Lancaster County, known as
the Garden Spot of America, is a
countyIn the United States, a county is a local level of government below the state . Counties are used in 48 of the 50 states, while Louisiana is divided into parishes and Alaska into boroughs. These are considered "county-equivalents", as are some cities not designated as part of a county. The U.S...
located in the
south-centralSouth Central Pennsylvania is a region of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania that includes the fourteen counties of Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Huntingdon, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Mifflin, Northumberland, Perry, Schuylkill, Snyder, and York....
part of the Commonwealth of
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
, in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. With an estimated 2005 population of 490,562, Lancaster County forms the Lancaster Metropolitan Statistical Area, the 99th largest of 361
MSAsIn the United States, the Office of Management and Budget has produced a formal definition of metropolitan areas. These are referred to as "Metropolitan Statistical Areas" and "Combined Statistical Areas" . An earlier version of the MSA was the "Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area" . MSAs are...
in the U.S. The city of
LancasterLancaster is a city in the South Central part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and is the county seat of Lancaster County. With a population of 55,351, it is the eighth largest city in Pennsylvania, behind Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, Reading, Bethlehem, and Scranton...
is the
county seatA county seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there...
.
Lancaster County is a popular tourist destination, due mostly to the many plain sect residents, known as the
AmishThe various Amish or Amish Mennonite church fellowships are Christian religious denominations that form a very traditional subgrouping of Mennonite churches. They are best known for their simple living, plain dress and resistance to the adoption of many modern conveniences...
or
Pennsylvania DutchThe Pennsylvania Dutch are the descendants of Germanic peoples who emigrated to the U.S. , from Germany and The Low Countries prior to 1800. The Dutch are generally regarded as one of several Germanic peoples...
. The term 'Pennsylvania Dutch' comes from the earlier use of "Dutch" to apply to all immigrants from middle Europe. They are the descendants of
GermanGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
s ("Deutsch") who immigrated in the 18th and 19th centuries for the
freedom of religionFreedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance; the concept is generally recognized also to include the freedom to change religion or not to follow any...
offered by
William PennWilliam Penn was an English founder and "Absolute Proprietor" of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future U.S. State of Pennsylvania. He was known as an early champion of democracy and religious freedom and famous for his good relations and his treaties with...
, and were attracted by the rich soil and mild climate of the area. Also attracted to promises of religious freedom,
French HuguenotsThe Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. Since the eighteenth century, Huguenots have been commonly designated "French Protestants", the title being suggested by their German co-religionists or "Calvinists"...
fleeing
religious persecutionThe French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants...
settled this area in 1710.
Indigenous Peoples
The first recorded inhabitants of the
Susquehanna RiverThe Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At approximately 444 mi long, it is the longest river on the American east coast, the 16th longest in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United States without commercial boat traffic...
valleyIn geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
were the
IroquoianThe Iroquoian languages are a First Nation and Native American language family. The language family, amongst others, includes Mohawk, Huron-Wyandot and Cherokee.Every language in this family has at least one nasal vowel phoneme...
-speaking
SusquehannockThe Susquehannock people were natives of areas adjacent to the Susquehanna River and its tributaries from the southern part of what is now New York, through Pennsylvania, to the mouth of the Susquehanna in Maryland at the north end of the Chesapeake Bay...
s, whose name meant "people of the muddy river" in
AlgonquinThe Algonquins are aboriginal/First Nations inhabitants of North American who speak Algonquin. Culturally and linguistically, they are closely related to the Odawa and Ojibwe, with whom they form the larger Anicinàpe grouping...
. They were also known as the
ConestogaPlaces:*Conestoga Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania*Conestoga River, a tributary of the Susquehanna River in the state of Pennsylvania** Conestogo River, a river near Waterloo, Ontario...
, from their principal
villageA village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet, but smaller than a town or city. Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New York City and the Saifi Village in...
,
Kanestoge, known to the English as
IndiantownIndiantown can refer to:Places in the United States:* Indiantown, Florida* Indiantown, Michigan in Saginaw County* Indiantown, Pennsylvania* Indiantown, South Carolina* Indiantown Township, Bureau County, Illinois...
. They were viewed by European settlers as a friendly tribe, converted to
ChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented by the revelations in the New Testament....
, who made brooms and baskets for sale, and named children after their favorite neighbors.
However, the outbreak of Pontiac's War in the summer of 1763, coupled with the conciliatory but militarily ineffective policies of the provincial government, aroused widespread suspicion and hatred against all
IndiansThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples...
in the frontier counties of the state. Rumors spread that the
ConestogaPlaces:*Conestoga Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania*Conestoga River, a tributary of the Susquehanna River in the state of Pennsylvania** Conestogo River, a river near Waterloo, Ontario...
were harboring strange and hostile
IndiansThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples...
in their village. On December 14 1763, the
Paxton BoysThe Paxton Boys was a vigilante group that murdered at least twenty Native Americans in events sometimes called the Conestoga Massacre. Backcountry Presbyterian Scots-Irish frontiersmen from central Pennsylvania, near Paxton Church, Paxtang, Pennsylvania, now Dauphin County, formed a vigilante...
, led by Matthew Smith and Capt.
Lazarus StewartCaptain Lazarus Stewart was an 18th century Pennsylvanian frontiersman and leader of the Paxton Boys. He achieved notoriety by leading the massacre of the Susquehannocks in 1763, and was a prominent military commander — on the Yankee side — in the Pennamite Wars...
, descended upon the village, slaughtered the six Indians present at the time, and burned their houses. The fourteen survivors of the tribe were placed in protective custody in the county workhouse, but the Paxton Boys returned on December 27, broke into the workhouse, and butchered the remaining Susquehannocks. The widespread sympathy in the frontier counties for the perpetrators of these acts made their discovery and arrest futile.
Other tribes in the area included the
ShawneeThe Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are a people native to North America. They originally inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...
, Gawanese,
LenapeThe "Lenape", pronounced IPA: , , or in English, means "the people." Sometimes the name is spelled Lenape or Lenapi. Also known as the Lenni Lenape, the "true people", or as the "Delaware Indians", they are organized bands of Native American peoples with shared cultural and linguistic...
(or Delaware), and
NanticokeNanticoke may refer to:* The Nanticoke Indian Tribe in Delaware, United States* The Nanticoke language, an Algonquian language-Place names:United States* The Nanticoke River in Delaware and Maryland...
s.
Boundaries
The area that became Lancaster County was part of
William PennWilliam Penn was an English founder and "Absolute Proprietor" of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future U.S. State of Pennsylvania. He was known as an early champion of democracy and religious freedom and famous for his good relations and his treaties with...
's 1681 charter, and John Kennerly received the first recorded deed from Penn in 1691. Although Matthias Kreider was said to have been in the area as early as 1691, there is no evidence that anyone actually settled in Lancaster County before 1710.
Lancaster County was part of
Chester County, PennsylvaniaChester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 433,501. The county seat is West Chester...
until May 10 1729, when it became the fourth county in the state. Lancaster County was named after the city of
LancasterLancaster is the county town of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated on the River Lune and has a population of 45,952. Lancaster is a constituent settlement of the wider City of Lancaster, local government district which has a population of 133,914 and encompasses several outlying...
in the county of
LancashireLancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Lancashire County Council is based in Preston. However, Lancaster is still considered to be the county town...
in England, the native home of John Wright, one of the early
settlerA settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads...
s. Six other counties were subsequently formed from territory directly taken, in all or in part, from Lancaster County:
BerksBerks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2000 census, the population was 373,638. The population in 2006 was estimated at 401,149 by the US Census Bureau. Its county seat is Reading...
(1752),
CumberlandCumberland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and is one of three counties comprising the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2004, the population was estimated at 221,397.-History:...
(1750),
DauphinDauphin County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and is one of the three counties comprising the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2004, the population was estimated at 253,282...
(1785),
LebanonLebanon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population is 120,327, with a 2004 estimate of 124,489. Its county seat is Lebanon....
(1813),
NorthumberlandNorthumberland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It was formed in 1772 from parts of Lancaster, Berks, Bedford, Cumberland, and Northampton Counties and named for the county of Northumberland in northern England. As of 2000, the population was 94,556. Its county seat...
(1772), and
YorkYork County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2004, the estimated population was 401,613. York County is located in the Susquehanna Valley, a large fertile agricultural region in South Central Pennsylvania....
(1749). Many other counties were in turn formed from these six.
The southern boundary of Pennsylvania, and thus of Lancaster County, was in dispute for years.
Lord BaltimoreLord Baltimore may refer to:*Baron Baltimore, an extinct title in the Peerage of Ireland, held by several including:**Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , the namesake of Baltimore, Maryland...
believed that his grant to Maryland extended to the 40th parallel — about halfway between Lancaster and
Willow StreetWillow Street is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,258 at the 2000 census. In the early part of the 20th century the main thoroughfare in town was lined with Willow trees on both sides for the length of the town. The community received...
. Starting in 1730, Thomas Cresap started
Cresap's WarCresap's War was a border conflict between Pennsylvania and Maryland, fought in the 1730s. Hostilities erupted in 1730 with a series of violent incidents prompted by disputes over property rights and law enforcement, and escalated through the first half of the decade, culminating in the...
by confiscating farms near
Peach BottomPeach Bottom, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated village in Peach Bottom Township, Lancaster County, in the state of Pennsylvania in the United States. It lies on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, at ....
and
WrightsvilleColumbia is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 28 miles southeast of Harrisburg on the Susquehanna River across from Wrightsville. Originally, the place was called "Wright's Ferry." It was founded in 1726 by English Quakers from Chester County. Population counts were these: in 1890,...
, establishing ferries there. He started vandalizing farms, killing livestock and driving away settlers in southern York and Lancaster counties, giving those lands to his followers. When a follower was arrested, the Marylanders broke him out of the Lancaster lockup. Lord Baltimore negotiated a compromise in 1733, but Cresap ignored it, and continued his raids. When an attempt was made to arrest him in 1734, he killed a deputy at his door. The Pennsylvania governor demanded Maryland arrest Cresap for murder; the Maryland governor named him a captain in their militia instead. In 1736, he was finally arrested, and jailed until 1737 when the King intervened. In 1750, a court decided that Lord Baltimore had forfeited his rights to a twenty-mile (32 km) swath of land. The new Pennsylvania-Maryland border was properly established by the
Mason-Dixon lineThe Mason-Dixon Line was surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the resolution of a border dispute between British colonies in Colonial America. It forms a demarcation line among four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and...
in 1767.
The names of the original Lancaster County townships reflect the diverse array of settlers in the new county: two had Welsh names (
CaernarvonCaernarvon Township is a township in northeastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,278 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
and
LampeterEast Lampeter Township is a township in central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 13,556.East Lampeter Township is one of the six immediate suburbs of the city of Lancaster, all sharing the same official designation as Lancaster, Pennsylvania by...
), three had Native American names (
CocalicoEast Cocalico Township is a township in northeastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 9,954.-Geography:According to the U.S...
,
ConestogaConestoga Township is a township in west central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 3,749.-Geography:According to the U.S...
and Peshtank or Paxton), six were English (
WarwickWarwick Township is a township in north central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 15,475 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
,
LancasterLancaster Township is a civil township of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is in the central area and it immediately surrounds Lancaster City...
,
MarticMartic Township is a township in southwestern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 4,990. Martic Township was organized as a Township in 1729. It borders Conestoga, Providence, Pequea and Drumore Townships....
,
SadsburySadsbury Township is a township in east central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,025 at the 2000 census.-History:...
,
SalisburySalisbury Township is a township in east central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,012 at the 2000 census.Salisbury Township was carved out of Pequea Township in 1729 and named for Salisbury, England...
and
HempfieldEast Hempfield Township is a township in west-central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 21,399....
); four were Irish (
DonegalEast Donegal Township is a township in northwestern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 5,405.-Geography:According to the U.S...
