Kingston, Pennsylvania

Kingston is a municipality located in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, on the Susquehanna River opposite Wilkes Barre. Kingston was incorporated as a borough in 1857. Kingston has adopted a home rule charter which became effective in January 1976. It is part of the greater metropolitan area of the city of Wilkes-Barre. It is home to the Upper School campus of Wyoming Seminary, a prestigious college preparatory school located in Kingston since 1844. In 1900: 3,846 people lived here; in 1910: 6,449; and in 1940: 20,679 people lived here. The population was 13,855 at the 2000 census.

Geography
Kingston is located at °N, °W (41.2665, -75.8895).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 2.2 sqmi, of which, 2.1 sqmi of it is land and 0.1 sqmi of it (2.71%) is water. It is separated from Wilkes-Barre by the Susquehanna River and the boundary of the latter's Kirby Park. Its numbered routes are U.S. Route 11 and Highway 309, which follows the Cross Valley Expressway from the Back Mountain area to Interstate 81 and Route 115 east of the city. Market Street and Pierce Street connect Kingston with center city via bridges.

Government
Kingston operates under a home rule charter. The legislative function is vested in a seven member council. The compensation of council members is $300 per month. As of January 2010, the council president was Sandra Kase, the council vice-president was Robert F. Thompson, Jr., and the remaining members were Marvin Rappaport, Roberta Rowlands, Nancy Cooper, Michael Jacobs, and Jack Schumacher. Executive authority is vested in a mayor. The mayor is James J. Haggerty, who was first elected to the office in 1997 and was re-elected in 2001, 2005 and 2009. The mayor's compensation is $8,000 per year. Haggerty is an attorney and maintains a law practice in Kingston. Kingston's charter also calls for a full-time municipal administrator. The municipal administrator is Paul Keating. Keating has served as administrator since 1997.

Legislators

 * State Representative Phyllis Mundy, Kingston resident, 120th legislative district (Democrat, 1991–present)
 * State Senator Lisa Baker, 20th Senatorial district (Republican, 2007–present)
 * U.S. Representative Tom Marino, 10th Congressional district (Republican, 2011–present)

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,855 people, 6,065 households, and 3,372 families residing in the borough. The population density was 6,461.6 people per square mile (2,499.7/km²). There were 6,555 housing units at an average density of 3,057.1 per square mile (1,182.7/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 96.84% White, 0.77% African American, 0.07% Native American, 1.53% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.80% of the population.

There were 6,065 households out of which 23.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.7% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.4% were non-families. 40.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the borough the population was spread out with 19.7% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 24.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 83.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.9 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $33,611, and the median income for a family was $45,578. Males had a median income of $34,069 versus $24,482 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $20,568. About 8.2% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.7% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Edie Adams, singer and light comedienne (It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World), began her career with and later married Ernie Kovacs. Did TV commercials in the 1960s for Muriel Cigars, with the somewhat racy line at the time "Why don't you pick me up and smoke me some time?".
 * Title Fight, hardcore band.
 * Russell Bufalino, boss of the Northeastern Pennsylvania crime family (also known as the Bufalino crime family) from 1959 to 1989. Despite being the boss of a small crime family, Bufalino was a significant influence in the national Cosa Nostra criminal organization.
 * Kingston has produced one Major League Baseball player, Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Steamer Flanagan. (b. April 20, 1881)
 * Dan Harris, Hollywood director (Imaginary Heroes) and Screenwriter (X2 [X-Men 2] and Superman Returns), was born and raised in Kingston. He attended high school at Wyoming Seminary, before going to Columbia University for college.
 * Phyllis Mundy has served as the state representative for Pennsylvania's 120th legislative district, based in Kingston, for 20 years.
 * Suzie Plakson, actress and musical theatre performer.
 * Dan Terry, trumpet player and big band leader.
 * Dave Popson, NBA player for the Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, Boston Celtics, and the Milwaukee Bucks.
 * Frank Zane, bodybuilder born in Kingston. Won the Mr. Olympia title three years in a row (1977–1979).
 * Kevin Blaum served as the State Representative for Wilkes-Barre from 1981-2006 and he currently is an Associate Director of Admission at Wyoming Seminary Upper School in Kingston - where he now lives - and is a weekly columnist for The Times Leader.