Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania

Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Upper Merion Township municipal building and public library
Upper Merion Township municipal building and public library
Flag of Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Official seal of Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Location of Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Upper Merion Township is located in Pennsylvania
Upper Merion Township
Upper Merion Township
Location of Upper Merion Township in Pennsylvania
Upper Merion Township is located in the United States
Upper Merion Township
Upper Merion Township
Upper Merion Township (the United States)
Coordinates: 40°05′00″N 75°20′59″W / 40.08333°N 75.34972°W / 40.08333; -75.34972
Country United States of America
State Pennsylvania
CountyMontgomery
Incorporated1713
Area
 • Total17.27 sq mi (44.74 km2)
 • Land16.96 sq mi (43.91 km2)
 • Water0.32 sq mi (0.82 km2)
Elevation
171 ft (52 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total33,613
 • Estimate 
(2016)[2]
28,640
 • Density1,689.08/sq mi (652.17/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
Area code(s)610 and 484
FIPS code42-091-79136
Websitewww.umtownship.org

Upper Merion Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 33,613 at the 2020 U.S. Census. Located 16 miles (26 km) from Philadelphia, it consists of the villages of Gulph Mills, King of Prussia, Swedeland, Swedesburg, and portions of Radnor, and Wayne.

The westernmost part of the township comprises the largest part of the 1,300-acre (5 km2) Valley Forge National Historical Park. The township is the home of the King of Prussia mall, the third-largest shopping mall in the United States in terms of gross leasable area. King of Prussia also contains a major office park hosting firms such as Lockheed Martin and GlaxoSmithKline.

The name Merion originates with the county of Merioneth in north Wales. Merioneth is an English-language translation of the Welsh Meirionnydd, itself named after Meirchion (or Meirion), grandson of Cunedda Wledig (b. ca. 380 A.D.), King of North Wales.[3]

  1. ^ "2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  2. ^ "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  3. ^ Cunedda Wledig, King of North Wales: http://www.earlybritishkingdoms.com/bios/meircmmd.html/ Archived December 28, 2016, at the Wayback Machine.