Editing Intercourse, Pennsylvania

{{short description|Unincorporated community in Pennsylvania, US}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{more citations needed|date=October 2015}}
{{Infobox settlement
|name                     = Intercourse
|settlement_type          = [[Census-designated place]]
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    =

<!-- Images -->
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|imagesize                = 
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|image_blank_emblem = Intercourse, PA Keystone Marker 3.jpg
|blank_emblem_type = Keystone Marker
|blank_emblem_size = 250px
|blank_emblem_link = Keystone Markers
<!-- Maps -->
|pushpin_map              = Pennsylvania#USA
|pushpin_label_position   = top<!-- the position of the pushpin label: left, right, top, bottom, none -->
|pushpin_map_caption      = Location in Pennsylvania##Location in the United States
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<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Pennsylvania]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Pennsylvania|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Lancaster County, Pennsylvania|Lancaster]]
|subdivision_type3        = [[List of townships in Pennsylvania|Township]]
|subdivision_name3        = [[Leacock Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania|Leacock]]
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = <!-- Mayor -->
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|leader_name1             = 
|established_title        = 
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<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="TigerWebMapServer">{{cite web|title=ArcGIS REST Services Directory|url=https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/5/query?where=STATE='42'&outFields=NAME,STATE,PLACE,AREALAND,AREAWATER,LSADC,CENTLAT,CENTLON&orderByFields=PLACE&returnGeometry=false&returnTrueCurves=false&f=json|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=October 12, 2022}}</ref>
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 5.46
|area_land_km2            = 5.46
|area_water_km2           = 0.00

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_footnotes     = <ref name="USCensusDecennial2020CenPopScriptOnly"/>
|population_total         = 1494
|population_density_km2   = 273.59

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
|utc_offset               = -5
|timezone_DST             = EDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -4
|elevation_footnotes      = 
|elevation_ft             = 430
|coordinates              = {{coord|40|2|18|N|76|6|27|W|type:landmark_region:US|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP Code]]s
|postal_code              = 17534 (PO box)<br />17529 ([[Gordonville, Pennsylvania|Gordonville]])
|area_code                = [[Area code 717|717]]
|blank_name               = [[FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 42-37016
|blank1_name              = [[GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 1177822
|website                  = 
|footnotes                = 
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|area_total_sq_mi = 2.11
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}}
'''Intercourse''' is an [[unincorporated area|unincorporated]] community and [[census-designated place]] (CDP) in [[Leacock Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania|Leacock Township]], [[Lancaster County, Pennsylvania|Lancaster County]], in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Pennsylvania]], {{convert|10|mi|0}} east of Lancaster on [[Pennsylvania Route 340]]. As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], the population was 1,494, up from 1,274 at the previous census.<ref name="Census 2010"/> It is about 8 miles away from [[Blue Ball, Pennsylvania|Blue Ball]], a town with a similarly unusual name.

Intercourse is a popular site for [[tourism|tourists]] because of its location in [[Pennsylvania Dutch Country|Amish country]] and its [[sexually suggestive]] name. The movie ''[[Witness (1985 film)|Witness]]'' was filmed in Intercourse as well as other parts of the surrounding area, and ''[[For Richer or Poorer]]'' was set there, though not filmed in Intercourse. Because of the town's unusual name, the sign posts for the town are [[street sign theft|frequently targeted by thieves]].

==History==
Intercourse was founded in 1754.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://lancasterpa.com/intercourse/|title=Intercourse, PA - Welcome to The Heart of Lancaster's Amish Country|website=LancasterPA.com|date=11 May 2017 |language=en-US|access-date=2018-12-07}}</ref> The community was originally named "Cross Keys", after a local tavern. Intercourse became the name in 1814. The village website gives several theories for the origins of the name:<blockquote>
Another theory concerns two famous roads that crossed here. The Old King's highway from [[Philadelphia]] to [[Pittsburgh]] (now the Old Philadelphia Pike) ran east and west through the center of the town. The road from [[Wilmington, Delaware|Wilmington]] to [[Erie, Pennsylvania|Erie]] intersected in the middle. The joining of these two roads is claimed by some to be the basis for the town 'Cross Keys' or eventually 'Intercourse'.<ref name="autogenerated1">[http://www.intercoursevillage.com/town.php Intercourse PA Merchants Association – Shopping – Tourism – Restaurants<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080217042157/http://www.intercoursevillage.com/town.php |date=2008-02-17}}</ref> A final idea comes from the use of language during the early days of the village. The word 'intercourse' was commonly used to describe the 'fellowship' and 'social interaction and support' shared in the community of faith, which was much a part of a rural village like this one.<ref name="autogenerated1" /></blockquote>

