LYCOMING County, PA

Lycoming County is a county in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 116,111. Its county seat is Williamsport.

Lycoming County comprises the Williamsport Metropolitan Statistical Area.

About northwest of Philadelphia and east-northeast of Pittsburgh, Lycoming is Pennsylvania's largest county by area.

History

Formation of the county

Lycoming County was formed from Northumberland County on April 13, 1795. The county was larger than it is today. It took up most of the land that is now north central Pennsylvania. The following counties have been formed from land that was once part of Lycoming County: Armstrong, Bradford, Centre, Clearfield, Clinton, Indiana, Jefferson, McKean, Potter, Sullivan, Tioga, Venango, Warren, Forest, Elk and Cameron.

Lycoming County was originally named Jefferson County in honor of Thomas Jefferson. This name proved to be unsatisfactory. The name change went through several steps. First a change to Lycoming County was rejected, next the name Susquehanna County was struck down as was Muncy County, before the legislature revisited and settled on Lycoming County for Lycoming Creek, the stream that was the center of the pre-Revolutionary border dispute.

County "firsts"

1615: The first European in Lycoming County was Étienne Brûlé. He was a voyageur for New France. Brule descended the West Branch Susquehanna River and was held captive by a local Indian tribe near what is now Muncy before escaping and returning to Canada.

1761: The first permanent homes were built in Muncy. Three log cabins were built by Bowyer Brooks, Robert Roberts and James Alexander.

1772: The first gristmill is built on Muncy Creek by John Alward

1775: The first public road is built along the West Branch Susquehanna River. The road followed Indian trails from Fort Augusta in what is now Sunbury to Bald Eagle Creek near modern-day Lock Haven.

1786: The first church built in the county was Lycoming Presbyterian church in what was known as Jaysburg and is now the Newberry section of Williamsport.

1792: The first sawmill was built on Lycoming Creek by Roland Hall.

1795: The first elections for Lycoming County government are held soon after the county was formed from Northumberland County. The elected officers were Samuel Stewart, county sheriff and the first county commissioners were John Hanna, Thomas Forster and James Crawford. Andrew Gregg was elected to represent Lycoming County in the United States Congress, William Hepburn was voted to the Pennsylvania State Senate and Flavel Roan, Hugh White and Robert Martin served as representatives in the Pennsylvania General Assembly.

1823: The county government funded the construction of the first bridges over Loyalsock and Lycoming Creeks.

1839: The first railroad is built. It connected Williamsport with Ralston in northern Lycoming County. The railroad followed Lycoming Creek.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.2%) is water. Lycoming County is the largest county in Pennsylvania by land area and second-largest by total area; it is larger than the state of Rhode Island. The county has a humid continental climate which is warm-summer (Dfb) except in lower areas near the river which are hot-summer (Dfa). Average monthly temperatures in downtown Williamsport average from 26.5 °F in January to 72.4 °F in July, while in Trout Run they average from 25.5 °F in January to 71.2 °F in July. [http://prism.oregonstate.edu/explorer/]

Appalachian Mountains and Allegheny Plateau

thumb|Major fault at the dividing line between the Allegheny Plateau and the true Appalachian Mountains near Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Lycoming County is divided between the Appalachian Mountains in the south, the dissected Allegheny Plateau (which also appears mountainous) in the north and east, and the valley of the West Branch Susquehanna River between these.

West Branch Susquehanna River

The West Branch of the Susquehanna enters Lycoming County from Clinton County just west of the borough of Jersey Shore, which is on the northwest bank of the river. The river then flows generally east and a little north with some large curves for 15 miles (24 kilometers) to the city of Williamsport, followed by the borough of Montoursville (both on the north bank) as well as the boroughs of Duboistown and South Williamsport (on the south bank).

