| Mercer County, Pennsylvania | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Pennsylvania |
|
 Pennsylvania's location in the U.S. |
|
| Statistics | |
| Founded | March 12, 1800 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Mercer |
| Largest city | Sharon |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
683 sq mi (1,769 km²) 672 sq mi (1,740 km²) 11 sq mi (28 km²), 1.58% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
120,293 179/sq mi (69/km²) |
| Website: www.mcc.co.mercer.pa.us | |
Mercer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 120,293. Its county seat is Mercer[1]; Sharon is its largest city.
Mercer County was part of the Sharon MSA as designated by the U.S. Census Bureau until the 2000 census, when it was appended to the Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA MSA.
Contents |
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 683 square miles (1,768 km²), of which, 672 square miles (1,740 km²) of it is land and 11 square miles (28 km²) of it (1.58%) is water.
Adjacent counties
- Crawford County (north)
- Venango County (east)
- Butler County (southeast)
- Lawrence County (south)
- Mahoning County, Ohio (southwest)
- Trumbull County, Ohio (west)
Demographics
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 120,293 people, 46,712 households, and 32,371 families residing in the county. The population density was 179 people per square mile (69/km²). There were 49,859 housing units at an average density of 74 per square mile (29/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.13% White, 5.25% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.17% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. 0.67% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 24.5% were of German, 12.0% Italian, 10.5% Irish, 9.3% English and 6.8% American ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 46,712 households out of which 29.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.80% were married couples living together, 10.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.70% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.20% 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 2.96.
In the county, the population was spread out with 23.40% under the age of 18, 8.90% from 18 to 24, 26.10% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 18.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.80 males.
Government and politics
As of November 2008, there are 80,917 registered voters in Mercer County [1].
- Democratic: 39,956 (49.38%)
- Republican: 32,103 (39.67%)
- Other Parties: 8,858 (10.95%)
Political bellwether
Mercer County was previously considered a political bellwether for the state of Pennsylvania since its demographics, urban/rural ratio, and party affiliation once closely mirrored the state as a whole. In 2000 Al Gore carried it against George W. Bush. This trend failed to hold true during the most recent 2004 Presidential election and 2008 Presidential election, in which Mercer County voted more conservatively than the rest of the state. In 2004 George W. Bush won Mercer County with 51% of the vote. That year John Kerry won the state as a whole with 51% of the popular vote. In 2008 John McCain won Mercer County by less than 200 votes with John McCain and Barack Obama each receiving roughly 49% of the popular vote. Barack Obama won the state of Pennsylvania as a whole with 55% of the popular vote. Each of the three state row office winners also carried Mercer in 2008.
County commissioners
- Brian Beader, Chairman, Democrat
- Kenneth Ammann, Vice-chairman, Democrat
- John Lechner, Republican
Other county offices
- District Attorney, Robert G. Kochems, Democrat
- Prothonotary, Elizabeth F. Fair, Democrat
- Recorder of Deeds, Rhonda McClelland, Democrat
- Sheriff, William H. Romine, Jr., Democrat
- Treasurer, Virginia Richardson, Republican
State Representative
- Mark Longietti, Democrat, 7th district
- Dick Stevenson, Republican, 8th district
- Michele Brooks, Republican, 17th district
State Senator
- Robert D. Robbins, Republican, 50th district
US Representatives
- Kathy Dahlkemper, Democrat, 3rd district
- Jason Altmire, Democrat, 4th district
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 Mercer County:
Cities
Boroughs
Townships
Education
Higher Education
- Grove City College (Grove City)
- Thiel College (Greenville)
- Pennsylvania State University, Shenango Campus (Sharon)
Career-Based Education
- Business Institute of Pennsylvania, Sharon
- Mercer County Career and Technical Center, Mercer
- Penn State Cosmetology Academy, Hermitage
- Sharon Regional Health System Schools of Nursing and Radiology, Sharon
- Winner Institute of Arts and Sciences, Transfer
Public School Districts
- Commodore Perry School District
- Farrell Area School District
- Greenville Area School District
- Grove City Area School District
- Hermitage School District
- Jamestown Area School District
- Lakeview School District
- Mercer Area School District
- Reynolds School District
- Sharon City School District
- Sharpsville Area School District
- West Middlesex Area School District
Recreation
There is one Pennsylvania state park in Mercer County. Maurice K. Goddard State Park, named for Maurice K. Goddard, former Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, is just off exit 130 of Interstate 79 on Pennsylvania Route 358 near Stoneboro.
References
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=/cffiles/counties/usamap.cfm. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
External links
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