,
DrumoreEast Drumore Township is a township in south central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 3,535. It is part of the Solanco School District.-Geography:According to the U.S...
,
DerryDerry Township is a township in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 21,273 at the 2000 census. Hershey, Pennsylvania, the site of the well-known Hershey's chocolate factory and its affiliated amusement park, are also located within the township.It was named after the...
, and
LeacockLeacock Township is a township in east central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,878 at the 2000 census. The township has a large Amish and Mennonite population.-Geography:...
),
ManheimManheim Township is a township in central Lancaster County, which borders the city limits of Lancaster, Pennsylvania to the north. The population was 33,697 at the 2000 census...
was German,
LebanonSouth Lebanon Township is a township in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Lebanon, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area...
came from the Bible, and
EarlEarl Township is a township in northeastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,183 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
the anglicization of the German surname of Graf or Groff.
19th century statesmen
Lancaster County's native son
James BuchananJames Buchanan, Jr. was the 15th President of the United States from 1857–1861 and the last to be born in the 18th century...
, a
DemocratThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
, was elected as the 15th
President of the United StatesThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
in 1856, the only Pennsylvanian to hold the presidency. His home,
WheatlandWheatland is the historic estate in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, of James Buchanan, 15th President of the United States.-The Estate:William Jenkins, a lawyer, built and named the Federal mansion house in 1828...
, is now a museum in Lancaster.
Thaddeus StevensThaddeus Stevens , of Pennsylvania, was a Republican leader and one of the most powerful members of the United States House of Representatives...
, the noted Radical Republican, served Lancaster County in the
United States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives, commonly referred to as the "House," is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, the upper house being the United States Senate. The composition and powers of the House and the Senate are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from 1849-1853 and from 1859 until his death in 1868. Stevens left a $50,000 bequest to start an orphanage that eventually became the state-owned
Thaddeus Stevens College of TechnologyThaddeus Stevens College of Technology is a two-year co-educational technical college that provides an education in twenty two programs for about 800 students. It was named for Thaddeus Stevens, a nineteenth-century politician. The school was founded in 1905....
. Both men are buried in Lancaster.
Slavery and the Christiana incident
Pennsylvania
abolishedAbolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and emancipate slaves in western Europe and the Americas. The slave system aroused little protest until the 18th century, when rationalist thinkers of the Enlightenment criticized it for violating the rights of man, and Quaker and other evangelical...
slavery in 1780, although in a slow manner. The existing 6000 slaves in Pennsylvania remained slaves, and the registered children of those slaves were slaves until their 28th birthday. The last slave child registered in Pennsylvania was Haley, born in 1811, and a freedman no later than 1839. Thus Pennsylvania was legally a free state when the
Fugitive Slave Law of 1850The Fugitive Slave Law or Fugitive Slave Act was passed by the United States Congress on September 18, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850 between Southern slaveholding interests and Northern Free-Soilers. This was one of the most controversial acts of the 1850 compromise and heightened...
was passed as part of the
Compromise of 1850The Compromise of 1850 was a complex package of five bills, passed in September 1850, defusing a four-year confrontation between the slave states of the South and the free states of the North that arose from expectation of territorial expansion of the United States with the Texas Annexation and...
.
Being immediately north of the Mason-Dixon line, Lancaster County was an important stop on the
Underground RailwayUnderground railway may refer to*The Underground Railroad, a network of clandestine routes by which African slaves in the 19th century United States attempted to escape to free states, or as far north as Canada, with the aid of abolitionists....
. Charles Spotts found 17 stations; including ones with trap doors, hidden vaults, an underground cave and one with a brick tunnel leading to Octorara Creek.
As
slaveownersSlavery is a form of forced labor in which people are considered to be the property of others. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to receive compensation...
go, 51-year-old Edward Gorsuch was probably one of the best. He did not beat his slaves, and as a rich Maryland
wheatWheat is a worldwide cultivated grass from the Fertile Crescent region of the Near East. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
farmer, he could afford to
manumitManumission is the act of freeing slaves, done at the will of the owner.-Motivations:The motivations of slave owners in manumitting slaves were complex. Three strands may be detected, though they cannot always be disentangled from each other....
slaves in their 20s. He allowed his slaves to work for cash elsewhere during the slow season. There was wheat missing, though, sold to a local farmer by his slaves, and he thought a former slave was responsible for this dishonesty. As he had a bad temper, slaves Noah Buley, Nelson Ford, George Ford, and Joshua Hammond became afraid, and fled to the farm of
William ParkerWilliam Parker a former slave from in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, was an anti-slavery activist and a principal character in the events of September 11, 1851 in Christiana, Pennsylvania. The events at Christiana resulted in the regrettable death of a Maryland slaveowner...
, a mulatto who lived in
Christiana, PennsylvaniaChristiana is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,124 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Christiana is located at ....
. Parker, 29, was a member of the Lancaster Black Self-Protection Society, and known to use violence to defend himself and the slaves who sought refuge in the area.
Honor was at stake. Having slaves run away made him look disreputable, so Gorsuch obtained four warrants, and organized four parties which set out separately to recover his property. He died in the attempt, though, and others were wounded. Although Gorsuch was legally entitled to recover his slaves, it is not clear who precipitated the violence. The incident — variously called the "Christiana Riot", "Christiana Resistance", the "Christiana Outrage", and the "Christiana Tragedy", depending on one's political and religious leanings — became a national controversy.
In September, 1851, the
grand juryIn the common law, a grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether there is enough evidence for a trial. Grand juries carry out this duty by examining evidence presented to them by a prosecutor and issuing indictments, or by investigating alleged crimes and issuing presentments...
returned a "true bill" (
indictmentIn the common law legal system, an indictment is a formal accusation that a person has committed a criminal offence. In those jurisdictions which retain the concept of a felony, the serious criminal offence would be a felony; those jurisdictions which have abolished the concept of a felony often...
) against 38 individuals who were then held in
Moyamensing PrisonMoyamensing Prison was a prison in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that was erected in 1835.The prison's cornerstone was laid April 2, 1832, and it was finished in 1835. For nearly 140 years the Moyamensing, or New County, Prison dominated 1400 South 10th Street, at the southwest intersection with...
in Philadelphia to await trial. The only one who was ever tried was Castner Hanway.
It is not clear that Castner Hanway was responsible in any way for what happened. He was a white man, one of the first on the scene. On the other hand, Hanway and his horse provided cover for Joshua Gorsuch and Dr. Pearce, who were wounded. Hanway was tried in federal court in Philadelphia on November 15 1851 for liberating slaves taken into custody by U.S. Marshal Kline, for resisting arrest, for conspiracy, and for treason. The jury returned a
Not Guilty verdict in only 15 minutes. Among the five defense lawyers was congressman
Thaddeus StevensThaddeus Stevens , of Pennsylvania, was a Republican leader and one of the most powerful members of the United States House of Representatives...
.
(For further reading, see
Resistance at Christiana: The Fugitive Slave Rebellion, Christiana, Pennsylvania, 1851, by
Jonathan Ned KatzJonathan Ned Katz is an American historian of human sexuality who has focused on same-sex attraction and changes in the social organization of sexuality over time...
, T.Y. Crowell, New York, 1974.) also
Treason at Christiana: September 11, 1851 by L.D. "Bud" Rettew, 2006
Religious history
Not only did religious differences spur early growth of Pennsylvania and Lancaster County, but Lancaster County gave birth to many religious bodies as well. The oldest surviving dwelling for European immigrants in the county is that of Bishop
Hans HerrHans Herr was born in Zürich, Switzerland, a descendant of the Knight, Hugo Herr. He joined the religious society...
, a
MennoniteThe Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
. In 1989,
Donald KraybillDonald B. Kraybill is a prolific author, lecturer, and educator on Anabaptist faiths and living. Kraybill is widely recognized for his studies on Anabaptist groups, and is the foremost living expert on the Old Order Amish....
counted 37 distinct religious bodies/organizations, with 289 congregations and 41,600 baptized members, among the plain sects who are descendants of the
AnabaptistAnabaptists are Christians of the Radical Reformation. This article describes the Anabaptists of 16th-century Europe and their direct descendants, particularly the Amish, Hutterites, and Mennonites.Anabaptists rejected conventional Christian practices such as wearing wedding rings, taking oaths, and...
Mennonite immigrants to Lancaster County. The Mennonite Central Committee in
AkronAkron is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a mid-sized town with two main roads going through it: Main Street and 7th Street Pennsylvania Route 272. The town is mostly residential with a number of small businesses...
is often among the first to arrive at a disaster scene, quietly providing manpower and materiel to local organizations that better understand where relief should be directed.
The town of Lititz is a planned community built by members of the Moravian Church beginning in the 1740s.
Linden HallLinden Hall is a former mansion house at Longhorsley in Northumberland, England which is now operated as a hotel and country club. This includes an 18 hole golf course...
school there is one of the earliest educational institutions for girls in the country.
In addition to the
Ephrata CloisterThe Ephrata Cloister or Ephrata Community was a religious community, established in 1732 by Johann Conrad Beissel at Ephrata, in what is now Lancaster County, Pennsylvania...
, the United Brethren in Christ and the Evangelical United Brethren (EUB) trace their beginnings to a 1767 meeting at the Isaac Long barn, near the hamlet of Oregon, in
West Lampeter TownshipWest Lampeter Township is a township in central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 13,145 at the 2000 census.West Lampeter Township is one of the six immediate suburbs of the city of Lancaster, all sharing the same official designation as Lancaster, Pennsylvania by...
. The EUB, a German methodist church, merged with the traditionally-English Methodist church to become the
United Methodist ChurchThe United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which traces its roots back to the evangelical, holiness, revival movement of John and Charles Wesley within the Anglican Church. As such, the church's theological orientation is decidedly Wesleyan. It contains both liturgical and...
in 1968,
The first Jewish resident was Isaac Miranda, who owned property there before the town and county were organized in 1730. Ten years later there were several Jewish families in the town; on Feb. 3, 1747, there was recorded a deed to Isaac Nunus Ricus (Henriques) and Joseph Simon, conveying half an acre of land "in trust for the society of Jews settled in and about Lancaster," to be used as a place of burial. Today, this cemetery is still in use by , and is considered the fourth oldest Jewish cemetery in America.
Today, Lancaster County is home to three synagogues, the Orthodox Degel Israel, the Conservative Beth El, and the Reform Shaarai Shomayim. The larger community enjoys a Jewish Community Center. Degel Israel has a mikveh, and a kosher stand is operated at
Dutch WonderlandDutch Wonderland is a amusement park just east of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, appealing primarily to families with small children. The park's theme is a "Kingdom for Kids." The entrance to the park has a real stone castle façade, which was built by Earl Clark, a potato farmer, before he opened the...
, a seasonal amusement park. Chabad Lubavitch has a Jewish outreach operation that serves Jewish students of Franklin and Marshall College and Millersville University.
This area was also settled by French Huguenots. Among its very first resident was Isaac LeFevre. In 1685, King Louis XIV signed the Revocation of the
Edict of NantesThe Edict of Nantes was issued on April 13, 1598. by Henry IV of France to grant the Calvinist Protestants of France substantial rights in a nation still considered essentially Catholic...
signaling the end of a period of nearly 70 years of toleration, leading to acts of violence across France. One such incident in 1685 resulted in the death of Abraham LeFevre, his wife, three of his sons and three of his daughters. The sole survivor of this massacre was one of Abraham's sons, Isaac LeFevre. Isaac managed to rescue his family's Bible from the ruins of his childhood home and fled to Holland. Anne of Great Britain offered Huguenot survivors shelter in England and the opportunity to settle in
newly colonized lands across the AtlanticThe Thirteen Colonies were part of what became known as British America, a name that was used by Great Britain until the Treaty of Paris recognized the independence of the original thirteen United States of America in 1783...
