West Fairview, Pennsylvania

Census-designated place in Pennsylvania, United States

40°16′25″N 76°54′59″W / 40.27361°N 76.91639°W / 40.27361; -76.91639CountryUnited StatesStatePennsylvaniaCountyCumberlandTownshipEast PennsboroArea

• Total0.34 sq mi (0.87 km²) • Land0.32 sq mi (0.83 km²) • Water0.01 sq mi (0.03 km²)Elevation

360 ft (110 m)Population

(2020)

• Total1,138Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)ZIP codes

17025 (Enola)

Area code(s)717 and 223FIPS code42-82920GNIS feature ID1191019

West Fairview, formerly a borough, is now a census-designated place (CDP) located at the confluence of the Susquehanna River and the Conodoguinet Creek in East Pennsboro Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the village had a population of 1,138.^[1]

Geography

West Fairview is located on the eastern edge of Cumberland County and East Pennsboro Township at 40.273538° North, 76.916346° West (40.273538, -76.916346).^[2] It is on the west shore of the Susquehanna River facing Harrisburg, the state capital. It occupies a hilly peninsula of land between the Susquehanna to the east and Conodoguinet Creek to the south and west. U.S. Route 11/U.S. Route 15 runs north-to-south through West Fairview, and Route 944 has its eastern terminus there on US 11/US 15.

According to the United States Census Bureau, West Fairview has a total area of 0.34 square miles (0.87 km²), of which 0.32 square miles (0.83 km²) is land and 0.01 square miles (0.03 km²), or 3.76%, is water.

History

West Fairview is the oldest village of East Pennsboro Township.^[3] First acquired as a farm by Abraham Neidigh in 1802, by 1815 he subdivided lots into the town called Fairview to sell to builders. Harrisburg businessmen Norman Callendar, J.S. and B.J. Weistling purchased a 25-acre lot in 1830 to construct a mill on the Conodoguinet Creek. Deed records suggest that by around 1842 the town was renamed West Fairview.^[4] The merger of the former borough with East Pennsboro Township in 1998 was spearheaded by Mr. & Mrs. Leonard A. Portzline of West Fairview. The couple and other citizens were interested in the pursuit of greater cost-effectiveness, efficiency, and improvement in the delivery of local governmental services. The merger has become a model used by other communities across the state.^[5]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to West Fairview, Pennsylvania.

^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
^ "Reimagining the Village of West Fairview" (PDF). Urban Land Institute Philadelphia. March 28, 2018. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
^ Blauch, Ron (December 2016). "The Harrisburg Nail Factory, West Fairview, Pennsylvania". The Chronicle of the Early American Industries Association. 69 (4): 150–156. ProQuest 1888660452.
^ Murphy, Jan (November 21, 1996). "State lauds possible merger of West Shore communities". The Patriot News. p. B2. ProQuest 273178168.