Mount Jackson, Pennsylvania


Mount Jackson is a small village in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania.

History

North Beaver Township was formed in 1810, and Mount Jackson was founded within its boundaries five years later, eventually becoming recognized as the township's hub. Named for Andrew Jackson soon after his victory in the Battle of New Orleans, Mount Jackson was founded by John Nesbit on a plot of farmland that he owned. The farming village's earliest residents were mostly Scotch-Irish and Presbyterian, with many arriving from Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. The first person to build a house there was William Henry, who also became the village postmaster. For some years, the only stagecoach route from New Castle to the train station at Enon Valley ran through Mount Jackson.
The village was home to Battery B, a Union Army volunteer light artillery regiment that saw significant action in the American Civil War. A monument commemorating their service was dedicated in 1912 by surviving veterans and placed on Route 108 right outside the village. An original cannon from the Raritan Arsenal that was added to the monument in 1923 was moved to the North Beaver Township building in 2010. Newly graduated high school students from the village were drafted to serve in the United States Armed Forces during World War II. After the war, the new neighborhood of Jackson Knolls Gardens was carved out of the adjacent forest known as Nesbit Grove. In 1964, the village felt the effects of the explosion at the American Cyanamid chemical plant in nearby Edinburg, with windows being blown out.
Mount Jackson celebrated its 200th birthday in 2015 with a parade, fireworks and a prayer service., it was still a one-stoplight town.

Demographics

The United States Census Bureau defined Mount Jackson as a census designated place in 2023.

Education

Historically, education in Mount Jackson revolved around the North Beaver Township Consolidated High School, a vocational school which offered courses in farming, woodworking and homemaking. The village is currently served by the Mohawk Area School District in nearby Bessemer. Founded in 1958, it operates Mohawk Elementary School and Mohawk Junior Senior High School.

Notable people