Elk County, Pennsylvania

Elk County, Pennsylvania
The Elk County courthouse in Ridgway.
Location in the state of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's location in the U.S.
Founded	April 18, 1843
Seat	Ridgway
Largest city	St. Marys
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	832 sq mi (2,155 km²) 799 sq mi (2,069 km²) 32 sq mi (83 km²), 0.43%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	31,946 40/sq mi (15.4/km²)
Website	www.co.elk.pa.us

Elk County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 31,946.

Elk County was created on April 18, 1843, from parts of Jefferson, Clearfield and McKean Counties, and is named for the Eastern elk that historically inhabited the region. Its county seat is Ridgway.^[1].

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 832 square miles (2,154.9 km²), of which 799 square miles (2,069.4 km²) is land and 4 square miles (10.4 km²) (0.43%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• McKean County (north)
• Cameron County (east)
• Clearfield County (south)
• Jefferson County (southwest)
• Forest County (west)
• Warren County (northwest)

National protected area

• Allegheny National Forest (part)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	3,531		—
1860	5,915		67.5%
1870	8,488		43.5%
1880	12,800		50.8%
1890	22,239		73.7%
1900	32,903		48.0%
1910	35,871		9.0%
1920	34,981		−2.5%
1930	33,431		−4.4%
1940	34,443		3.0%
1950	34,503		0.2%
1960	37,328		8.2%
1970	37,770		1.2%
1980	38,338		1.5%
1990	34,878		−9.0%
2000	35,111		0.7%
2010	31,946		−9.0%

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 35,112 people, 14,124 households, and 9,745 families residing in the county. The population density was 42 people per square mile (16/km²). There were 18,115 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.96% White, 0.15% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.35% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.10% from other races, and 0.31% from two or more races. 0.40% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 42.8% were of German, 17.8% Italian, 7.4% Irish and 5.1% Swedish ancestry according to Census 2000.

Population pyramid

There were 14,124 households out of which 31.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.00% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.00% were non-families. 27.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county, the population was spread out with 24.00% under the age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 28.60% from 25 to 44, 23.30% from 45 to 64, and 17.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 98.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.30 males.

Politics and government

As of November 2008, there are 20,523 registered voters in Elk County [1].

• Democratic: 11,201 (54.58%)
• Republican: 7,317 (35.65%)
• Other parties: 2,005 (9.77%)

Elk County tends to be politically competitive in statewide elections. Although George W. Bush carried it in both 2000 and 2004, Barack Obama won 50.8% of its vote to 46.5% for John McCain. The three state row offices winners also carried Elk and Democratic incumbent State Representative Dan Surra lost after nine terms to Republican Matt Gabler in 2008.

County commissioners

• Daniel Freeburg, Chairman, Republican
• Janis Kemmer, Republican
• June Sorg, Democrat

Other county offices

• Clerk of Courts and Prothonotary, Susanne Schneider, Republican
• Coroner, Michelle Muccio, Republican
• District Attorney, Bradley Kraus, Democrat
• Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds, Pete Weidenboerner, Democrat
• Sheriff, Jeffrey Krieg, Democrat
• Treasurer, Peggy Schneider, Democrat

State Representative

• Matt Gabler, Republican, 75th district

State Senator

• Joseph B. Scarnati, Republican, 25th district

U.S. Representative

• Glenn "G.T." Thompson, Republican, 5th district

Municipalities

The townships of Elk County, with the city and boroughs shaded.

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 Elk County:

Cities

• St. Marys

Boroughs

• Johnsonburg
• Ridgway

Townships

• Benezette Township
• Fox Township
• Highland Township
• Horton Township
• Jay Township
• Jones Township
• Millstone Township
• Ridgway Township
• Spring Creek Township

Education

Map of Elk County, Pennsylvania School Districts

Community, Junior and Technical Colleges

• North Central Industrial Technical Education Center

Public School Districts

• Brockway Area School District
• Forest Area School District
• Kane Area School District
• Johnsonburg Area School District
• Ridgway Area School District
• Saint Marys Area School District

Private Schools

• Elk County Catholic High School

Recreation

There are two Pennsylvania state parks in Elk County.

• Bendigo State Park
• Elk State Park

See also

• List of municipal authorities in Elk County, Pennsylvania
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Elk County, Pennsylvania

References

1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

Coordinates: 41°25′N 78°39′W / 41.42°N 78.65°W / 41.42; -78.65