Zelienople () is a borough in western Butler County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,912 at the 2020 census. Located north of Pittsburgh, it is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area.
History
thumb|left|upright=0.8|Dettmar Basse ([[Anton Graff, c. 1792)]]
Zelienople was named for the eldest daughter of Baron Dettmar Basse (1762–1836), whose chosen name was Zelie (her given name was Fredericka) which she named herself after her favorite doll. Baron Basse arrived in 1802 from Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and purchased a tract of of land in Butler and Beaver counties.
He proceeded to lay out a village and build his residence, a three-story castle complete with towers, turrets and battlements, named "The Bassenheim." At the time, Zelie was betrothed to Philip Louis Passavant and was still in Germany. Extensive preparations were made by Basse to establish the new home and town in America and prepare it for his daughter's arrival in September 1807.
Basse sold of his land to George Rapp, a Bavarian pietist religious leader who founded the village of Harmony. Basse came to be known as "Dr. Muller". Whether the title of "doctor" was given to him through a knowledge of medicine or conferred upon him as a degree is unknown. He was regarded as an intelligent man and during the Napoleonic era represented Frankfurt as an ambassador to Paris. Basse returned to Germany in 1818, leaving his business to his son-in-law, Philip Passavant.
Passavant opened the first store in Zelienople in 1807 and managed it for 41 years, until he gave it to his son, C. S. Passavant. By 1826, there were 50 houses in Zelienople and three churches. The population in 1870 was 387, and in 1890 it had grown to 639. In 1879 a railroad was built through town, substantially increasing the growth and commerce. In 1880, the American Union Telegraph Company established an office in Zelienople. The Federalists appointed Andrew McClure, a local tavern-keeper, as the first postmaster of Zelienople in the first decade of 1800. Christian Buhl was named the first justice of the peace in 1840.
Early Zelienople commerce supported the local agriculture community, as there was no viable means of transportation. In 1840 Zelienople was incorporated as a borough. There has been a volunteer fire department since about 1850. A full-time Borough Manager was hired in 1994.
Zelienople is home to the historic Buhl House, Passavant House, Kaufman Tavern, Strand Theater, and Eichholtz Building, key landmarks in the town's history. Zelienople was linked to Ellwood City, Evans City and Pittsburgh in 1908 by the Pittsburgh, Harmony, Butler and New Castle Railway, an interurban trolley line. The line closed on June 15, 1931, and the trolleys were replaced by buses.
Geography
Zelienople is located in southwestern Butler County, situated on the south bank of Connoquenessing Creek, in an area that is rich with coal and iron ore. The elevation is above sea level. The borough is bordered by Jackson Township on the north, southeast, and south, and by the borough of Harmony on the northeast. The western border of Zelienople is the Beaver County line.
U.S. Route 19 (Perry Highway) is the main north–south road through the center of town. Interstate 79, running generally parallel to US 19, passes just to the east of the borough, with access from Exits 85, 87, and 88. Via I-79 and I-279 it is south to downtown Pittsburgh. To the north I-79 leads to Erie. Pennsylvania Route 68 runs east from US 19 as East Grandview Avenue and southwest as West Beaver Street. Via PA 68 it is east to Butler, the county seat, and southwest to Rochester on the Ohio River. Routes 288 and 588 lead west from town on West New Castle Street, PA 288 turning northwest to lead to Ellwood City, and PA 588 leading west to Beaver Falls.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of , of which , or 2.20%, is water.