Fayette City, Pennsylvania

Fayette City is a borough in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 502 at the 2020 census,<ref name="USCensusEst2020-2021">Template:Cite web</ref> a decline from the figure of 596 tabulated in 2010.<ref name="Census 2010">Template:Cite web</ref> It is served by the Belle Vernon Area School District. Some buildings in the town antedate 1820.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

File:Fayette City.jpg

Fayette City PA

Herbert Vargo Jr. is the current mayor.<ref name=herald1/> His term ends in 2025.<ref name=county1/> He was first elected to the office in 1993.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

Fayette City was originally known as Freeport, founded in the 1794 by Colonel Edward Cook.<ref name="Moskala">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="burns">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1825, Freeport was renamed Cookstown in honor of Colonel Cook who had died in 1812.<ref name="burns"/> On April 11, 1854 the town's name was changed to Fayette City, in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette.<ref name="Moskala"/>

In 1895 the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie railroad completed an extension to Fayette City.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Moskala"/>

A ferry operated between Fayette City and Allenport from 1820-1962.<ref name="Moskala"/>

In 2012, the mayor Herbert Vargo Jr. pled guilty to running a numbers scheme and was sentenced to a year of probation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Coal Mining

Fayette City's mining history dates to 1830, when the Cardondelet, Furlong, and Snow Hill mines were sunk.<ref name="Moskala"/>

The town received many European immigrants who came to work in local coal mines.<ref name="Moskala"/> Like many towns in this area, Fayette City has been home to many coal miners supporting the coal industry in the region.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> These immigrants included people from Italy, Poland, Austria-Hungary, and Rusyns.<ref name="Moskala"/>

In the early 1900s, there were over twenty mines operating around Fayette City. Many of these mines were consolidated under ownwership by the Monongahela River Consolidated Coal and Coke Company <ref name="Moskala"/>, <ref name="mrccc">Template:Cite web</ref>

Coal Mines Near Fayette City

Mine Name	Opened	Closed	Notes
Tremont
Naomi	1870	1907	35 miners killed in explosion
Marine
Arnold 1			<ref name="mrccc"/>
Arnold 2			<ref name="mrccc"/>
Arnold 3			<ref name="mrccc"/>
Hill Top
Fayette City			<ref name="mrccc"/>, <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Furlong
Apollo
Bargedde	1863
Little Redstone	1879	1915
Cardondelet	1834
Connecticut	1865	1872
Turnbull	1848
Troytown/Alps	1844
Alice
Snow Hill	1932
Stimmel	1863
Vesta 1			<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Vesta 2
Vesta 3
Vesta 4	1933	1984	At one time was the largest bituminous coal mine in the world <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Clipper

Fayette City was the site of the Naomi Mine explosion, December 7, 1907.<ref name=herald1/><ref name="UHS_2007">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> All of the men killed in the Naomi disaster were immigrants from eastern Europe.<ref name="Moskala"/>

Fayette City was also the location of an explosion in the Apollo Mine in January 1926.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

By 1920, the mines around Fayette City started to close.<ref name="Moskala"/>

Churches

The town has been home to numerous churches since its founding. These include:<ref name="Moskala"/>

Fayette City Churches

Church Name	Year Organized	Details
Free-Will Baptist Church	1820	Closed in 1870
The Church of Christ	1836
The Presbyterian Church	1871	Building built in 1901
The Reorganized Mormon Church	1886
St Edwards Slavish Church	1902	Greek Catholic, later combined with St Esubius in 1964<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
St Esubius Catholic Church	1905

Geography

Fayette City is located in northwestern Fayette County at Template:Coord (40.100647, −79.838913).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It sits on the east bank of the Monongahela River, which forms the border with Washington County. The borough of Allenport is directly across the river, but the closest river crossing is the I-70 bridge, Template:Convert north at Belle Vernon. Pennsylvania Route 201 passes through Fayette City as Main Street (northbound) and Second Street (southbound). Uniontown, the Fayette County seat, is Template:Convert to the southeast via PA 201 and PA 51.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert, or 24.33%, is water.<ref name="Census 2010"/>

Fayette City's low elevation and location along the Monongahela River make it susceptible to flooding after heavy rains. Lamb Lick Run and Downers Run enter the Monongahela within the borough's boundaries.

Demographics

Template:US Census population As of the 2000 census,<ref name="GR2" /> there were 714 people, 286 households, and 193 families residing in the borough. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 321 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the borough was 99.30% White, 0.14% African American, and 0.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.14% of the population.

There were 286 households, out of which 33.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 15.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.5% were non-families. 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 27.3% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.

Fayette City, Pennsylvania election campaign poster from 1929.

Election campaign poster from Fayette City, Pennsylvania promoting a slate of candidates for a primary held on Tuesday, September 17, 1929.

The median income for a household in the borough was $29,375, and the median income for a family was $38,542. Males had a median income of $35,357 versus $23,250 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $13,058. About 20.2% of families and 26.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 38.8% of those under age 18 and 17.3% of those age 65 or over. Template:Clear left

Notable people

• Jim Russell, baseball player.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Angelo Spagnolo, "World's Worst Avid Golfer."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>