Another theory is that it is derived from a racecourse on the edge of town called "Entercourse".<ref>[https://www.pri.org/stories/2016-03-24/wait-youre-where-11-towns-and-cities-suggestive-names Wait, you're from where? 11 towns and cities with suggestive names.]</ref>

==Geography==
Intercourse is located in east-central Lancaster County, in the center of Leacock Township. [[Pennsylvania Route 340]] (Old Philadelphia Pike) passes through the center of town, leading west {{convert|10|mi|0}} to Lancaster, the [[county seat]], and east {{convert|22|mi}} to [[Downingtown, Pennsylvania|Downingtown]]. [[Pennsylvania Route 772]] (East and West Newport Road) joins PA 340 for two blocks in the center of town; it leads northwest {{convert|6|mi|0}} to [[Leola, Pennsylvania|Leola]] and southeast {{convert|6|mi|0}} to [[Gap, Pennsylvania|Gap]].

According to the [[United States Census Bureau|U.S. Census Bureau]], the Intercourse CDP has a total area of {{convert|5.5|sqkm|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|2396|sqm|acre|order=flip|1}}, or 0.04%, are water.<ref name="CenPopGazetteer2019">{{cite web|title=2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Places: Pennsylvania|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2019_Gazetteer/2019_gaz_place_42.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=September 28, 2020}}</ref> Muddy Run, a westward-flowing tributary of [[Conestoga River]], forms the northern edge of the community.

Intercourse has a hot-summer [[humid continental climate]] (''Dfa'') like the remainder of Lancaster County. Average monthly temperatures range from {{convert|30.1|F}} in January to {{convert|74.7|F}} in July.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://prism.oregonstate.edu/explorer/ | title=PRISM Climate Group at Oregon State University }}</ref> The local [[hardiness zone]] is 6b.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|align=right
|2010= 1274
|2020= 1494
|footnote=U.S. Censuses: 2010,<ref name="Census 2010">{{cite web|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US4237016&tid=DECENNIALSF12010.P1|title=Total Population: 2010 Census DEC Summary File 1 (P1), Intercourse CDP, Pennsylvania|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|website=data.census.gov|access-date=September 28, 2020}}</ref> and 2020<ref name=lastcensus>{{Cite web|title=Intercourse CDP, Pennsylvania|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=1600000US4237016|access-date=2022-03-21|website=data.census.gov}}</ref><ref name="USCensusDecennial2020CenPopScriptOnly">{{cite web|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/pl?get=P1_001N,NAME&for=place:*&in=state:42&key=5ccd0821c15d9f4520e2dcc0f8d92b2ec9336108|title=Census Population API|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=Oct 12, 2022}}</ref>
}}

According to the 2020 "ACS 5-Year Estimates Data Profiles", 41.0% of the township's population spoke only [[American English|English]], while 51.6 spoke an "other [than Spanish] Indo-European language"<ref name=lastcensus/> (mostly being [[Pennsylvania German]]/[[German language|German]]).

==Economy==
Tourism and farming are major industries in the area. Small businesses sell [[Amish]] crafts and food and give [[horse and buggy]] rides. The town thrives on thousands of [[tourist]]s who visit the region each year. Most of the land surrounding the town is farmland.