. Seizing this opportunity to
practice their religion in peaceIn the United States, freedom of religion is a constitutionally guaranteed right provided in the religion clauses of the First Amendment. Freedom of religion is also closely associated with separation of church and state, a concept advocated by Thomas Jefferson....
, a group of Huguenot's settled in the area of the Pequea Creek about fifty-five miles west of Philadelphia. Isaac's family Bible survived the ravages of the journey and is currently in the possession of the Lancaster County Historical Society.
Innovations
Lancaster County's innovators have given the world:
- Fraktur
Fraktur is both a style of lettering and a highly artistic and elaborate illuminated folk art created by the Pennsylvania Dutch...
, the artistic and elaborate 18th century and 19th century hand-illuminated folk art inspired by German blackface type, originated at Johann Conrad Beissel's cloisterThe Ephrata Cloister or Ephrata Community was a religious community, established in 1732 by Johann Conrad Beissel at Ephrata, in what is now Lancaster County, Pennsylvania...
of German 7th-day Baptists in EphrataEphrata is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, south east of Harrisburg and about west by north of Philadelphia. It is named after Ephrath, a biblical town in what is now Israel. Ephrata's sister city is Eberbach, Germany, the city where its founders originated...
.
- The first battery-powered watch, the Hamilton Electric 500, was released in 1957 by the Hamilton Watch Company.
- The Pennsylvania Long Rifle
The Longrifle is a type of rifle used in early America by both the military and civilians...
, sometimes mistakenly called the Kentucky Long Rifle.
- The Conestoga wagon
The Conestoga wagon is a heavy, broad-wheeled covered freight carrier used extensively during the late 1700s and 1800s in the United States. It was large enough to transport loads up to 8 short tons , and was drawn by 4 to 6 Conestoga horses....
, which started the practice of driving right-of-center.
- The Stogie cigar The word Stogie is a shortened form of Conestoga.
- The Amish quilt
Quilting is a sewing method done either by hand, by sewing machine, or by a longarm quilting system. A person who takes on quilting as an occupation is called a quilter....
, a highly utilitarian art form, dates to 1849 in Lancaster County.
Government and Politics
RepublicansThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
control the vast majority of state, county and municipal elected offices in Lancaster County.
In September 2008, the
Democratic PartyThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
of Lancaster County reached the benchmark of 100,000 registered voters for the first time in the county's history. Between 2000 and 2008, the number of registered Democrats in Lancaster County surged by over 32,000 people. The party had just 82,171 registered Democrats in 2004. As of 2008, the ratio of Republicans to Democrats in Lancaster County now stands at 1.8 Republicans to 1 Democrat, down from a 3-1 advantage for the Republicans in the late 1990s.
Elected officials
Lancaster County is represented nationally by
U.S. SenatorThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution . Each U.S state is represented by two senators,...
s
Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is the senior United States Senator from Pennsylvania and a member of the Democratic Party. Specter was a member of the Democratic Party until 1965, when he enlisted as a Republican in order to challenge the Democratic district attorney of Philadelphia. Elected to the Senate in 1980,...
(D) and
Bob Casey, Jr.Robert Patrick "Bob" Casey, Jr. , is the junior United States Senator from Pennsylvania, and a member of the Democratic Party. Before his election to the Senate in 2006, he served as Pennsylvania's Treasurer and Auditor General....
(D), and by U.S. Congressman Joe Pitts (R) of
Pennsylvania's 16th congressional districtPennsylvania’s 16th congressional district is located in the southeastern part of the state, just west of Philadelphia. Created after the 2000 Census, the district is composed of a large portion of southern Chester County, all of Lancaster County, and a sliver of Berks County, including a sliver...
.
State Senators Lloyd Smucker 13th District, Michael W. Brubaker 36th District, and
Mike FolmerMike Folmer of Lebanon, Pennsylvania is a Pennsylvania State Senator who represents the 48th Senate district, which includes all of Lebanon County and portions of Berks, Chester, Dauphin and Lancaster Counties. He is a member of the Republican Party....
,
48th DistrictPennsylvania's 48th Senatorial district includes parts of Berks, Chester, Dauphin, Lancaster, and Lebanon Counties.All of Lebanon CountyBerks County* Adamstown* Bethel Township* Brecknock Township* Caernarvon Township* Centerport* Centre Township...
are all Republican.
| Presidential Election results in Lancaster County |
|
Democrats |
Republicans |
| Registration |
Votes |
Registration |
Votes |
| 1980 |
40505 |
29.86% |
30026 |
27.30% |
95124 |
70.14% |
79963 |
72.70% |
| 1984 |
47235 |
29.31% |
31308 |
24.01% |
113906 |
70.69% |
99090 |
75.99% |
| 1988 |
41919 |
26.91% |
38982 |
28.67% |
113843 |
73.09% |
96979 |
71.33% |
| 1992 |
47206 |
28.03% |
44255 |
33.35% |
121190 |
71.97% |
88447 |
66.65% |
| 1996 |
56036 |
28.27% |
49120 |
34.59% |
142170 |
71.73% |
92875 |
65.41% |
| 2000 |
67932 |
29.01% |
54968 |
32.17% |
166272 |
70.99% |
115900 |
67.83% |
| 2004 |
|
|
74328 |
33.59% |
|
|
145591 |
65.80% |
| 2008 |
|
|
99586 |
43.44% |
|
|
126568 |
55.21% |
| Source: The Committee of Seventy |
With the exception of P. Michael Sturla 96th District, a Democrat, all local state
RepresentativesA legislator is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are usually politicians and are often elected by the people...
are Republican: Thomas C. Creighton 37th District, Katie True 41st District, Scott W. Boyd 43rd District, John C. Bear 97th District, David S. Hickernell 98th District,
Gordon DenlingerGordon R. Denlinger is a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 99th District and was elected in a special election in 2003...
99th District and Bryan Cutler 100th District.
With the exception of County Commissioner Craig Lehman and Jury Commissioner Judith A. Saylor, who are both
DemocratsThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
, all county officials are members of the
Republican PartyThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
. The other county officials are County Commissioners Dennis Stuckey and Scott Martin,
CoronerA coroner or forensics examiner is an official chiefly responsible for investigating deaths, particularly some of those happening under unusual circumstances, and determining the cause of death. Depending on the jurisdiction, the coroner may adjudge the cause himself, or act as the presiding...
Stephen Diamantoni, MD,
SheriffA sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
Terry A. Bergman,
, Register of Wills Mary Ann Gerber, Clerk of Common Pleas Court Ryan Aument,
TreasurerA treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization.-Government:The Treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The Treasurer is generally the head of the Treasury, although, in some countries A treasurer is the...
Craig Ebersole,
ProthonotaryThe word prothonotary is recorded in English since 1447, as "principal clerk of a court," from L.L. prothonotarius , from Greek protonotarios "first scribe," originally the chief of the college of recorders of the court of the Byzantine Empire, from Greek protos "first" + Latin notarius ; the -h-...
Randall O. Wenger, Acting Controller Walt Rogers, and Jury Commissioner Linda Schwanger.
Geography
Lancaster County has a total area of 984 square miles (2,548 km²). 949 square miles (2,458 km²) of which is land and 35 square miles (90 km²) of it (3.53%) is water.
Watersheds
Almost all of Lancaster County is in the
Chesapeake BayThe Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's watershed covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia...
drainage basinA drainage basin is an extent of land where water from rain or snow melt drains downhill into a body of water, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea or ocean...
, via the
Susquehanna RiverThe Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At approximately 444 mi long, it is the longest river on the American east coast, the 16th longest in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United States without commercial boat traffic...
watershed (the exception is a small unnamed tributary of the West Branch of Brandywine Creek that rises in far eastern Salisbury Township and is part of the
Delaware RiverThe Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.The Delaware was explored by Adriaen Block as part of the New Netherlands Colony, and was named the South River to mark the southernmost reach of that colony....
watershed). The major
streamA stream is a flowing body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, kill, lick, rill, river syke, bayou, rivulet, or run...
s in the county (with percent area drained) are:
Conestoga RiverThe Conestoga River, also referred to as Conestoga Creek, is a tributary of the Susquehanna River flowing through the center of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania; its headwaters rise mostly in southern Berks County and the stream flows from northeast to southwest for approximately 50 miles to...
and
Little Conestoga CreekThe Little Conestoga Creek is a tributary of the Conestoga River in Pennsylvania. The Landis Mill Covered Bridge crosses over the creek.The name of the creek comes from the Susquehannock "Kanestoge", meaning "at the place of the immersed pole". This was the name of the principal Susquehannock...
(31.42%);
Pequea CreekPequea Creek is a tributary of the Susquehanna River that runs for approximately 40 miles from the eastern border of Lancaster County and Berks County, Pennsylvania to village of Pequea, about 5 miles above the hydroelectric dam at Safe Harbor along the Susquehanna River in Lancaster...
(15.02%);
Chiques CreekChiques Creek is a 29.9 mile long tributary of the Susquehanna River located in Lebanon and Lancaster Counties in Pennsylvania in the United States. The source is at an elevation of 1100 feet near Mount Gretna Heights in Lebanon County...
(or
Chickies Creek, 12.07%);
Cocalico CreekCocalico Creek is a 26.6 miles long tributary of the Conestoga River located in Lebanon and Lancaster Counties in Pennsylvania in the United States. The source is at an elevation of 1320 feet near Stricklerstown in Millcreek Township, Lebanon County...
(11.25%);
Octoraro CreekOctoraro Creek is the last significant tributary of the Susquehanna River. The Octoraro rises as an East and West Branch in Pennsylvania. The East Branch forms the southern half of the border between Lancaster and Chester counties until it crosses the Mason-Dixon line...
(10.74%); and
Conowingo CreekConowingo Creek is a tributary of the Susquehanna River, located in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and Cecil County, Maryland.The name of the creek comes from the Lenape, meaning "at the rapids."...
(3.73%).
Protected areas
Lancaster County is home to
Susquehannock State ParkSusquehannock State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Drumore Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is on a scenic plateau overlooking the Susquehanna River and Conowingo Reservoir. The park is named for the Susquehannock people, who lived in the area...
, located on 224 acres (0.906 km²) overlooking the
Susquehanna RiverThe Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At approximately 444 mi long, it is the longest river on the American east coast, the 16th longest in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United States without commercial boat traffic...
in
Drumore TownshipDrumore Township is a township in southwestern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 2,243. It is named after Dromore, Ireland.-Geography:According to the U.S...
. One of the three tracts comprising William Penn State Forest, the 10 acre (0.04 km²) Cornwall fire tower site, is located in northern
Penn TownshipPenn Township is a township in north central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,312 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 76.8 km²...
near the Lebanon County border. The site, with its 1923 fire tower, was acquired by the state in January, 1935.
There are also six
Pennsylvania State Game LandsThe Pennsylvania State Game Lands are lands managed by the Pennsylvania Game Commission for hunting, trapping, and fishing. These lands, often not usable for farming or development, are donated to the PGC or purchased by the PGC with hunting license monies....
for
huntingHunting is the practice of pursuing living animals for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
,
trappingThe activity of animal trapping has two separate but related meanings. It describes the hunting of animals to obtain their furs, which are then used for clothes and other articles, or sold / bartered...
, and
fishingFishing is the activity of catching fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
located in Lancaster County. They are numbers (with location and area): 46 (near
HopelandHopeland is a small hamlet in Lancaster County in the south of the US state of Pennsylvania. It is between Ephrata and Lititz. The hamlet's ZIP code is 17533.Accomplished musician Kevin Schofield also resides here....
, or ), 52 (near Morgantown, or ), 136 (near Kirkwood, or ), 156 (near Poplar Grove, or ), 220 (near Reinholds, or ), and 288 (near Martic Forge, or ).
The southern border of Lancaster county has some protected
serpentine barrensSerpentine barrens are a unique ecosystem found in parts of the United States in small but widely-distributed areas of the Appalachians and the Coast Ranges of California, Oregon and Washington. The barrens occur on outrops of altered ultramafic ophiolites...
