Carlisle, Pennsylvania facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Borough
Downtown Carlisle in April 2011
Flag Seal
Motto(s):  "Excellence in Community Service"
Location of Carlisle in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
Carlisle, Pennsylvania Location in Pennsylvania Show map of Pennsylvania Carlisle, Pennsylvania Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Cumberland
Settled	1751
Incorporated	1782
Named for	Carlisle, England
Government
• Type	Borough Council
Area
• Total	5.43 sq mi (14.07 km2)
• Land	5.42 sq mi (14.05 km2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.02 km2)
Elevation	479 ft (146 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	20,118
• Density	3,709.07/sq mi (1,432.19/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes	17013, 17015
Area code(s)	717 and 223
FIPS code	42-11272

Carlisle is a town in Pennsylvania, USA. It is the main town of Cumberland County. Carlisle is in the Cumberland Valley, which is a very good area for farming.

In 2020, about 20,118 people lived in Carlisle. If you include the nearby areas, about 37,695 people live in the Carlisle urban cluster. Carlisle is part of a larger area called the Harrisburg–Carlisle metropolitan statistical area. This area includes Cumberland, Dauphin, and Perry counties.

Carlisle is home to important places. The United States Army War College is here, located at Carlisle Barracks. This college trains military leaders and civilians. Carlisle Barracks is one of the oldest U.S. Army bases. It also has the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center, which is a museum and archive open to everyone. Carlisle also has Penn State Dickinson School of Law and Dickinson College. Dickinson College was the first college started after the United States became a country.

History of Carlisle: A Look Back

How Carlisle Began

A fur trader named James Le Tort might have built a cabin here around 1720. In the 1730s, settlers from Scotland and Ireland started moving into the Cumberland Valley. Carlisle was chosen as the main town for Cumberland County in 1751. It was named after a town in England called Carlisle, Cumbria.

John Armstrong Sr., a surveyor, planned the town in 1751. He lived there and his son, John Armstrong Jr., was born there. The old jailhouse in Carlisle was even designed to look like the Carlisle Citadel in England.

Carlisle During Early Conflicts

Because of conflicts with Native American tribes, a fence was built around the town in 1753 for protection. This fence became a fort, called Fort Carlisle or Fort Lowther, in 1755. In 1757, Colonel John Stanwix set up his base in Carlisle.

During the French and Indian War, a big military trip called the Forbes Expedition started from Carlisle in 1758. Another trip was organized from Carlisle in 1763 during Pontiac's War.

Carlisle's Public Square and a Special Reunion

The main public square in Carlisle has changed a lot over time. Long ago, it was a meeting place for Native American groups. It was also where people gathered for meetings during the American Revolution.

In 1764, a touching reunion happened here. After a war, Colonel Bouquet made tribes release their prisoners. A German girl named Regina, who had been captured when she was small, reunited with her mother. Her mother sang a lullaby, and Regina remembered her.

Carlisle and the American Revolution

Carlisle strongly supported the American Revolution. Many people from the town fought in the war. James Wilson, a lawyer from Carlisle, signed the Declaration of Independence. He also helped write the U.S. Constitution.

The First Presbyterian Church, built between 1757 and 1770, is the oldest building in Carlisle. Here, Rev. John Steel, known as "The Fighting Parson," gave speeches supporting the Patriots. In 1774, settlers met at this church to protest the Boston Port Act.

Carlisle also had a gun shop owned by Thomas Butler Sr. He made rifles during the French and Indian War. He later became the Chief Armorer for the First Continental Congress. He and his five sons, known as "The Fighting Butlers," served in the Revolutionary War.

Carlisle was also a place where weapons were stored during the war. This storage area later became the United States Army War College at Carlisle Barracks. Molly Pitcher, a hero of the Revolutionary War, died in Carlisle in 1832. She is buried in the Old Public Graveyard. A hotel was named after her, the Molly Pitcher Hotel.

Carlisle in the Early United States

Carlisle officially became a town on April 13, 1782. It continued to be important in the early days of the United States. In 1787, there was a small riot in Carlisle related to the United States Constitution.

In 1794, during the Whiskey Rebellion, President George Washington led troops from Pennsylvania and New Jersey who gathered in Carlisle. While there, he attended church at the First Presbyterian Church.

Education in Early Carlisle

Benjamin Rush, another signer of the Declaration of Independence, started Carlisle Grammar School in 1773. It later became Dickinson College, the first new college in the newly formed United States. James Buchanan, who became the 15th U.S. president, graduated from Dickinson College in 1809.

The Dickinson School of Law started in 1834. It is the fifth-oldest law school in the U.S. and the oldest in Pennsylvania.

Carlisle and the Civil War Era

Carlisle was a stop on the Underground Railroad, helping people escape slavery. During the American Civil War, Confederate soldiers attacked Carlisle on July 1, 1863. This was part of the Gettysburg Campaign. You can still see a cannonball dent on a column of the old county courthouse.

Carlisle Indian Industrial School

In 1879, Lieutenant Richard Henry Pratt started the Carlisle Indian Industrial School at Carlisle Barracks. This was the first school supported by the government for American Indians who lived off reservations. The school aimed to teach Native American children to live in white society.

Famous athlete Jim Thorpe attended the school in 1907. He played on the football team under coach Glenn "Pop" Warner. Jim Thorpe led the team to big wins against strong teams like Harvard and Army. This brought a lot of attention to the school. The Carlisle Indian School closed in 1918.

Modern History and Important Sites

The Dickinson School of Law became independent in 1890. It later joined Pennsylvania State University in 1997, becoming Penn State Dickinson School of Law.

