Commodore, Pennsylvania Explained

Commodore, Pennsylvania
Settlement Type:Census-designated place
Pushpin Map:Pennsylvania#USA
Pushpin Label:Commodore
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:Pennsylvania
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Indiana
Subdivision Type3:Township
Subdivision Name3:Green
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:2.17
Area Land Km2:2.16
Area Water Km2:0.01
Population As Of:2020
Population Total:284
Population Density Km2:131.72
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Elevation Ft:1420
Coordinates:40.7106°N -78.9458°W
Postal Code Type:ZIP code
Postal Code:15729
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank Info:42-15464
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:1172267
Footnotes:
Commodore Historic District
Embed:yes
Nrhp Type:hd
Nocat:yes
Location:Roughly bounded by PA 286, Vanderbilt Ave., Musser St. and Fisher Ave., Green Township, Commodore, Pennsylvania
Built:1919
Architect:Paul Gill
Added:August 26, 1994
Refnum:94001057
Area Total Sq Mi:0.84
Area Land Sq Mi:0.83
Area Water Sq Mi:0.01
Population Density Sq Mi:341.35

Commodore is a census-designated place (CDP) in Green Township, Indiana County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 331 at the 2010 census.

History

Commodore was founded in 1919 by the Clearfield Bituminous Coal Corporation, a subsidiary of the New York Central Railroad. It was named in honor of Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt, founder of that railroad. (Vanderbilt was known by the nickname or unofficial rank of Commodore due to his background as a riverboat owner.)

The town was created as a "model town", with a higher caliber of worker housing than other coal mining communities. Houses were constructed of concrete block, not wood. Also, the houses had toilets and the community had a sewer system, which were unusual in comparison to neighboring mining communities.[2]

Streets were named after executives of the coal company: F.E. Herriman (President), John Fisher (Vice President), H.B. Douglas (Assistant to the President), A.J. Musser (General Manager), and H.J. Hinterleitner (General Superintendent). The town and its initial buildings were designed by Paul Gill, an engineer of the coal company.[3]

The community was added to the National Register of Historic Places as Commodore Historic District on August 26, 1994. The national Historic district has 94 contributing buildings.

Geography

Commodore is located at 40.7106°N -78.9458°W (40.710694, -78.945857).[4]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 0.8sqmi, all land.

Demographics

As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 337 people, 126 households, and 102 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 147 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 98.22% White, 0.59% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.19% of the population.

There were 126 households, out of which 42.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.8% were married couples living together, 23.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.3% were non-families. 16.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the CDP the population was spread out, with 30.0% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 80.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.8 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $29,063, and the median income for a family was $31,000. Males had a median income of $23,281 versus $17,500 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $9,502. About 13.0% of families and 18.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.6% of those under age 18 and 19.6% of those age 65 or over.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: ArcGIS REST Services Directory. United States Census Bureau. October 12, 2022.
  2. Book: Busovicki, John F. . Indiana County . Arcadia Publishing . 2003 . Charleston, South Carolina . 90–91 . 0-7385-1181-1 .
  3. Web site: National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania. CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System. Searchable database. December 5, 2011. September 14, 2005. https://web.archive.org/web/20050914194407/https://www.dot7.state.pa.us/ce/SelectWelcome.asp. dead. Note: This includes Web site: [{{NRHP-PA|H094510_01H.pdf}} National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Commodore Historic District]. 2011-12-04. R. Ann Safley. PDF. May 1994.
  4. Web site: US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990. United States Census Bureau. 2011-04-23. 2011-02-12.
  5. Web site: U.S. Census website . . 2008-01-31 .