| Northumberland County, Pennsylvania | |
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| Map | |
 Location in the state of Pennsylvania |
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 Pennsylvania's location in the U.S. |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | March 21, 1772 |
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| Seat | Sunbury |
| Largest city | Sunbury |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
477 sq mi (1,235 km²) 17 sq mi (44 km²), 3.66% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
94,556 205/sq mi (79/km²) |
| Website: www.northumberlandco.org | |
Northumberland 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 is Sunbury[1].
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Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 477 square miles (1,236 km²), of which, 460 square miles (1,191 km²) of it is land and 17 square miles (45 km²) of it (3.66%) is water. By 1813 the area once comprising the sprawling county of Northumberland had been divided over time and allotted to other counties such that lands once occupied by Old Northumberland at its greatest extent are now found in Centre, Columbia, Luzerne, Lycoming, Mifflin, Union, Clearfield, Clinton, Montour, Bradford, Lackawanna, Susquehanna, Wyoming, Tioga, Potter, McKean, Warren, Venango, Snyder, and Schuylkill Counties and the current county is but a fraction of its former size.
Adjacent counties
- Lycoming County (north)
- Montour County (northeast)
- Columbia County (east)
- Schuylkill County (southeast)
- Dauphin County (south)
- Perry County (southwest)
- Juniata County (west)
- Snyder County (west)
- Union County (west)
Demographics
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 94,556 people, 38,835 households, and 25,592 families residing in the county. The population density was 206 people per square mile (79/km²). There were 43,164 housing units at an average density of 94 per square mile (36/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.09% White, 1.52% Black or African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races, and 0.58% from two or more races. 1.10% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 32.5% were of German, 12.9% Polish, 9.9% American, 8.2% Italian, 8.1% Irish and 5.8% Dutch ancestry according to Census 2000. 95.8% spoke English and 1.5% Spanish as their first language.
| Historical populations | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1980 | 100,381 |
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| 1990 | 96,771 | −3.6% | |
| 2000 | 94,556 | −2.3% | |
There were 38,835 households out of which 27.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.40% were married couples living together, 9.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.10% were non-families. 30.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the county, the population was spread out with 21.90% under the age of 18, 7.00% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 24.40% from 45 to 64, and 19.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 96.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.80 males.
Politics and government
As of November 2008, there are 53,983 registered voters in Northumberland County [1].
- Republican: 24,769 (45.88%)
- Democratic: 24,111 (44.66%)
- Other Parties: 5,103 (9.45%)
While county-level politics tend to be competitive, Northumberland is a Republican county in most statewide elections. The margins of victory in the county for the Republican Presidential candidate in 2000, 2004, and 2008 have been 13, 21, and 14 percentage points, respectively. Governor Ed Rendell narrowly carried it against Lynn Swann while Republican Rick Santorum narrowly carried it against Bob Casey in 2006. The only Democratic statewide candidate to carry the county in 2008 was incumbent Auditor General Jack Wagner.
County commissioners
- Frank Sawicki, Chairman, Democrat
- Vinny Clausi, Democrat
- Kurt Masser, Republican
Other county offices
- Clerk of Courts and Prothonotary, Mary Kathleen Strausser, Republican
- Controller, Chuck Erdman, Republican
- District Attorney, Anthony Rosini, Democrat
- Recorder of Deeds and Register of Wills, Suzanne Vastine-Smith, Republican
- Sheriff, Chad A. Reiner, Democrat
- Treasurer, Ronald Chamberlain, Republican
State Representatives
- Robert E. Belfanti Jr., Democrat, 107th district
- Merle Phillips, Republican, 108th district
State Senator
- John Gordner, Republican, 27th district
U.S. Representative
- Chris Carney, Democrat, 10th district
Municipalities
Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, villages, and, in two cases, towns. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Northumberland County:
Cities
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.
Education
Early Child Education
According to the Office of Child Development and Early Learning of the Pennsylvania Department of Education June 2007 report, Northumberland County is rated at a high risk level for children who are “at risk” and therefore might benefit from more taxpayer funded services. Northumberland County was rated 3.14 ARL, in the highest 25% of counties for average risk level. [3]
Public School Districts
- Danville Area School District (also in Montour County)
- Line Mountain School District
- Milton Area School District (also in Union County)
- Mount Carmel Area School District (also in Columbia County)
- Shamokin Area School District
- Shikellamy School District
- Southern Columbia Area School District (also in Columbia County)
- Warrior Run School District (also in Montour and Union Counties)
See also
References
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=/cffiles/counties/usamap.cfm. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ http://www.pde.state.pa.us/early_childhood/site/default.asp?g=0 Early Child Education Program Reach Analysis 2007
External links
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