==In popular culture==
The village's name is often the subject of jokes relating to [[sexual intercourse]].<ref name="joke1">{{cite news | url= https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/25000275.html?dids=25000275:25000275&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+30%2C+1986&author=William+Ecenbarger%2C+Special+to+the+Tribune&pub=Chicago+Tribune+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=THE+AMISH%3A+UNWILLING+STARS+OF+A+TOURISM+BOOM&pqatl=google | title= The Amish: Unwilling Stars of a Tourism Boom | author= William Ecenbarger | newspaper= [[Chicago Tribune]] | date= March 30, 1986 | access-date= March 23, 2010 | archive-date= June 4, 2011 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110604225502/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/25000275.html?dids=25000275:25000275&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+30,+1986&author=William+Ecenbarger,+Special+to+the+Tribune&pub=Chicago+Tribune+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=THE+AMISH:+UNWILLING+STARS+OF+A+TOURISM+BOOM&pqatl=google | url-status= dead }}</ref> Along with that of [[Blue Ball, Pennsylvania]], which could be mistaken for the slang term "[[blue balls]]," a term for a temporary testicular and prostate fluid congestion due to prolonged and unsatisfied sexual excitement, the publishers of ''[[Eros Magazine]]'' sought mailing privileges from the postmasters of the town.<ref name="KrassnerTranscritp">Krassner (1963)</ref> Intercourse and Blue Ball are often named in lists of "delightfully-named towns" in [[Pennsylvania Dutch Country]], along with [[Gap, Pennsylvania|Gap]], [[Fertility, Pennsylvania|Fertility]], [[Mount Joy, Pennsylvania|Mount Joy]], [[Lititz, Pennsylvania|Lititz]], [[Bareville, Pennsylvania|Bareville]], [[Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania|Bird-in-Hand]] and [[Paradise, Pennsylvania|Paradise]].<ref name="Ward65">Ward's quarterly (1965) p.109 quote: ''...in such delightfully-named towns in Pennsylvania Dutchland as his native Mount Joy, and neighboring Lititz, Blue Ball, Bareville, Intercourse, Bird in Hand, and Paradise.''</ref><ref name="Anderson79">Anderson (1979) p.214 quote: ''...but anyone who names their towns Mount Joy, Intercourse, and Blue Ball can't be all bad. Obviously they have more on their minds than just religion.''</ref><ref name="Museums06">Museums Association (2006) p.61 quote: ''Which brings us to Intercourse. You can imagine my delight when I found out that the Amish call the town of Intercourse, Pennsylvania, their home. There seems to be a lot of explanations from locals trying to pass off the name as a bastardisation of 'Enter Course' and so on, but seeing as there are other local towns called Blue Ball, Bird In Hand, and Mount Joy, I suspect that the person responsible had a very juvenile sense of humour. The town sits in upstate Pennsylvania and is a tourist trap for anyone even remotely curious about the Amish way of life.''</ref><ref>Rand  McNally and Company (1978) p.52</ref><ref>Mencken (1963) p.653 quote: ''In the years since then many of these names have been changed to more elegant ones,<sup>2</sup> and others have vanished with the ghost towns they adorned, but not a few still hang on. Indeed, there are plenty of lovely specimens to match them in the East, in regions that were also frontier in their days, ''e.g.'', the famous cluster in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania: Bird in Hand, Bareville, Blue Ball, Mt. Joy, Intercourse and Paradise.''</ref>  The village's name has also been a source for humor on the [[Mennonite]] [[satire]] website ''[[The Daily Bonnet]]'',<ref>{{cite web|title=Frat Boys Disappointed with Visit to Intercourse, Pennsylvania|author=Andrew Unger|date=17 August 2017 |url=https://dailybonnet.com/frat-boys-disappointed-visit-intercourse-pennsylvania/|access-date=February 18, 2020|publisher=The Daily Bonnet}}</ref> in the episode ‘’[[The Old Man and the "C" Student]]’’ of ''[[The Simpsons]]'' as well as an episode of ''[[The Cleveland Show]]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/how-did-intercourse-bird-in-hand-and-blue-ball-get-their-lewd-sounding-names/article_4ddfc21a-31bd-11e7-8371-cb3a5ca4bc9a.html | title=How did Intercourse, Bird-in-Hand and Blue Ball get their lewd-sounding names? }}</ref>

