We analyzed research using Saturday Night Science from Virginia Commonwealth University that mapped Klaverns by city from 1915-1940. This report analyzes the locations of historic KKK organizations to see where they were the most prevalent in Pennsylvania.
The city in Pennsylvania with the most number of Klaverns was Philadelphia with 18 Klaverns. The city with the most number of Klaverns per capita was Refton with 0.0061 Klaverns. There were historically 144 Klaverns in Pennsylvania, across 101 places in Pennsylvania with at least 1 Klavern during the period of reference.
Hate groups can be hard to measure because, typically, there’s no record of where they exist. But there is data on where there were distinct Klaverns of the Ku Klux Klan in each state. These cities have historically been the most racist in Pennsylvania based on the number of KKK Klaverns.
This report does not speak to the current people who live there or the current state of the KKK in the same towns or areas.
1 Klaverns · #1 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
2 Klaverns · #2 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
1 Klaverns · #3 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
1 Klaverns · #4 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
Franklin is a city in Venango County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was estimated 6,545 in the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Venango County. Franklin is part of the Oil City, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #5 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
1 Klaverns · #6 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
1 Klaverns · #7 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
1 Klaverns · #8 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
1 Klaverns · #9 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
1 Klaverns · #10 most historically racist in Pennsylvania
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Pennsylvania’s statewide median.
On the map
Where Pennsylvania’s historic Klaverns were
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Measured The Most Historically Racist Places In The Keystone State
While there are surveys and public polls on what places might be the most racist, we didn’t want to rely on speculation and opinion. Instead, we looked at the hard numbers from where KKK organizations have existed.
Specifically, we analyzed research out of Virginia Commonwealth University that mapped the Klans in each area and gave a history of their recruitment from 1915-1940.
- Number of historic KKK Klaverns (1915-1940) per current resident
Using Saturday Night Science, we analyzed the locations of historic KKK organizations per capita using current population data.
The full plate
Cities With Historically High KKK Membership In Pennsylvania
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | Klaverns | Klaverns /100k |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Refton | 165 | 1 | 606 |
| 2 | Lawrence | 381 | 2 | 525 |
| 3 | Commodore | 238 | 1 | 420 |
| 4 | Franklin | 293 | 1 | 341 |
| 5 | Elderton | 295 | 1 | 339 |
| 6 | Rowes Run | 336 | 1 | 298 |
| 7 | Herndon | 359 | 1 | 279 |
| 8 | Weissport | 405 | 1 | 247 |
| 9 | Vanderbilt | 443 | 1 | 226 |
| 10 | Dayton | 464 | 1 | 216 |
| 11 | Finleyville | 467 | 1 | 214 |
| 12 | Summerville | 485 | 1 | 206 |
| 13 | Allison | 564 | 1 | 177 |
| 14 | Roscoe | 706 | 1 | 142 |
| 15 | New Florence | 774 | 1 | 129 |
| 16 | Lykens | 1,631 | 2 | 123 |
| 17 | South Fork | 1,009 | 1 | 99 |
| 18 | Dunbar | 1,083 | 1 | 92 |