Carlisle was the first eastern end of the Pennsylvania Turnpike when it opened in 1940. Several places in Carlisle are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Carlisle Historic District and the Carlisle Indian Industrial School.

Geography of Carlisle

Carlisle is located in the middle of Cumberland County. It sits in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Great Appalachian Valley. The Conodoguinet Creek, which flows into the Susquehanna River, is to the south of the town. Letort Spring Run, a smaller stream, runs through the eastern part of Carlisle.

Carlisle is about 20 miles west of Harrisburg, the state capital. It is also about 80 miles northwest of Baltimore and 124 miles west of Philadelphia. The town covers about 5.43 square miles, with most of it being land.

Carlisle's Climate

Carlisle has a humid continental climate. This means it has hot, humid summers and cool winters. The average temperature is about 51.3°F (10.7°C). Temperatures can go above 90°F (32°C) about 16 days a year. They can drop below 32°F (0°C) about 119 days a year.

Carlisle gets about 38.8 inches (986 mm) of rain each year. It also gets about 29.8 inches (757 mm) of snow annually. January is usually the coldest month, and July is the warmest. September is often the wettest month.

The hottest temperature ever recorded in Carlisle was 102°F (39°C) in 1966. The coldest was -19°F (-28°C) in 1994.

People of Carlisle: Demographics

In 2000, there were about 17,970 people living in Carlisle. There were 7,426 households and 4,010 families. The population density was about 3,309 people per square mile.

Most people in Carlisle (about 88.93%) were White. About 6.92% were African American, and 1.60% were Asian. About 1.96% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.

About 23.3% of households had children under 18. About 40.3% were married couples. The average household had 2.10 people. The average family had 2.81 people.

The median age in Carlisle was 36 years old. About 18.6% of the population was under 18. About 17.2% were between 18 and 24. About 17.8% were 65 or older.

The median income for a household was $33,969. For a family, it was $46,588. About 14.0% of the population lived below the poverty line. This included 21.7% of those under 18.

Carlisle's Economy: What Businesses are Here?

The Giant Company, a large supermarket chain, has its main office in Carlisle. They have stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia.

In the past, Carlisle was known for companies like Carlisle Tire and Rubber Company and Masland Carpets. These companies are no longer in business. Their old factories were taken down in 2013.

Today, Amazon.com has a warehouse in Carlisle. In 2013, Apple opened a repair center here for customers in the eastern U.S.

Arts and Culture in Carlisle

Carlisle is famous for its car shows. These shows are put on by Carlisle Events at the Carlisle Fairgrounds throughout the spring, summer, and fall. There are special shows for different car brands like GM, Ford, and Chrysler. There are also shows for trucks and Corvettes.

The Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet (CPYB) is a ballet school in Carlisle. It is known worldwide for its talented students. Students from all over the country and even the world come to Carlisle to train with CPYB.

Dickinson College in Carlisle was once the training camp for the Washington Redskins football team. This was from 1963 to 1994 and again from 2001 to 2002. In 1986, football player Darrell Green ran a very fast 40-yard dash here.

Carlisle has two special historical markers. One is for the Hamilton Restaurant's Hot-Chee Dog. The other is for the Old Town Pump. People used to say that if you drank from the pump, you would always return to Carlisle.

Education in Carlisle

Carlisle has several schools and colleges.

Colleges and Universities

• Dickinson College
• Penn State Dickinson School of Law
• United States Army War College

Public Schools

• Carlisle Area School District

Private Schools

• Carlisle Christian Academy
• Blue Ridge Mennonite School
• Dickinson College Children's Center
• Hidden Valley School
• St Patrick School
• The Christian School of Grace Baptist Church

Media in Carlisle

Print

Carlisle has one daily newspaper called The Sentinel.

Radio

AM Stations

FM Stations

Notable People from Carlisle

Many interesting people have connections to Carlisle. Here are a few:

• Charles J. Albright (1816–1883), a congressman from Pennsylvania.
• James Armstrong, also a congressman from Pennsylvania.
• John Armstrong Jr., who served as the United States Secretary of War.
• Deborah Birx, an American doctor and diplomat.
• Ashley Bouder, a ballet dancer.
• Sid Bream, a Major League Baseball player.
• Alice Bridges, an Olympic bronze medalist in swimming (1936 Berlin Olympics).
• Stephen Duncan, a very wealthy cotton planter before the Civil War.
• Harold J. Greene (1955-2014), a U.S. Army major general.
• Arthur Japy Hepburn (1877–1964), an admiral who served in three wars.
• Carrie Imler, a ballet dancer.
• Lois Lowry, a famous author of children's books, who spent some of her childhood in Carlisle.
• Marianne Moore, a well-known poet and writer.
• Molly Pitcher, a heroine from the American Revolutionary War. A statue of her is in the Old Cemetery where she is buried.
• Samuel Smith, a U.S. senator and congressman from Maryland, born in Carlisle.
• Jim Thorpe (1887-1953), an amazing athlete and Olympic gold medalist. He is considered one of the most versatile athletes ever.
• William Wilkins (1779-1865), a U.S. Senator and Secretary of War.
• James Wilson, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a key person in writing the U.S. Constitution.
• Lee Woodall, a former NFL player.
• Lt. Col. Jay Zeamer Jr., a World War II hero and Medal of Honor recipient.

Images for kids

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  Downtown Carlisle in April 2011

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  Flag of Carlisle, Pennsylvania

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  Coat of Arms of Carlisle

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  Location of Carlisle in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania