Tioga County, Pennsylvania

History

The county was colonized by people of Yankee stock (colonists from New England and the western part of New York who were descended from the English Puritans of colonial New England). With the opening of a rough wagon road to the source of the Tioga River, New England colonists poured over the Allegheny Mountains. Tioga County resembled upstate New York more than it did eastern Pennsylvania, as its population primarily consisted of colonists from New England. Developers and land speculators laid out roads, established post routes, erected public buildings, and invited people to move there. The original colonists were entirely of New England origins or were Yankees from upstate New York, whose families had recent ancestors in New England, with colonization taking place in the aftermath of the Revolutionary War. Tioga County was largely culturally contiguous with New England culture, which was influential across the Northern Tier of the United States through its migrants.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the county received immigrants from Ireland, Germany and eastern Europe, who came to work in the coal mines. A number of them were Roman Catholic, introducing more diversity into the mixture of religions here.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1137 sqmi, of which 1134 sqmi is land and 3.2 sqmi (0.3%) is water. It is the fourth-largest county in Pennsylvania by land area and fifth-largest by total area. It has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Dfb) and average monthly temperatures in Wellsboro range from 22.8 °F in January to 68.2 °F in July.

Adjacent counties

• Steuben County, New York (north)
• Chemung County, New York (northeast)
• Bradford County (east)
• Lycoming County (south)
• Potter County (west)

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2017 2010-2020

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 41,045. The median age was 44.7 years, 20.3% of residents were under the age of 18, and 22.7% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.6 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 93.7% White, 0.8% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian,

There were 16,964 households in the county, of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 50.0% were married-couple households, 18.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 21,503 housing units, of which 21.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 73.2% were owner-occupied and 26.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.9%.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 41,373 people, 15,925 households, and 11,195 families residing in the county. The population density was 36 /mi2. There were 19,893 housing units at an average density of 18 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 98.11% White, 0.60% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 0.61% from two or more races. 0.52% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Residents of Tioga County were of 31.9% English, 23.1% German, 10.1% Irish, 6.0% Polish and 5.3% Italian ancestry.

There were 15,925 households, out of which 30.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.80% were married couples living together, 8.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 24.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.70% under the age of 18, 10.60% from 18 to 24, 25.40% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 16.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.80 males.

Politics and government

|} Tioga County is one of the most heavily Republican represented counties in Pennsylvania. This has a long history as Abraham Lincoln reportedly received 78.57% of the county's vote in the 1860 Presidential election. Since Abraham Lincoln the county has voted for the non-Republican presidential candidate only two times. The first was Theodore Roosevelt's 1912 run as a Progressive and the second was Lyndon B. Johnson's landslide in 1964. In 2004, George W. Bush received 12,019 votes (68%) to 5,437 votes (31%) for John Kerry. In 2008 John McCain received 62.7% of the vote. In 2020, despite the state's slight leftward swing, the county swung further right to give Donald Trump the best Republican result since 1956. In 2006, Rick Santorum and Lynn Swann both had significant victories in Tioga County despite their defeats statewide. The last two sitting Board of Commissioners have been all Republican candidates, and Tioga County is the only county in Pennsylvania with all three sitting commissioners being from a single party. This was due to the success of write in campaigns conducted by Roger Bunn in 2011 and Mark Hamilton in 2015.

Elected officials

United States senator

• Dave McCormick (Republican)
• John Fetterman (Democrat)

United States Congress

• Glenn Thompson (Republican) – 15th Pennsylvania Congressional District (Includes all of Tioga County).

Pennsylvania state senator

• Gene Yaw – 23rd District, Pennsylvania State Senate

Pennsylvania state representative

• Clint Owlett (Republican) – 68th District, Pennsylvania House of Representatives

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Departments/Commissioners/Pages/TiogaCountyBoardofCommissioners.aspx County commissioners]

• Roger C. Bunn, chair (Republican)
• Erick J. Coolidge (Republican)
• Mark L. Hamilton, vice-chair (Republican)

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Court_of_Common_Pleas/Pages/CourtOfCommonPleas.aspx Court of Common Pleas judge, 4th Judicial District of Pennsylvania]

• George W. Wheeler (Republican/Democrat)

