Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 168.6 km² (65.1 mi²). 167.3 km² (64.6 mi²) of it is land and 1.3 km² (0.5 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.77% water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 4,054 people, 1,598 households, and 1,192 families residing in the township. The population density is 24.2/km² (62.8/mi²). There are 1,773 housing units at an average density of 10.6/km² (27.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the township is 99.33% White, 0.00% African American, 0.05% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.12% from other races, and 0.39% from two or more races. 0.25% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 1,598 households out of which 28.8% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.6% are married couples living together, 9.9% have a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% are non-families. 22.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 11.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.54 and the average family size is 2.96.
In the township the population is spread out with 22.1% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 26.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.2% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 41 years. For every 100 females there are 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 97.6 males.
The median income for a household in the township is $32,141, and the median income for a family is $39,341. Males have a median income of $26,163 versus $22,688 for females. The per capita income for the township is $15,066. 10.2% of the population and 8.8% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 14.6% are under the age of 18 and 11.7% are 65 or older.
Early European travelers crossed Jenner Township as early as 1756, with the building of the Forbes Road to Fort Ligonier and Fort Pitt (Pittsburgh). Settlement began in earnest in the 1790s. The township was named in honor of Dr. Edward Jenner, discoverer of the smallpox vaccine. Until the building of the coal towns after 1900, Jenner Township was primarily settled by German and English speakers. German was still spoken in rural parts of the township until the 1960s.
Jenner Township includes the towns of Jenners, Jenner Crossroads, Ralphton, Pilltown, Ferrellton, Acosta, and Gray. Jenners, Ralphton, Acosta and Gray were each built shortly after 1900 as company towns for newly opened deep coal mines. Immigrants from Poland, Italy, Russia, Ruthenia, Wales, and Ireland filled the coal towns. By the 1960s, the deep mines had closed. The town of Randolph was also a very small coal mining community in Jenner Township, any trace of which is now entirely gone, having been destroyed by highway construction in 1970. Jenner Township completely surrounds the nearby boroughs of Boswell and Jennerstown, each of which has its own government and are not part of the Township. Surface mining and some deep mining of coal continues in the immediate area. Farming and timber harvest are also mainstays of the economy.