New Kensington, Pennsylvania

New Kensington is a city located in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 14,701.

Related Topics:
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania - 2000

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New Kensington was founded in 1891. In 1890, the Burrell Improvement Company considered the advantages of the level land south of its home in Lower Burrell, and deemed it a prime location for a city and named the area "Kensington" (later changed to "New Kensington" for postal purposes, because Pennsylvania already had another city with that name).

Related Topics:
1891 - 1890 - Burrell Improvement Company - Lower Burrell - Kensington - Pennsylvania

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In an attempt to make New Kensington comparable to Pittsburgh, the streets were named with numbers. Avenues ran parallel to the river, while streets were perpendicular. 4th and 5th were the main commercial streets.

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Once the land was surveyed, a public sale was held on June 10th, 1891. Thousands of people flooded the area and investors began bringing industry with them. The first large company was the Pittsburgh Reduction Company (which later became ALCOA). They acquired a 3.5 acre (14,000 m²) that allowed them to exploit their closeness to the riverfront.

Related Topics:
June 10th - 1891 - Pittsburgh Reduction Company - ALCOA

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Eventually companies such as Adams Drilling, Goldsmith and Lowerburg, New Kensington Milling, New Kensington Brewing, Logan Lumber, Keystone Dairy, and many more were built late in the Nineteenth Century and continuing into the early Twentieth Century.

Related Topics:
Adams Drilling - Goldsmith and Lowerburg - New Kensington Milling - New Kensington Brewing - Logan Lumber - Keystone Dairy - Nineteenth Century - Twentieth Century

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Early achievements included a railroad station, the 9th Street bridge, a passenger boat that navigated the Allegheny River, a street car line that ran to Natrona Heights, the "Kensington Dispatch" newspaper, a fire department, hotel, opera house, and a local chapter of the YMCA.

Related Topics:
Allegheny River - Natrona Heights - Kensington Dispatch - YMCA

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By 1906, 25,000 people occupied an area of seven miles. Schools and churches flourished at the turn of the century leading the way to the modern era we are now a part of.

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Currently, the city has grown to include a Fire Department, Police Force and Rescue Team. There is also a Library, city newspaper "The Valley News Dispatch", over 15 churches, 3 banks, 4 elementary schools, 2 parochial schools, one high school, and a post secondary school. New Kensington also had at one time a branch campus of Penn State, now located in Upper Burrell, which however, still retains the name Penn State New Kensington.

Related Topics:
The Valley News Dispatch - Penn State - Upper Burrell

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The current mayor of New Kensington is Frank E. Link, elected in 2001.

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