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Court_of_Common_Pleas/Magisterial_DJ/Pages/MagisterialDJ.aspx Magisterial district judge]

• James E. Carlson – District Court 04-3-02 (Mansfield)
• Robert Repard – District Court 04-3-02 (Wellsboro)
• James Edgecomb – District Court 04-3-01 (Elkland)

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Court_of_Common_Pleas/District%20Attorney/Pages/DistrictAttorney.aspx District attorney]

• Krista Deats (Republican)

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Departments/Register_Recorder/Pages/RegisterofWills_RecorderofDeeds_ClerkofOrphans'Court.aspx Register of wills / recorder of deeds]

• Jane E. Wetherbee (Republican)

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Departments/Prothonotary_Clerk_of_Courts/Pages/Prothonotary.aspx Prothonotary / clerk of courts]

• Marie Seymour (Republican)

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Departments/Register_Recorder/Pages/RegisterofWills_RecorderofDeeds_ClerkofOrphans'Court.aspx County treasurer]

• Kera Hackett (Republican)

[http://www.tiogacountypa.us/Departments/Sheriffs_Office/Pages/SheriffHome.aspx Sheriff]

• Frank Levindoski (Republican)

Coroner

• James Dougherty

Auditors

• Rebecca B. Briggs (Republican)
• Elizabeth T. Craig (Republican)
• Amy Kane Perry (Republican)

Education

Colleges and universities

• Mansfield University in Mansfield is a member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

Public school districts

School districts include:

• Canton Area School District (also in Bradford County and Lycoming County)
• Galeton Area School District (also in Potter County)
• Northern Tioga School District
• Southern Tioga School District (also in Lycoming County)
• Wellsboro Area School District

Private schools

As reported by EdNA, Pennsylvania Department of Education, June 2010.

• Covington Community DCC, Covington
• Irvin Comstock Seventh-Day Adventist School, Wellsboro
• Laurel Youth Services, Blossburg
• Lauries Bright Beginnings CCC, Millerton
• Mansfield Area Nursery School, Mansfield
• Maranatha Mission Learning Community Branch 20, Trout Run
• New Covenant Academy, Mansfield
• Presbyterian Child Development Center, Wellsboro
• Stony Fork Mennonite School, Wellsboro
• Trinity Lutheran School, Wellsboro
• Toddler University, Blossburg
• Toddler University, Trinity
• Wellsboro Montessori Children's Center, Wellsboro
• Wesley Academy, Elkland

Public libraries

• Blossburg Memorial Library
• Elkland Area Community Library
• Green Free Library – Wellsboro
• Knoxville Public Library
• Mansfield Free Public Library
• Potter-Tioga County Lib System
• Westfield Public Library

Transportation

Public transportation is provided by BeST Transit.

Major highways

Recreation

There are three Pennsylvania state parks in Tioga County.

• Hills Creek State Park is several miles north of U.S. Route 6 between Wellsboro and Mansfield in Charleston Township.
• Colton Point State Park and Leonard Harrison State Park are both part of the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon that is carved by Pine Creek.

Communities

Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, in at most two cases, towns. The following boroughs and townships are located in Tioga County:

Boroughs

• Blossburg
• Elkland
• Knoxville
• Lawrenceville
• Liberty
• Mansfield
• Roseville
• Tioga
• Wellsboro (county seat)
• Westfield

Townships

• Bloss
• Brookfield
• Charleston
• Chatham
• Clymer
• Covington
• Deerfield
• Delmar
• Duncan
• Elk
• Farmington
• Gaines
• Hamilton
• Jackson
• Lawrence
• Liberty
• Middlebury
• Morris
• Nelson
• Osceola
• Putnam
• Richmond
• Rutland
• Shippen
• Sullivan
• Tioga
• Union
• Ward
• Westfield

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.

• Arnot
• Millerton

Ghost towns

Tioga County is historically home to several ghost towns for a variety of reasons, chiefly the decline of the lumber and coal industry. Most prominently is Leetonia, a former timber company town. Some small hamlets, such as Mardin and Olde Corner, who relied on Rural Free Delivery for trade met their downfall. Former borough Fall Brook was a site of coal discovered in 1856, and Landrus first was settled to build a sawmill.

Population ranking

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

† county seat

References

References

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