Intercourse, Pennsylvania facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Intercourse, Pennsylvania
Census-designated place
Keystone Marker
Intercourse, Pennsylvania Location in Pennsylvania Show map of Pennsylvania Intercourse, Pennsylvania Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Lancaster
Township	Leacock
Area
• Total	2.11 sq mi (5.46 km2)
• Land	2.11 sq mi (5.46 km2)
• Water	0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	430 ft (130 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,494
• Density	708.7/sq mi (273.6/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	17534 (PO box) 17529 (Gordonville)
Area code(s)	717 Exchange: 768
FIPS code	42-37016
GNIS feature ID	1177822

Intercourse is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Leacock Township, Lancaster County, in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, 10 miles (16 km) east of Lancaster on Pennsylvania Route 340. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,494, up from 1,274 at the previous census.

Intercourse is a popular site for tourists because of its location in Amish country. The movie 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 frequently targeted by thieves.

History

Intercourse was founded in 1754. 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.

One 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 to 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'. 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.

Sites of interest

• 

  Amish and Mennonite Tourist Information Center

• 

  American Military Edged Weapons Museum

• 

  People's Place Quilt Museum

• Museums and Historic Sites
  • American Military Edged Weaponry Museum
  • People's Place Quilt Museum
  • The People's Place
• Anderson, William Charles (1979) Home sweet home has wheels: or, Please don't tailgate the real estate
• Henry Louis Mencken, Raven Ioor McDavid (1963) The American language: an inquiry into the development of English in the United States, Volume 1
• Museums Association (2006) 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) The Trial of Eros Magazine in The Realist No.44, pp. 1, 11-23
• Rand McNally and Company (1978) Vacation & travel guide

	Leola	New Holland
	Bird-in-Hand		Spring Garden, Salisbury Heights
		Intercourse
	Soudersburg	Vintage	Hatville, Kinzers

Economy

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

Demographics

According to the 2020 "ACS 5-Year Estimates Data Profiles", 41.0% of the township's population spoke only English, while 51.6 spoke an "other [than Spanish] Indo-European language" (basically Pennsylvania German/German).

See also

In Spanish: Intercourse (Pensilvania) para niños