, a rare ecosystem where toxic metals in the soil inhibit the growth of plants and lead to the formation of natural
grasslandGrasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
and
savannaA savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close...
. These barrens include the New Texas Serpentine Barrens, privately-owned land managed by
The Nature ConservancyThe Nature Conservancy is a US charitable environmental organization working to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive....
, and Rock Springs Nature Preserve, a publicly-accessible preserve with hiking trails owned and managed by the Lancaster County Conservancy.
Seismicity
The area falls along the general track of the
Appalachian MountainsThe Appalachian Mountains , often called the Appalachians, are a vast system of mountains in eastern North America. Definitions vary on the precise boundaries of the Appalachians...
along the east coast of the
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
. As such, residual seismic activity from ancient faulting occasionally produces minor earthquakes of magnitude 3 to 4. For example, on December 27th 2008, shortly after midnight, Lancaster County had a 3.3 magnitude earthquake which was widely felt in the Susquehanna Valley but caused no damage to structures.
Adjoining counties
Lancaster County is bounded to the north by
Lebanon CountyLebanon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population is 120,327, with a 2004 estimate of 124,489. Its county seat is Lebanon....
, to the northeast by
Berks CountyBerks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2000 census, the population was 373,638. The population in 2006 was estimated at 401,149 by the US Census Bureau. Its county seat is Reading...
, and to the east by
Chester CountyChester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 433,501. The county seat is West Chester...
(the southeastern boundary with Chester County is formed by
Octoraro CreekOctoraro Creek is the last significant tributary of the Susquehanna River. The Octoraro rises as an East and West Branch in Pennsylvania. The East Branch forms the southern half of the border between Lancaster and Chester counties until it crosses the Mason-Dixon line...
). To the south are
CecilCecil County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is part of the Delaware Valley. It was named for Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , who was the first Proprietary Governor of the colony of Maryland from 1632 until his death in 1675. The county seat is Elkton. The newspaper...
and
Harford CountiesHarford County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland. In 2004, its population was estimated to be 233,340. Its county seat is Bel Air. Harford County forms part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area.-History:...
,
MarylandMaryland is a state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia to the south and west, Pennsylvania to the north, and Delaware to the east. It is comparable in size to the European country of Belgium. According to the U.S...
(across the
Mason-Dixon lineThe Mason-Dixon Line was surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the resolution of a border dispute between British colonies in Colonial America. It forms a demarcation line among four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and...
). To the west is
York CountyYork County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2004, the estimated population was 401,613. York County is located in the Susquehanna Valley, a large fertile agricultural region in South Central Pennsylvania....
(the boundary is the western shore of the
Susquehanna RiverThe Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At approximately 444 mi long, it is the longest river on the American east coast, the 16th longest in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United States without commercial boat traffic...
). To the northwest is
Dauphin CountyDauphin County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and is one of the three counties comprising the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2004, the population was estimated at 253,282...
(the boundary is formed by
Conewago CreekConewago Creek is a 22.9 miles long tributary of the Susquehanna River located in Lebanon, Dauphin, and Lancaster Counties in Pennsylvania in the United States. The source is at an elevation of 1100 feet at Mount Gretna Heights in Lebanon County...
).
Transportation
Lying on the natural route from Philadelphia to the western part of Pennsylvania, Lancaster County has given rise to many improvements in transportation, among them the
Philadelphia and Lancaster TurnpikeThe Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike, first used in 1795, is the first long-distance, paved road built in the United States according to engineered plans and specifications. It links Lancaster, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia at 34th Street, stretching for sixty-two miles. However, the western...
, later part of the
Lincoln HighwayThe Lincoln Highway was the first road across the United States of America. Actively promoted by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, the Lincoln Highway originally spanned coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco through 13 states: New York, New Jersey,...
, in 1794, a canal in 1820 and the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad in 1834.
Highways
Lancaster County's highways include the
Pennsylvania TurnpikeThe Pennsylvania Turnpike is a toll highway system operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. The turnpike system encompasses 532 miles in three sections. Its main section, extending from the Ohio state line in the west to the New...
(or
Interstate 76This article is about the eastern Interstate 76. For the other Interstate 76, see Interstate 76 Interstate 76 is an Interstate Highway in the United States, running 435 miles from an interchange with Interstate 71 west of Akron, Ohio, east to Interstate 295 near Camden, New Jersey.East of Akron,...
),
U.S. Route 30U.S. Route 30 is an east-west main route of the system of United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. The western end of the highway is at Astoria, Oregon; the eastern end is in Atlantic City, New Jersey...
(or the
Lincoln HighwayThe Lincoln Highway was the first road across the United States of America. Actively promoted by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, the Lincoln Highway originally spanned coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco through 13 states: New York, New Jersey,...
),
U.S. Route 222U.S. Route 222 is a spur of U.S. Route 22. It runs for 100 miles from Conowingo, Maryland at U.S. Route 1 to Interstate 78 and Pennsylvania Route 309 in Dorneyville, Pennsylvania, where the US 222 right-of-way continues into Allentown as Pennsylvania Route 222.-Route...
, and
U.S. Route 322U.S. Route 322 is a long, east-west United States Highway, traversing Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. The road is a spur of U.S. Route 22 and one of the original highways from 1926...
. Pennsylvania State Routes in the county include:
10Pennsylvania Route 10 is a long state route in southeastern Pennsylvania. PA 10 runs parallel to Interstate 176 for less than near Morgantown. Its southern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 472 in Oxford. Its northern terminus is at U.S. Route 222 Business in Reading.-Chester County:PA 10 begins...
,
23Pennsylvania Route 23 is a long state highway in southeastern Pennsylvania. The route begins at Pennsylvania Route 441 in Marietta, east to U.S. Route 1 in Philadelphia.-Marietta to Valley Forge:...
,
41Pennsylvania Route 41 is a major long state highway located in southeastern Pennsylvania. The southern terminus of the route is at the Delaware state line in New Garden Township, where it continues as Delaware Route 41. The northern terminus is at U.S...
,
72Pennsylvania Route 72 is a long north-south state route located in southeast Pennsylvania. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 222 and Pennsylvania Route 272 in downtown Lancaster. The northern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 443 north of Lickdale in Swatara Township.It crosses...
,
230Pennsylvania Route 230 is a state route in central Pennsylvania. Its western terminus is at an intersection with U.S. Route 22 in Harrisburg. Its eastern terminus is at an interchange with Pennsylvania Route 283 near Salunga.-Route description:...
,
241Pennsylvania Route 241 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The route runs from Pennsylvania Route 441 in Conoy Township, Lancaster County northeast to Pennsylvania Route 72 in the city of Lebanon in Lebanon County.-Route description:...
,
272Pennsylvania Route 272 is a long highway in eastern Pennsylvania, in the Lancaster area. The southern terminus of the route is at the Mason-Dixon Line southeast of Nottingham, where it continues into Maryland as Maryland Route 272. The northern terminus is at U.S...
,
283Pennsylvania Route 283 is a long state highway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It connects Harrisburg to Lancaster as a freeway, paralleling the old U.S. Route 230...
,
324Pennsylvania Route 324 is a long state highway located in the western part of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The southern terminus is at River Road in Martic Twp. The northern terminus is at US 222/PA 272 in Lancaster...
,
340Pennsylvania Route 340 is a long state highway located in Lancaster and Chester counties in Pennsylvania. The western terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 462 in Lancaster. The eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 30 Business in Thorndale.-History:...
,
372Pennsylvania Route 372 is an east-west highway in York, Lancaster, and Chester counties. Its western terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 74 in Lower Chanceford Township north of Delta and west of Holtwood, and its eastern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 82 in Coatesville.-York and Lancaster...
,
441Pennsylvania Route 441 is a long state route in central Pennsylvania and mostly parallels the Susquehanna River. The southern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 999 in the Manor Township hamlet of Washington Boro...
,
462Pennsylvania Route 462 is a long east-west running local route in central Pennsylvania. The western terminus is west of York. The eastern terminus is east of Lancaster. At both ends, PA 462 terminates at U.S. Route 30, and all of the route was signed as U.S...
,
472Pennsylvania Route 472 is a north-south highway in Lancaster and Chester counties. Its northern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 372 in Quarryville, and its southern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 841 in Lewisville north of the Maryland border....
,
501Pennsylvania Route 501 is a north-south state highway in south central Pennsylvania that runs for . Its southern terminus is at U.S. Route 222 and Pennsylvania Route 272 north of Lancaster, and its northern terminus is Pennsylvania Route 895 southeast of Pine Grove...
,
625Pennsylvania Route 625 is a long state route in east central Pennsylvania, United States. The southern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 23 in East Earl Township. The northern terminus is U.S. Route 222 Business in Reading.-Lancaster County:...
,
741Pennsylvania Route 741 is a long state highway that runs through western and southern Lancaster County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The eastern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 41 in Gap. The western terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 722 in East Petersburg.-History:The route was first...
,
743Pennsylvania Route 743, PA 743, is a north-south state route located in central Pennsylvania. The northern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 443 one mile west of the East Hanover Township hamlet of Grantville. The southern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 441 in Marietta...
,
772Pennsylvania Route 772 or is an east-west long state highway located in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a scenic alternative to U.S. Route 30 as it roughly parallels the main highway to the north. The highway is mostly named Newport Road...
,
896Pennsylvania Route 896 is a north-south state highway located in the counties of Lancaster and Chester in southeastern Pennsylvania. The northern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 340 in the East Lampeter Township hamlet of Smoketown, just east of Lancaster. The southern terminus is at the Maryland...
,
897Pennsylvania Route 897 is a long north-south route in eastern Pennsylvania, United States. The southern terminus is at an intersection with U.S. Route 30 in Gap. The northern terminus is at U.S. Route 422 east of Lebanon. Like most Pennsylvania highways, PA 897 has no expressway characteristics...
, and
999Pennsylvania Route 999 is a long, east-west state highway located in western Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The western terminus is at PA 441, which has its southern terminus at this intersection, in Washington Boro. The eastern terminus is at PA 462 in Lancaster. It is the highest numbered state...
.
Current railroads
As of 2006, passenger service in Lancaster County is provided by
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a blend of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union Station...
, whose
Keystone CorridorThe Keystone Corridor is a Federal Railroad Administration "designated high speed corridor" with a 349-mile railroad line between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a top speed of 110 miles per hour...
passes through the county, with stops at
LancasterLancaster is a city in the South Central part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and is the county seat of Lancaster County. With a population of 55,351, it is the eighth largest city in Pennsylvania, behind Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, Reading, Bethlehem, and Scranton...
,
Mount JoyMount Joy is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,765 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Mount Joy is located at ....
and
ElizabethtownElizabethtown is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, southeast of Harrisburg. Small factories had existed there at the turn of the century when the population in 1900 was 1,861. In 1910, 1,970 people lived in Elizabethtown. As of the 2000 census, the population of the borough is 11,887...
. A station is planned at
ParadiseParadise is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States with a zip code of 17562. The population was 1,028 at the 2000 census. Paradise, like Intercourse, is a popular site for tourists who like the name of the town...
to provide connecting service with the
Strasburg RailroadThe Strasburg Rail Road is a heritage railroad located near Strasburg, Pennsylvania. It operates excursion trains hauled by steam locomotives in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country....
, which runs passenger excursions from nearby
Leaman PlaceLeaman Place is a named place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. Leaman Place is known mostly as a whistle-stop. President Abraham Lincoln spoke at this station on February 22, 1861 to a crowd of 5,000. In 1968, Democrat Hubert H...
to
StrasburgStrasburg is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was named by its early settlers in memory of the city in Alsace from which they had come. The population was 2,800 at the 2000 census....
.
The principal freight operator in the county is
Norfolk Southern RailwayThe Norfolk Southern Railway is a major Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...
(NS). The NS main line follows the Susquehanna River (with trackage rights for
Canadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a Canadian Class I railway operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited. Its rail network stretches from Vancouver to Montreal, and also serves major cities in the United States such as Minneapolis, Chicago, and New York City...
(CPR)), and leaves the county by crossing the river on
Shocks Mills BridgeShocks Mills Bridge carries tracks of the Norfolk Southern Railway over the Susquehanna River between Marietta, Pennsylvania and Wago Junction, Pennsylvania.-Construction:...
near
MariettaMarietta is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,689 at the 2000 census. It is located on the east bank of the Susquehanna River just north of Columbia.-Geography:Marietta is located at ....
. NS also has trackage rights over the Keystone Corridor, to which it is connected by the
Royalton Branch, which runs north along the river from the main line at Marietta, and the
Columbia Branch, which runs from the Corridor at
DillervilleDillerville is an extinct hamlet in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States.Dillerville was established between the Harrisburg and Manheim pikes, at the intersection of the Lancaster and Reading railroads....
to the main line at
ColumbiaColumbia is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 28 miles southeast of Harrisburg on the Susquehanna River across from Wrightsville. Originally, the place was called "Wright's Ferry." It was founded in 1726 by English Quakers from Chester County. Population counts were these: in 1890,...
. Two other NS branches originate on the Corridor: the
Lititz Secondary, which runs from Dillerville to
ManheimManheim is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,784 at the 2000 census. The Borough of Manheim is often confused with nearby Manheim Township - a separate municipality.- General information :*ZIP code: 17545...
and ends at
LititzLititz is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 6 miles north of the city of Lancaster.-History:Lititz was founded by members of the Moravian Church in 1756, and was named after a castle in Bohemia near the village of Kunvald where the ancient Bohemian Brethren's Church had...
, and the
New Holland Industrial, which leaves the Corridor around the east end of Lancaster to run east to
New HollandNew Holland is a borough in Lancaster County in Pennsylvania, USA. The population was 5,092 at the 2000 census. New Holland was settled in 1728 by Johann Michael Dubendorfer of Heidelberg, Germany. Before it became known as New Holland, it had been called Earltown and New Design...
and ends at East Earl.
Several shortlines also operate in the county. With the exception of the Strasburg Railroad, all are freight railroads. Penn Eastern Rail Lines (PRL) operates on a spur off the NS branch to Manheim, and on a longer line in the northeast corner of Lancaster County into Berks County. Landisville Terminal and Transfer Company (LNTV) operates on a spur off the Amtrak line at Landisville. The Tyburn Railroad operates some trackage around Dillerville. Frank Sahd Salvage, Inc., of Columbia, has received state funds to repair of track there for operation, probably by the Penn Eastern, but this has not yet been returned to service.
| Population & Growth |
|
Population |
Growth Rate |
| Decade |
County |
U.S. |
County |
U.S. |
| 1790 |
36,081 |
3,929,214 |
|
|
| 1800 |
43,403 |
5,308,483 |
20.29% |
35.10% |
| 1810 |
53,927 |
7,239,881 |
24.25% |
36.38% |
| 1820 |
68,336 |
9,638,453 |
26.72% |
33.13% |
| 1830 |
76,631 |
12,866,020 |
12.14% |
33.49% |
| 1840 |
84,203 |
17,069,453 |
9.88% |
32.67% |
| 1850 |
98,944 |
23,191,876 |
17.51% |
35.87% |
| 1860 |
116,314 |
31,443,321 |
17.56% |
35.58% |
| 1870 |
121,340 |
38,558,371 |
4.32% |
22.63% |
| 1880 |
139,447 |
50,189,209 |
14.92% |
30.16% |
| 1890 |
149,095 |
62,979,766 |
6.92% |
25.48% |
| 1900 |
159,241 |
76,212,168 |
6.81% |
21.01% |
| 1910 |
167,029 |
92,228,496 |
4.89% |
21.02% |
| 1920 |
173,797 |
106,021,537 |
4.05% |
14.96% |
| 1930 |
196,882 |
123,202,624 |
13.28% |
16.21% |
| 1940 |
212,504 |
132,164,569 |
7.93% |
7.27% |
| 1950 |
234,717 |
151,325,798 |
10.45% |
14.50% |
| 1960 |
278,359 |
179,323,175 |
18.59% |
18.50% |
| 1970 |
319,693 |
203,302,031 |
14.85% |
13.37% |
| 1980 |
362,346 |
226,542,199 |
13.34% |
11.43% |
| 1990 |
422,822 |
248,709,873 |
16.69% |
9.79% |
| 2000 |
470,658 |
281,421,906 |
11.31% |
13.15% |
|
|
| Lancaster County Demographics |
| 2004 |
County |
State |
U.S. |
| White |
93.6% |
86.2% |
80.4% |
| African American |
3.4% |
10.5% |
12.8% |
| Native American |
0.2% |
0.2% |
1.0% |
| Asian |
1.6% |
2.2% |
4.2% |
| Pacific Islander |
0.1% |
0.0% |
0.2% |
| Two or more races |
1.1% |
0.9% |
1.5% |
| Hispanic/Latino of any race |
6.5% |
3.8% |
14.1% |
|
Lancaster AirportLancaster Airport is a public airport located four miles north of the central business district of Lancaster, a city in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA. The airport covers and has two runways. It is mostly used for general aviation but is also served by one commercial airline and one...
is the only airport in the county with scheduled service, though
Smoketown AirportSmoketown Airport is a FBO airport open to the public, located in Smoketown, east of Lancaster, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA. The airport is owned by Marlin Horst and managed by Mel Glick. The FAA reports an average of 74 aircraft operations per day and also reports that there are 86...
also serves
general aviationGeneral aviation is one of two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
.
Flora and Fauna
The
bog turtleThe Bog turtle is a turtle native to the Eastern United States. The "bog," as it is often called, is the only turtle protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act because it is considered threatened at the federal level and endangered in some states. In fact, it is illegal to keep a bog...
was first discovered and identified in Lancaster County by botanist
Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst MuhlenbergGotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg , sometimes also spelled Gotthilf Henry Ernest Muhlenberg, was an American clergyman and botanist, son of Heinrich Melchior Muhlenberg, born at Trappe, Pennsylvania He was educated at Halle and traveled in Germany and in England. He served as the pastor of Holy...
. Muhlenberg discovered the turtle species accidentally while he was conducting a survey of the
floraIn botany, flora has two meanings. The first meaning, flora of an area or of time period, refers to all plant life occurring in an area or time period, especially the naturally occurring or indigenous plant life...
in Lancaster County. The species was named Muhlenberg's tortoise in 1801, but renamed bog turtle, its present
common nameA common name is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with a scientific name...
, in 1956.
Demographics
As of the
censusA "census" is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population.In other words every 10 years...next one would be in 2010 The term is used mostly in connection with...
of 2000, there were 470,658 people, 172,560 households, and 124,070 families residing in the county. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans. It is a key term used in geography....
was 496 people per square mile (191/km²). There were 179,990 housing units at an average density of 190 per square mile (73/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.46% White, 2.76% African American, 0.14% Native American, 1.45% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.90% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.68% of the population.
There were 172,560 households out of which 33.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.90% were
married couplesMarriage is a social union or legal contract between individuals that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged by a variety of ways, depending on the culture or demographic...
living together, 8.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.10% were non-families. 23.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.14.
In the county the population was spread out with 26.60% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 28.30% from 25 to 44, 21.90% from 45 to 64, and 14.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.60 males.
5.58% of the population reported speaking
Pennsylvania GermanThe Pennsylvania German language is a variety of West Central German possibly spoken by more than 250,000 people in North America...
,
GermanGerman is a West Germanic language, thus related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. It is one of the world's major languages and the most widely spoken first language in the European Union. Around the world, German is spoken by approximately 105 million native speakers and also by...
, or
DutchDutch is a West Germanic language spoken by over 22 million people as a native language, and over 5 million people as a second language.
"1% of the EU population claims to speak Dutch well enough in order to have a conversation." Outside the European Union the number of second language...
at home, while a further 4.97% spoke
SpanishSpanish or Castilian is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that originated in northern Spain and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile, evolving into the principal language of government and trade in the Iberian peninsula...
. 39.8% were of German, 11.8%
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
or American, 7.2%
IrishThe Irish people are a Western European ethnic group who originate in Ireland, in north western Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolgs, Tuatha Dé Danann and the Milesians The Irish...
and 5.7%
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity as a people is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn....
ancestry according to the
United States Census, 2000The Twenty-Second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
.
According to official Census Bureau estimates, the county's population had grown to 490,562 by 2005.
Dialect
The inhabitants of Lancaster County speak with the Susquehanna dialect. The Susquehanna dialect is most commonly used in the Lancaster, York, and Harrisburg areas, and incorporates influences from the
Philadelphia accentThe Philadelphia dialect is the dialect of English spoken in Philadelphia; and extending into Philadelphia's suburbs in the Delaware Valley and southern New Jersey. It is one of the best-studied dialects of American English since Philadelphia's University of Pennsylvania is the home institution of...
and that of the
Pennsylvania DutchThe Pennsylvania Dutch are the descendants of Germanic peoples who emigrated to the U.S. , from Germany and The Low Countries prior to 1800. The Dutch are generally regarded as one of several Germanic peoples...
. Here is a list of common words and phrases unique to the Susquehanna dialect:
- ..awhile- used at the end of a sentence, (Can I get you a glass of tea, awhile?)
- Dippy eggs- A fried egg with a runny yolk
- Furhuddled- disheveled, (Patrick appeared furhuddled at his job interview.) May also be heard as Fushuddled.
- It's all- it is all gone, (the coffee is all.)
- Macadam
Macadam is a type of road construction pioneered by the Scotsman John Loudon McAdam in around 1820. The method simplified what had been considered state-of-the-art at that point...
- asphalt, influenced by the original macadam roads in Pennsylvania, (Jason scraped his knee on the macadam.)
- Outen the lights- turning the lights off, (You need to outen the lights, John.)
- Redd up- to straighten up, (I redd up the house yesterday.) (This is an old English term which persists in legal terminology - leases call for the tenant to leave the property void and redd upon vacating the premises.)
Economy
In 2004, the county had a per capita personal income (PCPI) of $30,790, only 93% of the national average. This reflects a growth of 4.5% from the prior year, versus a 5.0% growth for the nation as a whole. Despite the lower income, the county poverty rate in 2003 was just 8.3% compared to a national rate of 12.5%. In 2004, federal spending in Lancaster County was $4,199 per resident, versus a national average of $7,232.
In 2005, Lancaster County was 10th of all counties in Pennsylvania with 17.7% of its workforce employed in manufacturing; the state averages 13.7%, and the leader,
Crawford CountyCrawford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 90,366.Crawford County was created on March 12, 1800, from part of Allegheny County and named for Colonel William Crawford...
, has only 25.1%.
Lancaster County lags in information workers, despite being the corporate headquarters of
MapQuestMapQuest is a map publisher and a free online Web mapping service owned by AOL. The company was founded in 1967 as Cartographic Services, a division of R.R. Donnelley & Sons in Chicago, Illinois. It moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1969. When it became an independent company in 1994, it was...
. It ranks 31st in the state with only 1.3% of the workforce; the state as a whole employs 2.1% in information technology.
The county ranks 11th in the state in managerial and financial workers, despite having only 12.5% of the workforce in those occupations (versus the state average of 12.8%). The state leaders are
Chester CountyChester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 433,501. The county seat is West Chester...
with 20.5% and
Montgomery CountyMontgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2000, the population was 750,097. A 2005 U.S. Census estimate placed the population at 795,618, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania and the 69th most populous county in the...
with 18.5%.
With only 17.3% working in the professions, Lancaster County is 31st in Pennsylvania,
compared to a state average of 21.5%.
