the Christiana Mall, and Elkton, MD. Most routes travel through the university campus and also stop at the rail station. There is also a Unicity bus, run jointly through the city and the University, free for everyone to ride, which acts as a community circulator. The University of Delaware also operates a bus system, available and free to all students and those associated with the university.

Notable residents, past and present

Media

Radio

The following radio stations are within reception range of Newark, DE:[5]

FM

  • WJBR (99.5 FM) Wilimington, DE - Adult Contemporary
  • WOEL (89.9 FM) Elkton, MD - Religious (Christian)
  • WMVK-LP (107.3 FM) Perryville, MD - Easy Listening
  • WDSD (94.7 FM) Dover, DE - Country
  • WSTW (93.7 FM) Wilmington, DE - Top 40
  • WYSP (94.1 FM) Philadelphia, PA - Rock
  • WVUD (91.3 FM) Newark, DE - University of Delaware
  • WXCY (103.7 FM) Havre de Grace, MD - Country
  • WXHL (89.1 FM) Christiana, DE - Religious (Christian)
  • Q102 (102.1 FM) Philadelphia, PA - Top Hits

AM

  • WDEL (1150 AM) Wilmington, DE - News/Talk
  • WILM (1450 AM) Wilmington, DE - News/Talk
  • WJSS (1330 AM) Havre de Grace, MD - Religious (Christian)
  • WNWK (1260 AM) Newark, DE - Regional Mexican
  • WTMC (1380 AM) Wilmington, DE - Delaware Department of Transportation
  • WXHL (1550 AM) Eklton, MD - Religious (Christian)

Magazine

See also

References

  1. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Population for All Incorporated Places in Delaware" (CSV). 2005 Population Estimates. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division. 2006-06-21. Retrieved 2006-11-21.
  2. ^ http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=468401
  3. ^ "The Deer Park Tavern:History". Retrieved 2008-09-15.
  4. ^ "Bob Marley : Biography". Rolling Stone. 2001. Retrieved 9/17/2008. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  5. ^ "Radio Stations in Newark, DE". Retrieved 2007-10-01.
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