| 19 | Dalton | 1,265 | 1 | 79 |
| 20 | Tower City | 1,278 | 1 | 78 |
| 21 | Reynoldsville | 2,746 | 2 | 73 |
| 22 | Apollo | 1,534 | 1 | 65 |
| 23 | Homestead | 3,157 | 2 | 63 |
| 24 | Wellsboro | 3,301 | 2 | 61 |
| 25 | Montrose | 1,694 | 1 | 59 |
| 26 | Rochester | 3,628 | 2 | 55 |
| 27 | Dover | 1,878 | 1 | 53 |
| 28 | Everett | 1,969 | 1 | 51 |
| 29 | Kittanning | 3,977 | 2 | 50 |
| 30 | Braddock | 2,030 | 1 | 49 |
| 31 | Leechburg | 2,137 | 1 | 47 |
| 32 | Wrightsville | 2,356 | 1 | 42 |
| 33 | Millersburg | 2,540 | 1 | 39 |
| 34 | Bentleyville | 2,554 | 1 | 39 |
| 35 | West Newton | 2,599 | 1 | 38 |
| 36 | Schnecksville | 2,614 | 1 | 38 |
| 37 | Turtle Creek | 5,335 | 2 | 37 |
| 38 | Nanty-Glo | 2,675 | 1 | 37 |
| 39 | Dallas | 2,806 | 1 | 36 |
| 40 | Towanda | 2,899 | 1 | 34 |
| 41 | Summit Hill | 3,002 | 1 | 33 |
| 42 | Wyoming | 3,057 | 1 | 33 |
| 43 | Sharpsburg | 3,436 | 1 | 29 |
| 44 | Millvale | 3,740 | 1 | 27 |
| 45 | Sewickley | 3,832 | 1 | 26 |
| 46 | Charleroi | 4,069 | 1 | 25 |
| 47 | Windber | 4,078 | 1 | 25 |
| 48 | Slatington | 4,258 | 1 | 23 |
| 49 | Hamburg | 4,293 | 1 | 23 |
| 50 | Bradford | 8,665 | 2 | 23 |
| 51 | Honesdale | 4,364 | 1 | 23 |
| 52 | Mount Pleasant | 4,431 | 1 | 23 |
| 53 | Beaver | 4,479 | 1 | 22 |
| 54 | Northampton | 9,921 | 2 | 20 |
| 55 | Uniontown | 10,203 | 2 | 20 |
| 56 | Titusville | 5,479 | 1 | 18 |
| 57 | Paoli | 5,616 | 1 | 18 |
| 58 | Punxsutawney | 5,927 | 1 | 17 |
| 59 | Franklin | 6,448 | 1 | 16 |
| 60 | Clairton | 6,752 | 1 | 15 |
| 61 | Ambridge | 6,973 | 1 | 14 |
| 62 | Tamaqua | 6,994 | 1 | 14 |
| 63 | Middletown | 7,529 | 1 | 13 |
| 64 | Connellsville | 7,578 | 1 | 13 |
| 65 | Gettysburg | 7,632 | 1 | 13 |
| 66 | DuBois | 7,718 | 1 | 13 |
| 67 | Ellwood City | 7,743 | 1 | 13 |
| 68 | Carnegie | 7,960 | 1 | 13 |
| 69 | Phoenixville | 16,530 | 2 | 12 |
| 70 | Perkasie | 8,511 | 1 | 12 |
| 71 | Collingdale | 8,778 | 1 | 11 |
| 72 | Carbondale | 8,843 | 1 | 11 |
| 73 | Swissvale | 8,963 | 1 | 11 |
| 74 | Bristol | 9,657 | 1 | 10 |
| 75 | Lock Haven | 9,860 | 1 | 10 |
| 76 | Chambersburg | 20,430 | 2 | 10 |
| 77 | Oil City | 10,383 | 1 | 10 |
| 78 | Harrisburg | 49,297 | 4 | 8 |
| 79 | New Kensington | 12,959 | 1 | 8 |
| 80 | Kingston | 13,105 | 1 | 8 |
| 81 | Coatesville | 13,130 | 1 | 8 |
| 82 | Sharon | 13,845 | 1 | 7 |
| 83 | Indiana | 14,025 | 1 | 7 |
| 84 | Pottsville | 14,136 | 1 | 7 |
| 85 | Hanover | 15,365 | 1 | 7 |
| 86 | Wilkinsburg | 15,894 | 1 | 6 |
| 87 | Chester | 34,007 | 2 | 6 |
| 88 | Bethlehem | 75,050 | 4 | 5 |
| 89 | West Chester | 18,860 | 1 | 5 |
| 90 | McKeesport | 19,663 | 1 | 5 |
| 91 | Johnstown | 20,576 | 1 | 5 |
| 92 | Scranton | 75,842 | 3 | 4 |
| 93 | Williamsport | 29,377 | 1 | 3 |
| 94 | Wilkes-Barre | 41,202 | 1 | 2 |
| 95 | York | 43,817 | 1 | 2 |
| 96 | Reading | 88,051 | 2 | 2 |
| 97 | Altoona | 45,987 | 1 | 2 |
| 98 | Lancaster | 59,368 | 1 | 2 |
| 99 | Pittsburgh | 306,045 | 4 | 1 |
| 100 | Philadelphia | 1,546,920 | 18 | 1 |
Source: VCU Mapping the Klan, 1915-1940; current population data. 101 cities with at least one Klavern.
Summary
There You Have It – The Most Historically Racist Cities In Pennsylvania
When you’re looking at the places in Pennsylvania with the highest number of historical KKK Klaverns per capita, this is an accurate list.
Below is a chart that lists all cities in Pennsylvania with at least one KKK organization from 1915-1940.
The cities with the largest number of KKK Klaverns per capita were Refton, Lawrence, Commodore, Franklin, Elderton, Rowes Run, Herndon, Weissport, Vanderbilt, and Dayton.