Centre CountyCentre County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2007, the population was 144,658....
leads with 31.8%, undoubtedly due to
Penn StateThe Pennsylvania State University is a state-related, land-grant, space grant public research university located in the University Park area and within State College and College Township in Pennsylvania, United States...
's giant footprint in an otherwise rural county, but the upscale Philadelphia suburbs of
Montgomery CountyMontgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2000, the population was 750,097. A 2005 U.S. Census estimate placed the population at 795,618, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania and the 69th most populous county in the...
give them 27.2%.
Lancaster County ranks even lower, 34th, in service workers, with 13.3% of the workforce, compared to a state average of 15.8%.
Philadelphia CountyPhiladelphia County is a county located in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania. It is coterminous with the city of Philadelphia which also serves as its seat. In 2006, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population at 1,448,394...
, leads with 20.5%.
There are 11,000 companies in Lancaster County. The county's largest manufacturing and distributing employers at the end of 2003 were Acme Markets, Alumax Mill Products, Anvil International,
Armstrong World IndustriesArmstrong World Industries, Inc. is an international designer and manufacturer of floors, ceilings and cabinets. Based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Armstrong operates 40 plants in 10 countries and has approximately 12,300 employees worldwide. In 2006, Armstrong’s net sales were $3.42 billion, with...
,
Bollman HatKangol is a clothing company famous for its headwear.Founded in Cleator, Cumbria, England in 1938 by Jaques Spreiregen, Kangol produced hats for workers, golfers, and especially soldiers...
,
CNH GlobalCNH Global N.V. is the second largest manufacturer of agricultural equipment and the third largest maker of construction equipment in the world...
,
Conestoga Wood SpecialtiesConestoga Wood Specialties is a manufacturer of wood doors and components for kitchen, bath and furniture, based in East Earl, Pennsylvania. They have seven factories, located in Arkansas, Maryland, North Carolina, Utah, and Pennsylvania, employing about 2100....
,
Dart ContainerDart Container Corporation of Mason, Michigan, United States is the world's largest manufacturer of foam cups and containers, producing about as many as all competitors combined.-Company history:...
, High Industries,
Lancaster LaboratoriesLancaster Laboratories Inc., is one of the largest contract laboratories in the United States. They specialize in pharmaceutical and environmental analytical services....
,
Pepperidge FarmPepperidge Farm is a commercial bakery in the U.S. founded in 1937 by Margaret Rudkin, who named the brand after her family's property in Fairfield, Connecticut, which in turn was named for the pepperidge tree, Nyssa sylvatica...
, R R Donnelley & Sons,
The Hershey CompanyThe Hershey Company , known until April 2004 as the Hershey Foods Corporation and commonly called Hershey's, is the largest chocolate manufacturer in North America. Its headquarters are in Hershey, Pennsylvania, a town permeated by the aroma of cocoa on some days, and home to Hershey's Chocolate...
,
Tyco ElectronicsTyco Electronics, formerly a segment of Tyco International Ltd., is a leading global provider of engineered electronic components, network solutions, undersea telecommunication systems, and specialty products for customers in more than 150 countries...
,
Tyson FoodsTyson Foods, org. is an American multinational corporation based in Springdale, Arkansas, that operates in the food industry. The company second is the world's largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef, and pork only behind Brazillian JBS S.A., and annually exports the largest percentage of...
, Warner-Lambert, and Yellow Transportation.
Auntie Anne'sAuntie Anne's, based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, is an American chain of pretzel bakeries founded by Anne F. Beiler and her husband, Jonas, in 1988. Auntie Anne's serves products such as pretzels, dips, and desserts...
,
Clipper MagazineClipper Magazine is a corporation that produces coupon and advertisement magazines in over 405 individual markets in 26 states. The company started in 1983 as a student business at Franklin & Marshall College, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, by Steve Zuckerman, Ian Ruzow, and Bob Zuckerman. The...
,
Lancaster FarmingLancaster Farming is the leading regional farm newspaper for the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States.It has published weekly on Saturday since 1955. Paid circulation is about 55,000. The newspaper shares offices and printing facilities with the Ephrata Review and The Lititz Record-Express...
,
MapQuestMapQuest is a map publisher and a free online Web mapping service owned by AOL. The company was founded in 1967 as Cartographic Services, a division of R.R. Donnelley & Sons in Chicago, Illinois. It moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1969. When it became an independent company in 1994, it was...
,
Turkey Hill DairyTurkey Hill Minit Markets is a chain of Pennsylvania convenience store/gas stations, a subsidiary of the retail supermarket chain Kroger. A sister company, Turkey Hill Dairy is a dairy processor in Conestoga, Pennsylvania, selling their fresh milk products in Pennsylvania, and their ice cream and...
, and
Wilbur Chocolate CompanyThe Wilbur Chocolate Company is a chocolate manufacturing company located in Lititz, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1865 by Henry Oscar Wilbur and Samuel Croft...
are Lancaster County-based organizations with an economic footprint of regional or national significance.
Herley IndustriesHerley Industries , based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, is an American company that specializes in supplying microwave and millimeter wave products to defense and aerospace industries. They provide solutions for radars, flight instrumentation, weapon sensors, electronic warfare systems and guidance...
is the third local defense contractor to face federal fraud charges in 20 years.
Agriculture
With some of the most fertile soil in the U.S., Lancaster County has a strong farming industry. Lancaster County's 5293 farms, generating $800 million in food, feed and fiber, are responsible for nearly a fifth of the state's agricultural output. Chester County, with their high-value mushroom farms, is second, with $375 million.
Livestock-raising is responsible for $710 million of that $800 million, with
dairyA dairy is a facility for the extraction and processing of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. Typically it is a farm or section of a farm that is concerned with the production of milk, butter and...
accounting for $266 million,
poultryThe chicken is a domesticated fowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other bird...
and
eggAn egg is a round or oval body laid by the female of any number of different species, consisting of an ovum surrounded by layers of membranes and an outer casing, which acts to nourish and protect a developing embryo and its nutrient reserves...
s accounting for $258 million.
CattleBeef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle . Beef is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of Australia, Europe and America, and is also important in Africa, East Asia, and Southeast Asia...
and
swinePigs are a genus of even-toed ungulates within the family Suidae. The name hog most commonly refers to the domestic pig in everyday parlance, but technically encompasses several distinct species, including the wild boar...
each account for about $90 million.
Agriculture is likely to remain an important part of Lancaster County: almost exactly half of Lancaster County's land - - is zoned for agriculture, and 276,000 of those acres are "effective agricultural zoning", requiring at least per residence.
Tourism
Tourism is a significant industry in Lancaster County, employing 47,000.
In the 1860s, articles in the
Atlantic Monthly and
Lippincott’s Magazine started tourism in Lancaster County right after the
Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
, but it didn't really take off until the 1920s, when the
Lincoln HighwayThe Lincoln Highway was the first road across the United States of America. Actively promoted by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, the Lincoln Highway originally spanned coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco through 13 states: New York, New Jersey,...
was built. A New York Times travel article in 1952 brought 25,000 visitors, and the 1955 Broadway musical
Plain and FancyPlain and Fancy is a musical comedy with a book by Joseph Stein and Will Glickman, lyrics by Arnold Horwitt, and music by Albert Hague. One of the first depictions of an Amish community in American pop culture, it includes a traditional barn-raising and an old-fashioned country...
brought even more, but tourism tapered off, after the
1974 gas rationingThe 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC proclaimed an oil embargo" in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military" during the Yom Kippur war; it lasted until March 1974...
and the Three Mile Island incident led to five years of stagnation.
Local tourism officials viewed it as
deus ex machinaA deus ex machina is a plot device in which a person or thing appears "out of the blue" to help a character to overcome a seemingly insolvable difficulty...
when Hollywood stepped in to rescue their industry.
Harrison FordHarrison Ford is an American film actor and producer. Ford is best known for his performances as Han Solo in the original Star Wars trilogy and as the title character of the Indiana Jones film series...
, in the popular 1985 movie
WitnessWitness is a 1985 American thriller film directed by Peter Weir. The screenplay by William Kelley, Pamela Wallace, and Earl W. Wallace focuses on a detective protecting a young Amish boy who becomes the target of a ruthless killer after he witnesses a brutal murder in Philadelphia's 30th Street...
, played John Book, a Philadelphia detective who in turn played "Plain" in order to protect Samuel Lapp, an Old Order Amish boy who has witnessed a murder. Predictably, John Book falls in love with Rachel Lapp, the boy's widowed mother; the movie is less a thriller than a romance about the difficulties faced by an English man in love with a Plain widow. The film was nominated for eight Oscars, and won two. However, the real winner was Lancaster County tourism, as movie-goers found themselves intrigued by the Plain.
Once again, especially after the
9/11 attacksThe September 11 attacks were a series of coordinated suicide attacks by Al-Qaeda upon the United States on September 11, 2001. On that morning, 19 Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners...
, tourism in Lancaster County has shifted. Instead of families arriving for a 3-4 day stay for a general visit, now tourists arrive for a specific event, whether it be the rhubarb festival, the "maize maze", to see
Thomas the Tank EngineThomas the Tank Engine is a fictional anthropomorphic steam locomotive created by the Rev. W. V. Awdry as one of a number of characters in his Railway Series books, first published in the 1940s....
, for
SertomaSertoma International is an international organization of service clubs founded on 1912. The name is an acronym for Service to Mankind. Sertoma has clubs all over the United States, Canada and Mexico. Sertoma's mission is with hearing health. Local clubs support their local communities in many...
's annual "World's Largest Chicken Barbecue" or for the latest show at
Sight & Sound TheatresSight & Sound Theatres is a Christian theater company based in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, operating the Millennium Theatre and Living Waters Theatre in Strasburg, Pennsylvania....
. The tourism industry is discouraged by this change, but not despondent:
The county also promotes tourist visits to the county's numerous historic and picturesque
covered bridgeA covered bridge is a bridge, often single-lane, with enclosed sides and a roof. They have typically been wooden, although some newer ones are concrete or metal with glass sides...
s by publishing driving tours of the bridges. At over 200 bridges still in existence, Pennsylvania has more covered bridges than anywhere else in the world, and at
29 covered bridges, Lancaster County has the largest share.
The Lancaster County Convention Center Authority
http://www.lccca.com/ is building a controversial $170 million
http://www.lancasterfirst.org/FinancingPlan_121306.pdf convention center in downtown Lancaster on the site of the former Watt & Shand building. The project's supporters believe it would promote the revitalization of the city's center. Its opponents, however, feel it poses an unacceptable risk to taxpayers
http://www.co.lancaster.pa.us/lanco/cwp/view.asp?A=15&Q=559590.
Other tourist attractions include the American Music Theatre,
Dutch WonderlandDutch Wonderland is a amusement park just east of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, appealing primarily to families with small children. The park's theme is a "Kingdom for Kids." The entrance to the park has a real stone castle façade, which was built by Earl Clark, a potato farmer, before he opened the...
,
Ephrata CloisterThe Ephrata Cloister or Ephrata Community was a religious community, established in 1732 by Johann Conrad Beissel at Ephrata, in what is now Lancaster County, Pennsylvania...
,
Ephrata FairThe Ephrata Farmer's Fair is held each year in Ephrata, Lancaster County, and is the largest street fair in Pennsylvania.In 2008, the 90th Annual fair was held on September 24th - 27th, 2008.-History:...
,
Hans Herr HouseHans Herr was born in Zürich, Switzerland, a descendant of the Knight, Hugo Herr. He joined the religious society...
,
Landis Valley MuseumLandis Valley Museum is a nationally significant living history museum in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA. It collects, conserves, exhibits, and interprets Pennsylvania German material, culture, history and heritage from 1740 through 1940....
,
Pennsylvania Dutch CountryPennsylvania Dutch Country refers to an area of southeastern Pennsylvania, United States that by the American Revolution had a high percentage of Lutherans. There were also German Reformed, Moravian, Amish, Mennonite and other German sectarian inhabitants. It is also a place where the Deitsch...
