Bethlehem is a city located in Lehigh and Northampton Counties in eastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 71,329. Bethlehem lies in the center of the Lehigh Valley region, a 731-square-mile area that is home to more than 650,000 people.
The Lehigh Valley region embraces a trio of cities (Bethlehem, Allentown and Easton) within two counties (Lehigh and Northampton), making it Pennsylvania's third-largest metropolitan area. Smaller than Allentown but larger than Easton, Bethlehem is the Lehigh Valley's second most populated city.
There are three general sections of the city, North Bethlehem, South Bethlehem and West Bethlehem. Each of these sections blossomed at different times in the city's development and each contain areas recognized under the National Register of Historic Places.
Bethlehem is located at 40°37'34" North, 75°22'32" West (40.626198, -75.375673).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 50.3 km2 (19.4 mi2). 49.9 km2 (19.3 mi2) of it is land and 0.4 km2 (0.2 mi2) of it is water. The total area is 0.88% water.
As of the census of 2000, there are 71,329 people, 28,116 households, and 17,094 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,429.9/km2 (3,704.4/mi2). There are 29,631 housing units at an average density of 594.0/km2 (1,538.8/mi2). The racial makeup of the city is 81.85% White, 3.64% African American, 0.26% Native American, 2.22% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 9.44% from other races, and 2.56% from two or more races. 18.23% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 28,116 households out of which 26.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.1% are married couples living together, 12.8% have a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% are non-families. 32.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 14.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.34 and the average family size is 2.95.
In the city the population is spread out with 21.0% under the age of 18, 14.4% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 36 years. For every 100 females there are 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 88.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $35,815, and the median income for a family is $45,354. Males have a median income of $35,190 versus $25,817 for females. The per capita income for the city is $18,987. 15.0% of the population and 11.1% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 20.7% of those under the age of 18 and 8.8% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
The city is served by Lehigh Valley International Airport, which also serves Allentown, Pennsylvania and the greater Lehigh Valley.
On Christmas Eve in 1741, Count Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf of Saxony, Germany, leading a small group of Moravians, founded the city of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania along the banks of the Monocacy Creek by the Lehigh River. They named the settlement after the town of Bethlehem in the Middle East said in the Christian Christmas story to be the place where Jesus was born.
In 1762, Bethlehem became home to the first water works in America to pump water for public usage. While George Washington and his troops stayed in Valley Forge, his personal effects were stored at the farm of James Burnside, which is now a historical museum. The prosperous village was incorporated into a free borough in the County of Northampton in 1845.
In the early part of the 20th century, Bethlehem was a hotbed of American soccer, with the corporate Bethlehem Steel team, named Bethlehem Steel F.C. after the company, winning the 1918-19 championship in the National Association Football League (NAFL), and then winning what amounted to national championships three more times during the next decade (1920-21 in the NAFL; 1926-27 in the American Soccer League I; and in 1928-29 winning the EPSL II). The Bethlehem Steel sides consisted largely of British imported players and also had the distinction of being the first American professional soccer team to play in Europe, which it did during its tour of Sweden in 1919. The team also won the US Open Cup, now called the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup after billionaire sports franchise owner Lamar Hunt, five times beginning in 1915, and for the last time in 1926.
In 1937, the Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce, mindful of Bethlehem's historic tie to the Christmas story since its founding, adopted the nickname "Christmas City, USA" for Bethlehem. Many tourists now come to Bethlehem each year at Christmas time to see the historic downtown and the 81 foot high electric "Star of Bethlehem" on South Mountain. The city's Musikfest festival in late summer can also draw more than one million people.
Bethlehem became a center of heavy industry and trade during the industrial revolution. The Bethlehem Steel Corporation, founded in 1904, began producing the first wide-flange structural shapes to be made in America, was the first company to produce the now-ubiquitous 'I-beam', and was a major supplier of armor plate and ordnance products during World War I and World War II. After roughly 140 years of metal production at its Bethlehem plant, Bethlehem Steel ceased operations in Bethlehem in 1995.
Source:
BethlehemPennsylvania.com
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