Sewickley, Pennsylvania


Sewickley is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. It is a residential suburb of Pittsburgh. The population was 3,827 at the 2010 census. The Sewickley Bridge crosses the Ohio River at Sewickley.

Name

Sewickley is thought by some to be a Native American word meaning "sweet water." Historians dispute if Native Americans were referring to the Ohio River as the "sweet water" or instead to the syrup derived from a local abundance of maple trees.
Alternatively, historian Charles A. Hanna suggested "Sewickley" came from Creek words for "raccoon" and "town". According to Hanna, the Asswikale branch of the Shawnee probably borrowed their name from the neighboring Sawokli Muscogee before the former's migration from present-day South Carolina to Pennsylvania. Contemporary accounts from noted anthropologist Frederick Webb Hodge and the Sewickley Presbyterian Church, as well as the current Sewickley Valley Historical Society concur to varying degrees with Mr. Hanna's etymology.

Geography

Sewickley is located at 40°32.25′N 80°10.5′W.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of, of which, of it is land and of it is water.

Surrounding and adjacent neighborhoods

Sewickley has four land borders with Edgeworth to the northwest, Glen Osborne to the southwest, Sewickley Heights to the northeast, and Aleppo Township to the east. Across the Ohio River, Sewickley runs adjacent with Moon Township and Coraopolis with the Sewickley Bridge as the direct link to the former.
Along with the four land borders, plus Bell Acres, Glenfield, Haysville, Leetsdale, Leet Township, and Sewickley Hills, Sewickley is located in the Quaker Valley School District. Together, these boroughs and townships constitute a loosely defined region in northwestern Allegheny County. Most of these municipalities – not including Leetsdale and parts of Leet Township – share the Sewickley post office and its 15143 zip code.

Demographics

The population of Sewickley peaked in the 1960 census, with over 6,000 residents. As of the 2010 census, there were 3,827 people with 1,765 households and 950 families residing in the borough's 1,965 housing units. The racial makeup of the borough was 88.8% White, 7.3% African American, with the remainder of other races or multi-racial. No other single race represented more than 2% of the population. Hispanics represented less than 2% of the population.
According to the 2011–15 American Community Survey, the median household income in the borough was about $91,735 and the median family income was $118,507. The per capita income for the borough was about $54,149.

Government and Politics

Sewickley is divided into wards and is governed by a mayor and a nine-member borough council composed of three members from each ward. Members are elected to four-year terms. The current mayor of Sewickley is Brian F. Jeffe.

Councilmembers

There are several private schools in the area, including Sewickley Academy, , , and Montessori Children's Community. The public school system, Quaker Valley School District, is renowned for an innovative laptop-technology grant received in 2000 from former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge. Quaker Valley School District is often regarded as one of the best and academically top-ranked school districts in the nation. In the spring of 2006, U.S. News & World Report ranked Quaker Valley High School among the top 2% of high schools nationwide. The Sewickley Public Library of the Quaker Valley School District is a Library Journal Star Library for the third year in a row and is continuously one of the top 25 largest libraries in the Pittsburgh Business Times Book of Lists.

Health care

Sewickley is home to Sewickley Valley Hospital, which is part of the Heritage Valley Health System.

Notable people

Parts of the movies Houseguest and The Mothman Prophecies were filmed in the Sewickley area. Houseguest in particular was filmed in many locations on Sewickley's main streets, Broad Street and Beaver Street. Scenes from the Netflix show Sweet Magnolias was also filmed at the intersection of Broad Street and Beaver Street. The Bruegger's Bagels on Beaver Street was transformed into a McDonald's during shooting. Scenes from Jack Reacher, starring Tom Cruise, and The Lifeguard, starring Kristen Bell, were filmed in the town near the Sewickley Heights Manor. Foxcatcher, starring Steve Carell, Mark Ruffalo, and Channing Tatum, began filming in the Sewickley area in October 2012.
The fictional 1/24 scale town of , by artist and photographer Michael Paul Smith, is actually based on the town of Sewickley.