,
Pennsylvania Renaissance FaireThe Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire is a Renaissance fair occurring over 12 weekends from early-August through late-October on the grounds of the Mount Hope Estate and Winery in Manheim, Pennsylvania...
(one of the largest
Renaissance fairA Renaissance fair, Renaissance faire, or Renaissance festival is an outdoor weekend gathering, usually held in the United States, open to the public and generally commercial in nature, which emulates a historic period for the amusement of its guests. Some are permanent theme parks, others are...
s in the world),
Railroad Museum of PennsylvaniaThe Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania is a railroad museum in Strasburg, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.The museum is located on the east side of Strasburg along Pennsylvania Route 741...
,
Rock Ford plantationThe Rock Ford Plantation or the General Edward Hand House is a historic house in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 21, 1976...
,
Robert Fulton BirthplaceRobert Fulton was an American engineer and inventor who is widely credited with developing the first commercially successful steamboat. He also designed a new type of steam warship...
,
Sight & Sound TheatresSight & Sound Theatres is a Christian theater company based in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, operating the Millennium Theatre and Living Waters Theatre in Strasburg, Pennsylvania....
,
Strasburg RailroadThe Strasburg Rail Road is a heritage railroad located near Strasburg, Pennsylvania. It operates excursion trains hauled by steam locomotives in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country....
, and
Sturgis Pretzel HouseThe Sturgis Pretzel House of Lititz, Pennsylvania, founded in 1861, is the oldest commercial pretzel bakery in the United States.. The bakery remains active in pretzel production and as being a tourist attraction.- History :...
. There are many tours of this historic area including the Downtown Lancaster Walking Tour
http://www.padutchcountry.com/member_pages/Historic_Lancaster_Walking_Tour.asp.
Municipalities
Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities:
cities,
boroughs,
townships, and, in at most two cases, towns. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Lanacster County:
Boroughs
- Adamstown
Adamstown is a borough in Berks and Lancaster counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The population was 1,203 at the 2000 census. It was initially founded on 4 July 1761 by William Addams on the site of a former village of native Americans, and Addams named the community "Addamsburry"...
- Akron
Akron is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a mid-sized town with two main roads going through it: Main Street and 7th Street Pennsylvania Route 272. The town is mostly residential with a number of small businesses...
- Christiana
Christiana is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,124 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Christiana is located at ....
- Columbia
Columbia is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 28 miles southeast of Harrisburg on the Susquehanna River across from Wrightsville. Originally, the place was called "Wright's Ferry." It was founded in 1726 by English Quakers from Chester County. Population counts were these: in 1890,...
- Denver
Denver is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,332 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Denver is located at ....
- East Petersburg
East Petersburg is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,450 at the 2000 census.- General Information :*ZIP code: 17520*Area code: 717...
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ElizabethtownElizabethtown is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, southeast of Harrisburg. Small factories had existed there at the turn of the century when the population in 1900 was 1,861. In 1910, 1,970 people lived in Elizabethtown. As of the 2000 census, the population of the borough is 11,887...
EphrataEphrata is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, south east of Harrisburg and about west by north of Philadelphia. It is named after Ephrath, a biblical town in what is now Israel. Ephrata's sister city is Eberbach, Germany, the city where its founders originated...
LititzLititz is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 6 miles north of the city of Lancaster.-History:Lititz was founded by members of the Moravian Church in 1756, and was named after a castle in Bohemia near the village of Kunvald where the ancient Bohemian Brethren's Church had...
ManheimManheim is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,784 at the 2000 census. The Borough of Manheim is often confused with nearby Manheim Township - a separate municipality.- General information :*ZIP code: 17545...
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Marietta Marietta is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,689 at the 2000 census. It is located on the east bank of the Susquehanna River just north of Columbia.-Geography:Marietta is located at ....
MillersvilleMillersville is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 7,774.-Geography:Millersville is located at ....
Mount JoyMount Joy is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,765 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Mount Joy is located at ....
MountvilleMountville is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,444 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Mountville is located at ....
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New HollandNew Holland is a borough in Lancaster County in Pennsylvania, USA. The population was 5,092 at the 2000 census. New Holland was settled in 1728 by Johann Michael Dubendorfer of Heidelberg, Germany. Before it became known as New Holland, it had been called Earltown and New Design...
QuarryvilleQuarryville is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,994 at the 2000 census.- General Information :*ZIP code: 17566*Area code: 717*Local phone exchanges: 786, 806*Named for noted quarries in the area...
StrasburgStrasburg is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was named by its early settlers in memory of the city in Alsace from which they had come. The population was 2,800 at the 2000 census....
Terre HillTerre Hill is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,237 at the 2000 census.- General Information :*ZIP code: 17581*Area code: 717*Local phone codes: 445*Current Mayor : Robert R Rissler-Geography:...
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Townships
- Bart
- Brecknock
Brecknock Township is a township in northeastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,699 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
- Caernarvon
Caernarvon Township is a township in northeastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,278 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
- Clay
Clay Township is a township in north central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 5,173 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
- Colerain
Colerain Township is a township in southeastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,261 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Solanco School District....
- Conestoga
- Conoy
- Drumore
- Earl
Earl Township is a township in northeastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,183 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
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East Cocalico
East Donegal
East Drumore
East Earl
East Hempfield
East Lampeter
Eden
ElizabethElizabeth Township is a township in north central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,833 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
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Ephrata
Fulton
Lancaster Lancaster Township is a civil township of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is in the central area and it immediately surrounds Lancaster City...
Leacock
Little Britain
ManheimManheim Township is a township in central Lancaster County, which borders the city limits of Lancaster, Pennsylvania to the north. The population was 33,697 at the 2000 census...
ManorManor Township is a township in west central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. Manor Township takes its name from the Manor of Conestoga, which was originally surveyed and reserved for William Penn in 1719. It was changed to its present form in 1759...
Martic |
Mount Joy Mount Joy Township is a township in northwestern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,944 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
ParadiseParadise Township is a township in east central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,698 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
PennPenn Township is a township in north central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,312 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 76.8 km²...
Pequea
Providence
Rapho
SadsburySadsbury Township is a township in east central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,025 at the 2000 census.-History:...
SalisburySalisbury Township is a township in east central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,012 at the 2000 census.Salisbury Township was carved out of Pequea Township in 1729 and named for Salisbury, England...
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Strasburg
Upper Leacock
WarwickWarwick Township is a township in north central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 15,475 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
West Cocalico
West Donegal
West Earl
West Hempfield
West Lampeter |
Census-designated places
Census-designated placeA census-designated place is a type of place identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
s are geographical areas designated by the
United States Census BureauThe United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data. As part of the United States Department of Commerce, the Census Bureau serves as the leading source of quality data about...
for the purposes of compiling demographic data. They are not actual jurisdictions under Pennsylvania law.
- Brickerville
Brickerville is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States with a zip code of 17543. The population was 1,287 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Brickerville is located at ....
- Gap
The Gap is a census-designated place and town in Salisbury Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania with a zip code of 17527. The population was 1,611 at the 2000 census...
- Leacock-Leola-Bareville
Leacock-Leola-Bareville is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the CDP population was 6,625...
- Maytown
Maytown is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,604 at the 2000 census. Maytown is noted as the birthplace of 19th century politician Simon Cameron, who served in the Cabinet of President Abraham Lincoln.-Geography:Maytown is located at ...
- Paradise
Paradise is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States with a zip code of 17562. The population was 1,028 at the 2000 census. Paradise, like Intercourse, is a popular site for tourists who like the name of the town...
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Reamstown Reamstown is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,498 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
RheemsRheems is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,557 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Rheems is located at ....
RothsvilleRothsville is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,017 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Rothsville is located at ....
Salunga-LandisvilleSalunga-Landisville is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States with a zip code of 17538. The population was 4,771 at the 2000 census. The name "Salunga" comes from the nearby Chiquesalunga Creek, which in turn is derived from the Lenape "Chiquesalunga", meaning...
Willow StreetWillow Street is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,258 at the 2000 census. In the early part of the 20th century the main thoroughfare in town was lined with Willow trees on both sides for the length of the town. The community received...
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Other communities
Many communities are neither incorporated nor treated as census-designated places.
- Bainbridge
Bainbridge, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Conoy Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania with a zip code of 17502. Bainbridge is located along Pennsylvania Route 441....
- Bausman
Bausman, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Lancaster Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania....
- Bird-in-Hand
Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community with parts lying in East Lampeter Township, and Upper Leacock Township, Lancaster County in the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The community has a large Amish and Mennonite population...
- Brownstown
Brownstown, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located within West Earl Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.- Geography :The town has a total land area of 0.66 square kilometers...
- Blainsport
- Blue Ball
- Bowmansville
Bowmansville, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Brecknock Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania....
- Buck
Buck, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in East Drumore Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Buck is located along Pennsylvania Route 272 and is most famous for the Buck Tractor Pull....
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Churchtown Churchtown, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Caernarvon Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Churchtown is located along Pennsylvania Route 23....
Cocalico
ConestogaConestoga, Pennsylvania is a small community in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in the United States.Conestoga was first called Conestoga Manor by William Penn. The name came from the Conestoga Indians, a peaceful Christian tribe, whose principal village was located nearby...
Conewago
DillervilleDillerville is an extinct hamlet in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States.Dillerville was established between the Harrisburg and Manheim pikes, at the intersection of the Lancaster and Reading railroads....
ElmElm is an unincorporated village in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The community is in the Lancaster metropolitan area and in the Eastern Standard time zone.The latitude of Elm is 40.203N. The longitude is -76.349W. Elevation is 604 feet....
FalmouthFalmouth, Pennsylvania is a small unincorporated community located within Conoy Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Falmouth is most famous for its New Years Eve celebration, in which a stuffed goat is lowered at midnight....
FarmersvilleFarmersville is a rural Mennonite settlement located southeast of the borough of Ephrata in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is an unincorporated locality located in West Earl Township, Pennsylvania. Farmersville is near no major roads, with the town being defined as around the intersection of...
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Fivepointville Fivepointville, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Brecknock Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The town is named for its position at an intersection of five separate roads, including Pennsylvania Route 897. It is located just north of Terre Hill, Pennsylvania. The...
GeorgetownGeorgetown is a small, unincorporated community located in Bart Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is located approximately 54 miles from Philadelphia...
GoodvilleGoodville, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Caernarvon Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Churchtown is located along Pennsylvania Route 23....
GordonvilleGordonville, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated place or village in Leacock Township in eastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA. The village is located about nine miles east of the county seat of Lancaster, two miles southwest of the village of Intercourse, one mile north of Paradise, and...
HempfieldHempfield, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Hempfield is a tiny locale in West Hempfield Township a few miles west of Lancaster, Pennsylvania at 40°03'17" north latitude, 76°26'20" west longitude.-History:...
HinkletownHinkletown, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Earl Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Hinkletown is located along U.S. Route 322....
HoltwoodHoltwood, Pennsylvania is a village in Martic Township, Lancaster County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.- External links :*...
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Hopeland Hopeland is a small hamlet in Lancaster County in the south of the US state of Pennsylvania. It is between Ephrata and Lititz. The hamlet's ZIP code is 17533.Accomplished musician Kevin Schofield also resides here....
IntercourseIntercourse, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated village in Leacock Township, Lancaster County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is ten miles east of Lancaster along PA 340...
KinzersKinzers, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Salisbury Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Kinzers is located along U.S. Route 30....
KirkwoodKirkwood is a farming town located in Colerain Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, in the Lancaster Metro area, in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, near the Chester County border. The zip code is 17536....
Kissel HillKissel Hill, Pennsylvania is a very small unincorporated community located in Warwick Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Kissel Hill is located just south of Lititz....
LampeterLampeter, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in West Lampeter Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania with a zip code of 17537. The community is located along Pennsylvania Route 741, west of Strasburg....