The river flows just north of Bald Eagle Mountain (one of the northernmost ridges of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians) through much of its course in Lycoming County, but it passes the end of the mountain and turns south just before the borough of Muncy (on the east bank). It continues south past the borough of Montgomery and leaves Lycoming County, where it forms the border between Union and Northumberland Counties. From there the West Branch merges with the North Branch Susquehanna River at Northumberland, Pennsylvania, and then flows south to the Chesapeake Bay.

Major creeks and watersheds

thumb|300 px|right|Map of the West Branch Susquehanna River (dark blue) and Major Streams in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. From west to east (left to right) the watersheds are:

The major creeks of Lycoming County are all tributaries of the West Branch Susquehanna River. On the north or left bank of the river they are (from west to east): Pine Creek (and its tributary Little Pine Creek) which the river receives just west of Jersey Shore; Larrys Creek, which the river receives about 7 km (4 mi) south of Salladasburg; Lycoming Creek which the river receives in western Williamsport; Loyalsock Creek which the river receives between Williamsport and Montoursville; and Muncy Creek (and its tributary Little Muncy Creek), which the river receives just north of Muncy. Loyalsock and Muncy Creeks are also the major watersheds of Sullivan County.

Finally there is White Deer Hole Creek, the only major creek in Lycoming County on the right bank (i.e. south and west) of the river. It is south of Bald Eagle Mountain, and flows from west to east. The river receives it at the village of Allenwood in Gregg Township in Union County. Other creeks found on the right bank (south and west) of the West Branch Susquehanna River in Lycoming County are relatively minor, including Antes Creek in the Nippenose valley (in Limestone and Nippenose Townships), Mosquito Creek (at Duboistown), Hagermans Run (at South Williamsport), and Black Hole Creek (at Montgomery).

The entire county is in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The percent of the county drained by each creek's watershed is as follows: Pine Creek, 15.27%; Little Pine Creek, 11.25% (if these two are considered together, 26.52%); Larry's Creek, 7.17%; Lycoming Creek, 17.80%; Loyalsock Creek, 13.23%; Muncy Creek, 4.82%; Little Muncy Creek, 5.86% (if these two are considered together, 10.68%); and White Deer Hole Creek, 4.40%. Minor creeks account for the rest.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 120,044 people, 47,003 households, and 31,680 families residing in the county. The population density was 97 people per square mile (38/km²). There were 52,464 housing units at an average density of 42 per square mile (16/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.9% White, 4.3% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.4% Asian, <0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.3% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. 0.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 38.5% were of German, 11.7% American, 9.0% Irish, 7.4% Italian and 7.3% English ancestry.

There were 47,003 households, out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.1% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.6% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.80 males.

Law and government

County Commissioners

Law enforcement agencies

Fire departments

Pennsylvania House of Representatives

Pennsylvania State Senate

United States House of Representatives

United States Senate

Education

Colleges

Public school districts

thumb|300px|Map of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania Public School Districts

Other public entities

Non public entities

Data from EdNA database maintained by Pennsylvania Department of Education, July 2012

Libraries

There are six public libraries in Lycoming County:

There are also four Link libraries in the county.

Transportation

Primary highways

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Airports

There are only two public use airports in the county. The Williamsport Regional Airport, has daily non-stop flights to Philadelphia, and a FBO for private jets and charters. There is also the Jersey Shore Airport, which only has a grass runway and can only handle light aircraft.

Recreation

There are three Pennsylvania state parks in Lycoming County:

There are parts of two Pennsylvania state forests in Lycoming County:

Communities

right|thumb|300px|Map of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania with Municipal Labels showing Cities and Boroughs (red), Townships (white), and Census-designated places (blue).

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 Lycoming County:

City

Boroughs

Townships

Census-designated places

Census-designated places are geographical areas designated by the U.S. Census Bureau for the purposes of compiling demographic data. They are not actual jurisdictions under Pennsylvania law. Other unincorporated communities, such as villages, may be listed here as well.

Unincorporated communities

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Lycoming County.

† county seat