Southwest Greensburg, Pennsylvania facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Southwest Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Borough
Veterans' Memorial and Borough Park
Location of Southwest Greensburg in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
Southwest Greensburg, Pennsylvania Location in Pennsylvania
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Westmoreland
Settled	1769
Incorporated	1890
Government
• Type	Borough Council
Area
• Total	0.39 sq mi (1.01 km2)
• Land	0.39 sq mi (1.01 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation	1,089 ft (332 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	2,155
• Estimate  (2019)	2,018
• Density	5,147.96/sq mi (1,988.69/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
Zip code	15601
Area code(s)	724
FIPS code	42-72616

Southwest Greensburg is a small town, known as a borough, located in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. In 2010, the population was 2,155 people. It is a quiet community with an interesting past.

History of Southwest Greensburg

Early Settlement and Naming

In 1769, a man named John Peter Miller was given the right to use land where Southwest Greensburg is today. He fully owned the land by 1789. People told Miller that the first person to settle an area usually got to name it. When asked what he wanted to call his new community, Miller simply said, "What you please?" Because of this, the area, which was just a few farms back then, was known by the funny name "What You Please?" for many years!

How the Borough Grew

Much later, in 1887, two wealthy men named Richard Coulter and George Franklin Huff saw a chance to build a new neighborhood there. They had made their money in the local coal mining business. Coulter and Huff bought land from a farmer named John Mace in 1887. They then planned out 413 building lots for homes. The name "Southwest Greensburg" was first used in 1888 when their building plan was officially recorded.

Southwest Greensburg officially became a borough on November 15, 1890. The first election for the borough was held on February 17, 1891. In this election, John Putnam was chosen as the borough's first burgess, which is like a mayor. Other borough officials were also elected at that time.

Electric Park and Trolleys

A big part of the community's early growth was the Greensburg & Hempfield Street Railway. This company built a trolley line on Greene Street in 1890. Soon after, they built an amusement park called "Electric Park." This park was meant to encourage more people to ride the trolley. "Electric Park" was located roughly between Greene Street, Main Street, Welty Street, and Weaver Street. Today, nothing is left of "Electric Park." The land was later used to build more houses. The trolley line was eventually bought by West Penn Railways and ran until January 3, 1937.

Geography of Southwest Greensburg

Southwest Greensburg is located at 40°17′36″N 79°32′55″W / 40.293253°N 79.548635°W / 40.293253; -79.548635.

The United States Census Bureau reports that the borough covers a total area of 0.4 square miles (1.0 square kilometers). All of this area is land, with no large bodies of water.

Population Information

Based on the census taken in 2000, there were 2,398 people living in Southwest Greensburg. These people lived in 1,097 households, and 645 of those were families. The population density was about 6,001.9 people per square mile (2,317.3 per square kilometer). There were 1,187 housing units in the borough.

The population was spread out in terms of age. About 21.1% of the people were under 18 years old. Around 7.4% were between 18 and 24 years old. The largest group, 32.2%, was between 25 and 44 years old. About 22.1% were between 45 and 64 years old, and 17.2% were 65 years old or older. The average age in the borough was 39 years.