==Sites of interest==
* American Military Edged Weaponry Museum<ref>http://www.visitpa.com/pa-museums/american-military-edged-weaponry-museum , VisitPA.com, Retrieved July 3, 2013</ref>
* People's Place Quilt Museum<ref name="quilt1">{{cite news | url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6kYjAAAAIBAJ&sjid=O8wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4051,1035542 | archive-url= https://archive.today/20130103030333/http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6kYjAAAAIBAJ&sjid=O8wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4051,1035542 | url-status= dead | archive-date= January 3, 2013 | title= Museum showcases Amish stichery skills | author= Janet McMillan ([[Knight Ridder]] newspapers) | newspaper= [[The Modesto Bee]] | date= December 2, 1988 | access-date= March 23, 2010 }}</ref>
* The People's Place<ref name="peoples1">{{cite news | url= https://www.nytimes.com/1998/06/26/arts/weekend-excursion-in-amish-land-witnesses-to-old-and-new.html?pagewanted=all | title= In Amish Land, Witnesses to Old and New | author= Elisabeth Bumiller | newspaper=[[The New York Times]] | date= June 26, 1998 | access-date=March 23, 2010}}</ref>
<gallery>
File:Amish Info Intercourse.JPG|Amish and Mennonite Tourist Information Center
File:1908 Bank Intercourse.JPG|American Military Edged Weapons Museum
File:Quilt Museum Intercourse.JPG|People's Place Quilt Museum
</gallery>

==Notable people==
*[[John McGraw (pitcher)|John McGraw]], baseball pitcher
*[[Stephen Scott (writer)|Stephen Scott]], [[Anabaptist]] writer

==Notes==
{{reflist|30em}}

==References==
*[[William Charles Anderson|Anderson, William Charles]] (1979) [https://books.google.com/books?id=_lrblWJOI4UC ''Home Sweet Home Has Wheels: Or, Please Don't Tailgate the Real Estate'']
*[[H. L. Mencken|Henry Louis Mencken]], [[Raven I. McDavid Jr.|Raven Ioor McDavid]] (1963) [https://books.google.com/books?id=qsFZAAAAMAAJ ''The American Language: An Inquiry Into the Development of English in the United States, Volume 1'']
*[[Museums Association]] (2006) [https://books.google.com/books?id=3v0SAQAAMAAJ ''The Museums Journal, Volume 106, Issues 1-6''], indexes to papers read before the Museums Association, 1890–1909. Compiled by Charles Madeley.
*[[Paul Krassner]] (1963) [http://www.ep.tc/realist/44/ "The Trial of Eros Magazine"] in ''[[The Realist]]'' No.44, pp.&nbsp;1, [http://www.ep.tc/realist/44/11.html 11]-[http://www.ep.tc/realist/44/23.html 23]
*[[Rand McNally]] and Company (1978) [https://books.google.com/books?id=G6gIAQAAMAAJ ''Vacation & Travel Guide'']
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=vNEWAQAAMAAJ ''Ward's Quarterly, Volume 1''], 1965

{{Commons category}}
{{Wikivoyage|Intercourse}}

{{Geographic Location (8-way)
|Centre = Intercourse
|North = [[New Holland, Pennsylvania|New Holland]]
|Northeast = 
|East = Spring Garden, Salisbury Heights
|Southeast = [[Kinzers, Pennsylvania|Kinzers]]
|South = [[Paradise, Pennsylvania|Paradise]]
|Southwest = [[Gordonville, Pennsylvania|Gordonville]]
|West = [[Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania|Bird-in-Hand]]
|Northwest = [[Leacock, Pennsylvania|Leola]]
|image =  
}}

{{Lancaster County, Pennsylvania}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:1754 establishments in Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Census-designated places in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1754]]
[[Category:Unincorporated communities in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Unincorporated communities in Pennsylvania]]