Rices Landing is a borough in Greene County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 426 at the 2020 census.
Geography
Rices Landing is located in northeastern Greene County at (39.946282, -79.993295), on the south (west) bank of the Monongahela River at the mouth of Pumpkin Run. It is bordered to the southeast by Cumberland Township, to the southwest and west by Jefferson Township, and to the north, across the Monongahela, by Luzerne Township in Fayette County. The closest road crossings of the Monongahela are the Mon–Fayette Expressway Bridge (Pennsylvania Route 43) by road to the north, and the Masontown Bridge (Pennsylvania Route 21) to the south.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough of Rices Landing has a total area of , of which is land and , or 12.86%, is water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 463 people, 179 households, and 126 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 190 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 98.42% White, 0.68% African American, and 0.90% from two or more races.
There were 179 households, out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.8% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the borough the population was spread out, with 24.6% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.9 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $34,306, and the median income for a family was $39,792. Males had a median income of $28,646 versus $20,000 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $17,775. About 5.7% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.
History
Rices Landing is a small rural town located along the western bank of the Monongahela River, approximately south of Pittsburgh. One of the first visitors to the area was George Washington. Tale has it that in 1755, while he was traveling to Fort Duquesne, he and his men camped in this area, just across from Pumpkin Run on the other side of the river after he crossed.
In 1786, John Rice purchased land on the east side of Enoch's Run, and at about the same time, Abijah McClain purchased land on the west side. John Rice named the community he built "Rices Landing", while Abijah McClain called his settlement "Newport". In 1801, Benjamin Franklin mapped out the area and combined the two communities under the name "Rices Landing". Enoch's Run was renamed "Swan Run" before it eventually took the name it holds today, Pumpkin Run.
Rices Landing officially incorporated in April 1903. The availability of valuable resources such as trees, clay, sand, coal and transportation allowed the community to thrive. Shops, trading posts, taverns, and other businesses once lined its busy streets. It was so prosperous that it was regarded as the "Gateway to Western Pennsylvania" by frontier settlers.
Although things have quieted today, the residents still see their community as a charming and respectable community that was once the talk of the frontier world.
Rices Landing is the former home of US Olympic wrestler and four-time state champion Cary Kolat. Kolat attended Jefferson-Morgan High School. He is known as being one of the best wrestlers in history, going 137–0 in high school and 111–7 in college. Kolat won many international medals and competed in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.