Leaman PlaceLeaman Place is a named place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. Leaman Place is known mostly as a whistle-stop. President Abraham Lincoln spoke at this station on February 22, 1861 to a crowd of 5,000. In 1968, Democrat Hubert H...
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Lyndon Lyndon, Pennsylvania is a very small unincorporated community located in West Lampeter Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Lyndon is located just south of the city of Lancaster along U.S. Route 222....
MartindaleMartindale, Pennsylvania is a small unincorporated community located in Earl Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.The center of Martindale is located at the intersection of Martindale Road and Gristmill Road. Eby's General Store currently sits at this intersection....
MastersonvilleMastersonville, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Rapho Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania....
Mechanics GroveMechanics Grove is an unincorporated community located within East Drumore Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Mechanic Grove is located along U.S. Route 222 south of the town of Quarryville....
New DanvilleNew Danville, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Pequea Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania....
NeffsvilleNeffsville, Pennsylvania is a suburban community in Manheim Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Being unincorporated, Neffsville has no boundaries. The US Geological Survey Place Names database locates Neffsville at 40°6'0"N 76°18'20"W...
Nickel MinesNickel Mines, Pennsylvania is a hamlet in Bart Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA.The nickel mines that give the town its name were worked in a deposit of sulfide ore, principally millerite. The mines were originally opened in the early 18th century for copper, but were given up as...
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Penryn Penryn, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Penn Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania....
PequeaPequea, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Pequea Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The zip code is 17565....
ReftonRefton, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in Strasburg Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania with a zip code of 17568. The community is located along U.S. Route 222....
ReinholdsReinholds is an unincorporated community located within West Cocalico Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States....
RonksRonks is a small farming community in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, just west of Paradise, Pennsylvania. The town is most famous as being the home of Ronks Concrete Company. The community is home to several Amish themed tourist attractions, shops, restaurants, and lodging lining the Lincoln Highway...
Safe HarborSafe Harbor, Pennsylvania is a small unincorporated community located within Conestoga Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA.The general location was an early staging area for native american tribes traversing the Susquehanna River from the settlements surrounding Conestoga and present...
SchoeneckSchoeneck, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located within West Cocalico Township in Lancaster County. Schoeneck is a corruption of the Pennsylvania Dutch phrase Scheenous Eck, which translates to "pretty corner."-External links:*...
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Silver Spring Silver Spring, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community located in West Hempfield Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The community is located along Pennsylvania Route 23.- About the Village :...
SmoketownSmoketown is a small farming village in East Lampeter Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, west of Bird-in-Hand at the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 340 and Pennsylvania Route 896 . Also known as Smoke Town, it is served by the Smoketown Airport...
StevensStevens, Pennsylvania is a named place, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The Stevens post office is zip code 17578.Stevens is the home of Golden Witch Technologies, a mom-and-pop business started by Russ Gooding, a college philosophy major who became one of the few professional rod makers in the...
TalmageTalmage, Pennsylvania is unincorporated community located within West Earl Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The main route through Brownstown is Pennsylvania Route 772, which runs through the center of town. Talmage is located just east of Brownstown....
WakefieldWakefield, Pennsylvania is a small unincorporated community located within Fulton Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is located at the junction of Pennsylvania Route 272 and U.S. Route 222....
Washington BoroWashington Boro is an unincorporated community in Manor Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, along the Susquehanna River. The zip code here is 17582...
White HorseWhite Horse, Pennsylvania is a small unincorporated community located within Salisbury Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.White Horse sits at the junction of the Philadelphia Pike , west of the village of Intercourse and Pennsylvania Route 897.-External links:*...
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Education
The colleges of Lancaster County are
Elizabethtown CollegeElizabethtown College is a small comprehensive college located in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania in Lancaster County. The school was founded in 1899 by members of the Church of the Brethren...
,
Franklin & Marshall CollegeFranklin & Marshall College is a four-year private co-educational residential liberal arts college in the Northwest Corridor neighborhood of Lancaster, Pennsylvania...
,
Harrisburg Area Community CollegeFormerly known as Harrisburg Area Community College , HACC, Central Pennsylvania's Community College is a community college in the United States serving the greater Harrisburg, Pennsylvania metropolitan area. HACC is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association...
,
Lancaster Bible CollegeLancaster Bible College and Graduate School, commonly referred to as LBC, is a Bible college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania that "exists for the purpose of educating Christian men and women to live according to a biblical worldview and to serve through professional Christian...
,
Lancaster Theological SeminaryLancaster Theological Seminary, a seminary of the United Church of Christ in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was founded in 1825 by members of the German Reformed Church in the United States to provide theological education for prospective clergy and other church leaders...
,
Millersville University of PennsylvaniaMillersville University of Pennsylvania is a public university in Millersville, Pennsylvania, USA, 3 miles southwest of Lancaster. Millersville University is a member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.-History:...
,
Pennsylvania College of Art and DesignThe Pennsylvania College of Art & Design is a professional art college located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania USA.The college offers Bachelor of Fine Arts programs in fine arts, graphic design, illustration, and photography...
,
Thaddeus Stevens College of TechnologyThaddeus Stevens College of Technology is a two-year co-educational technical college that provides an education in twenty two programs for about 800 students. It was named for Thaddeus Stevens, a nineteenth-century politician. The school was founded in 1905....
and
Lancaster General College of Nursing and Health SciencesLancaster General College of Nursing and Health Sciences is a nursing school in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States.It was founded in 1903 as the Lancaster General Hospital School of Nursing....
.
There are 16 public school districts in the county:
CocalicoThe Cocalico School District is a school district of 3531 students educated in 6 schools by 209 teachers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is a member of Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13. The school district covers the Boroughs of Denver and Adamstown and East...
,
Columbia BoroughThe Columbia Borough School District is a school district of 1443 students educated in three schools in the Borough of Columbia in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania...
,
Conestoga ValleyThe Conestoga Valley School District is a school district covering East Lampeter Township, Upper Leacock Township and West Earl Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a member of Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13...
,
DonegalThe Donegal School District is a school district covering the Boroughs of Marietta and Mount Joy and East Donegal Township and the southern portion of Mount Joy Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a member of Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13...
,
Eastern Lancaster CountyThe Eastern Lancaster County School District is a school district in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a member of Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13.- Schools :* Brecknock Elementary School - Denver, Pennsylvania...
,
Elizabethtown AreaThe Elizabethtown Area School District is a school district in the Northwest corner of suburban Lancaster County, Pennsylvania that serves Elizabethown Borough and the townships of Conoy, and West Donegal, as well as the North and West part of Mount Joy Township...
,
Ephrata AreaThe Ephrata Area School District is a school district in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a member of Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13.
- Statistical snapshot :Source: Local School Directory- Schools :...
,
HempfieldThe Hempfield School District is a school district of 7218 students educated in 10 schools by 420 teachers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a member of Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13...
,
Lampeter-StrasburgThe Lampeter-Strasburg School District is a school district in rural and suburban Lancaster County, Pennsylvania that serves the borough of Strasburg, as well as Strasburg and West Lampeter Townships...
,
LancasterThe School District of Lancaster is a school district of 11,300 students educated in 19 schools in central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Established in 1836, it is the second oldest school district in the state...
,
Manheim Central-Athletics:Manheim Central currently has teams for the following sporting events:* Baseball* Basketball * Bowling* Cross-country* Field Hockey* Football* Golf* Rifle* Soccer * Softball* Swimming* Tennis...
,
Manheim TownshipManheim Township School District is a local school district of over 5,000 students in nine schools located in central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA, just north of Lancaster City. The district is well known in the Lancaster County region for its academic achievement, popular quiz bowl team,...
,
Penn ManorThe Penn Manor School District is a school district of 5332 students educated in 10 schools in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is a member of Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13.- Scholastic Performance :...
,
Pequea ValleyThe Pequea Valley School District is a school district of 1927 students educated in 5 schools by 123 teachers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in the United States...
,
SolancoSolanco School District is in the southern end of Lancaster County , Pennsylvania. There are currently seven schools in Solanco: four elementary, two middle/junior high and one high school.-District profile:School Colors - Black and Gold
...
, and
WarwickWarwick School District is located in Lititz, Pennsylvania. The school district has a superintendent, assistant superintendent and a business manager. It serves Elizabeth Township, Warwick Township, and Lititz Borough...
. There is also one charter school, the La Academia Charter School.
Additionally, Lancaster County has a federated library system with 14 member libraries, three branches and a bookmobile. The
Library System of Lancaster CountyThe Library System of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania is a federated system with 14 member libraries, 3 branches and a bookmobile, which serves 490,562 residents. LSLC was established in April 1987 to provide well-coordinated countywide services and cooperative programs to assist member libraries in...
was established in April 1987 to provide well-coordinated countywide services and cooperative programs to assist member libraries in meeting the diverse needs of its community residents. The Board of Lancaster County Commissioners appoints the Library System of Lancaster County's seven-member board of directors. The System is an agent of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and The County of Lancaster.
Sports
Before the Barnstormers, Lancaster was the home of the
Lancaster Red RosesThe Lancaster Red Roses baseball team, originally known as the Maroons, changed its name at the start of the 1906 season during a bitter match with the York, Pennsylvania-based White Roses. Some sources indicate that the rival teams were named for the opposing factions in England's historic Wars of...
, which played from 1906 to about 1930, and from 1932 to 1961. In 2005, the Lancaster Barnstormers joined the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. The Barnstormers are named after the "
barnstormingBarnstorming in athletics refers to sports teams or individuals that travel to various locations, usually small towns, to stage exhibition matches....
" players who played exhibition games in the county. Their official colors are red, navy blue, and khaki, the same as those of the Red Roses. This franchise won their first league championship in 2006, only their second season. They have revived the old baseball rivalry between Lancaster and nearby
YorkYork, known as the White Rose City , is a city located in South Central Pennsylvania. The population was 40,862 at the 2000 census. York is the county seat of York County, and is located at...
, called the War of the Roses, when the
York RevolutionThe York Revolution is an American professional baseball team based in . They are a member of the Freedom Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
started their inaugural season in 2007.
The Women's Premier Soccer League expanded to Lancaster for the 2008 season, with the Lancaster Inferno. The WPSL is a FIFA-recognized women's league. The Inferno is owned by the Pennsylvania Classics organization and play their home games at the Hempfield High School stadium in
LandisvilleSalunga-Landisville is a census-designated place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States with a zip code of 17538. The population was 4,771 at the 2000 census. The name "Salunga" comes from the nearby Chiquesalunga Creek, which in turn is derived from the Lenape "Chiquesalunga", meaning...
. The Inferno's colors are orange, black, and white.
Amateur teams
Since 2004, the amateur
Lancaster LightningThe Lancaster Lightning is an amateur football team based in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Since the 2004 season, they have played in the Eastern Conference of the North American Football League....
footballAmerican football, known in the United States and Canada simply as football, and often as Gridiron or Tackle football outside North America, is a competitive team sport known for combining strategy with physical play. The objective of the game is to score points by advancing the ball into the...
team of the
North American Football LeagueThe North American Football League is a wholly owned subsidiary of 360 Sports Management. It is an adult amateur American football league that was designed to be a self-sustaining level of minor league football where players can develop their skills and simply play for the love of the game.-...
has played at
Pequea Valley High School'sThe Pequea Valley School District is a school district of 1927 students educated in 5 schools by 123 teachers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in the United States...
football stadium in Kinzers.
Former teams
From 1946 to 1980, a professional basketball team known as the
Lancaster Red RosesThe Lancaster Red Roses were a professional basketball team based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. From 1946 to 1949 and from 1953 to 1955, they played in the Eastern Professional Basketball League, of which the Red Roses were one of the six original teams. The Red Roses also played briefly as the...
(as well as the Lancaster Rockets and the Lancaster Lightning). played in the
Continental Basketball AssociationThe Continental Basketball Association is a professional men's basketball league in the United States. It is affiliated with USA Basketball, the sport's governing body in the United States.- History :...
.
See also
External links