Page Contents for McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania

Statistics & Facts

Location

Weather & Climate

History & History-related items

City Attractions

Government

Historical Events

Organizations, Churches, and Sports.

Libraries.

Schools.

Miscellany

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Statistics & Facts

The Pennsylvania state capital is Harrisburg.
The population of McKees Rocks is approximately 7,691 (1990), 6104 (2010).
The approximate number of families is 3,676 (1990), 2752 (2010).
The amount of land area in McKees Rocks is 2.685 sq. kilometers.
The amount of land area in McKees Rocks is 1.2 sq. miles.
The amount of surface water is 0.175 sq kilometers.
The distance from McKees Rocks to Washington DC is 198 miles.
The distance to the Pennsylvania state capital is 169 miles. (as the crow flies)
McKees Rocks is positioned 40.46 degrees north of the equator and 80.06 degrees west of the prime meridian.
McKees Rocks elevation is 725 feet above sea level.
McKees Rocks average annual precipitation is 36 inches peryear.

Location

6 miles northwest of the Pittsburgh area. Nearby communities include: Bellevue, Crafton, Green Tree, Montour, West View, Millvale, Pittsburgh, Carnegie and Neville Island.
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Climate

moderate. The temperature range generally goes from zero to 90 degrees during the year. There is a growing season of approximately 180 days. From April through October there is usually sunshine over half the time.
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Weather

seasonal. Here is a current weather page for McKees Rocks.
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History & History Related Items

The Shawnee Indians and then the Delaware were the original inhabitants of the area. Colonel Alexander McKee came in 1769 and lived here for many years. He left quickly after some questionable dealings. One of his descendents, James McKee, took over the land. McKees Rocks finally became a borough in 1892. The area attracted many immigrants who came to work in the many factories and industries of the Pittsburgh area. The area was hurt greatly by the depression when many factories had to close their doors, leaving hundreds without work. Government programs were brought in to aid the populace and things were looking up. But...on On March 17, 1936, a larger than normal flood occurred which resulted in some loss of life and the loss of over 1,000 homes.
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Attractions

For information on the McKees Rocks Indian Site, see the the historical events page
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McKees Rocks City Government

Mc Kees Rocks Boro Secretary
340 Bell Ave
Mc Kees Rocks, PA 15136-3514
Phone: 412-331-2498

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Mc Kees Rocks Boro Fire Dept
340 Bell Ave
Mc Kees Rocks, PA 15136-3514
Phone: 412-331-2300

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Kennedy Township
1796 Pine Hollow Rd
Mc Kees Rocks, PA 15136-1536
Phone: 412-331-9055

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Char-West COG (Council of Governments)
340 Bell Avenue
McKees Rocks, PA 15136
Phone: 412-331-2498
Fax: 412-331-6899

McKees Rocks Historical Events

Ancient History of the area
McKees Rocks Indian Site
The prehistoric village site had been occupied by humans for thousands of years, dating back to the Paleolithic era. The site sits on top of a high bluff with fairly steep sides all around with the 'front' (eastern side) ending in a sheer cliff about 100 feet high. The hill was a excellent area for early settlements.

The most recent inhabitants were the Delaware Indians (circa. 1600- 1700's). The village was visited in 1753 by George Washington for the purpose of inviting the chief of the Delawares, Shigiss, to attend a council meeting in Logstown, PA (present day Ambridge, PA). Washington, noting the superb quality of the area, intended on having the Ohio Company erect Fort Pitt on the site. Chief Shigiss advised Washington that 2 miles east at the 'forks of the Ohio' would be a more suitable site for the fort. As we know today, that advise was followed and Fort Pitt and eventually Pittsburgh is on the Point.

There were excavations carried out at the site in the late 1800's, but they were sloppy and poorly documented. The next excavations were in the early 1960's by a man named William Buker and were careful and thorough, with many of the items found on display at the Carnegie Museum. The site had been reduced in size to about 1/3 of the original due to an industrial plant. The burial mound itself was destroyed when the plant went up. What is left, however, we owe to the Historical Preservation Society, as the industrial plant wanted to rip up the rest of the area. I myself have visited the site numerous times, finding many items from the prehistoric people, including broken pieces of worked flint, fragments of bone and mussel shells.

It is amazing that amidst all the development, both commercial and residential in the area, that signs of early man still exist today. Submitted by Allen Peck

McKees Rocks Libraries

Sto-Rox Library and Learning Center
500 Chartiers Ave
Mc Kees Rocks, PA 15136-3804
Phone: 412-771-1222
Fax: 412-771-2340

McKees Rocks Schools

Montour High School
Clever Rd
Mc Kees Rocks, PA 15136
Phone: 412-787-2080

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Sto-Rox School District
1105 Valley St
Mc Kees Rocks, PA 15136-2353
Phone: 412-771-3213

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Montour Middle School

Montour Middle School Spartans girls basketball McKees Rocks

Miscellany

McKees Rocks has two telephone area codes - 412, 878. The community is in the Eastern Time Zone and does participate in Daylight Savings Time.