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Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania

Coordinates: 40°42′N 76°13′W / 40.70°N 76.21°W / 40.70; -76.21
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Schuylkill County
County
St. Nicholas Coal Breaker in Mahanoy City in July 2013
St. Nicholas Coal Breaker in Mahanoy City in July 2013
Official seal of Schuylkill County
Seal
Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Schuylkill County
Location within the U.S. state of Pennsylvania
Map of the United States highlighting Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 40°42′N 76°13′W / 40.7°N 76.21°W / 40.7; -76.21
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
FoundedMarch 1, 1811
Named forSchuylkill River
SeatPottsville
Largest cityPottsville
Area
 • Total
783 sq mi (2,030 km2)
 • Land779 sq mi (2,020 km2)
 • Water4.2 sq mi (11 km2)  0.5%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
143,049
 • Density184/sq mi (71/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Area code570 and 717
Congressional district9th
Websitewww.co.schuylkill.pa.us

Schuylkill County (/ˈskuːlkɪl/,[1] locally /-kəl/; Pennsylvania Dutch: Schulkill Kaundi) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 143,049.[2] The county seat is Pottsville.[3] The county is part of the Northeast Pennsylvania region of the state.[a]

The county is part of the Pottsville micropolitan statistical area, and borders eight counties: Berks and Lebanon counties to its south, Dauphin and Northumberland counties to its west, Columbia and Luzerne counties to its north, and Carbon and Lehigh counties to its east. The county is approximately 47 miles (76 km) west of Allentown, the state's third-largest city, and 97 miles (156 km) northwest of Philadelphia, the state's largest city.

The county was created on March 1, 1811, from parts of Berks and Northampton counties[4] and named for the Schuylkill River, which originates in the county. On March 3, 1818, additional territory in its northeast was added from Columbia and Luzerne counties.[4]

History

[edit]

18th century

[edit]
Further information: Pennsylvania in the American Revolution

The lands that constitute present-day Schuylkill County were acquired by William Penn's proprietors in a treaty executed August 22, 1749, with representatives of the Six Nations and the Delaware, Shamokin, and Shawnee tribes, who received 500 pounds in "lawful money of Pennsylvania". The acquired territory described included all of Schuylkill County except the northern part of Union Township, which was included in the purchase of 1768.[5]

In 1744, an early mill was built in the county by John Finscher, but it later burned down.

In 1754, present-day Schuylkill, Berks, Dauphin, Lebanon, and Lehigh counties were settled by German immigrants. The earliest settlers in southeastern Schuylkill County, which was then part of Northampton County, were primarily Moravian Palatines from the Saxony region of Germany.

In 1755, the first log church was built in the county. Native American massacres were commonplace in Schuylkill County between 1755 and 1765. Warrant for tracts of land in the vicinity of McKeansburg were established as early as 1750.[6]

In 1790, anthracite, a highly efficient form of coal then known as stone coal, was discovered near present-day Pottsville by Necho Allen.[b]

In 1795, a blacksmith based in Schuylkill County known as Whetstone resolved the question of how to use anthracite successfully for blacksmithing purposes. In 1806, additional sources of coal were found as the tailrace was cut on the Schuylkill River. Daniel Berlin, another blacksmith, used it successfully, and blacksmiths in the county and surrounding Coal Region ultimately adopted its use, which represented a core industry, fuel source, and employment sector in the county throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries.[7]

19th century

[edit]
Further information: Pennsylvania in the American Civil War
The Bretz, Kohinoor Mine in Shenandoah in 1884
The 1927 George Luks mural at Necho Allen Hotel in Pottsville pays tribute to the region's 19th and early 20th century coal miners.
Yuengling brewery in Pottsville in March 2007

Schuylkill County was created via an Act of Assembly on March 1, 1811, from portions of Berks and Northampton counties.[8] More land was added to the county in 1818, from Columbia and Luzerne counties.[8] At the time of its creation, the county had a population of about 6,000.[9][6]

Orwigsburg was the first organized community in Schuylkill County. During the county's early years, there was an attempt to make McKeansburg the county seat; Orwigsburg was also a contender. Orwigsburg was selected as the county seat because it was deemed to be better suited for industries.[6] Beginning in 1831, support for moving the county seat to Pottsville began gaining traction. In 1846, the state legislature passed an Act that was approved by Governor Francis R. Shunk on March 13, submitting the question to the voters. The change was desired principally because the railroad and canal connections with Orwigsburg were problematic while Pottsville had facilities and was within easy access from all parts of the county.[9]

In 1812, George Shoemaker and Necho Allen discovered stone coal at Centerville in Schuylkill County, and personally delivered some of it to Philadelphia. He gave away most of the coal, intending to encourage individuals to find ways to use it. Most of the experiments failed, and Shoemaker was nearly run out of town and called an imposter but Mellon and Bishop of Delaware County successfully used it in their rolling mill. When other rolling mills also adopted the use of coal as fuel, a large industrial market and demand developed.[10]

The Schuylkill Navigation Company was chartered in 1815 to build a series of navigation improvements in the Schuylkill River during a period when the much larger Erie Canal along the Mohawk River in New York state had already been developed and was well ahead of other key canals fueling the American Industrial Revolution, including the Delaware and Hudson, the Lehigh, the Chesapeake and Ohio, Delaware and Raritan, and Morris canals. The originators of the project did not count upon the coal trade to promote the success of the undertaking. They looked forward mainly to transporting the agricultural products being produced below the mountains, the lumber of Schuylkill County, and the grain and other products of the counties between the Susquehanna and Schuylkill rivers.

In 1822, in the first shipment of coal on the line, 1,480 tons of coal were transported from present-day Schuylkill County.[11]

With a regular supply of anthracite coal ensured, the southern anthracite coal field in Schuylkill County attracted speculators and fortune hunters. They were inspired by dreams of becoming millionaires. This was the first speculative era of the Schuylkill coal trade. Pottsville became the center of the movement. The more successful explorers revealed numerous veins of coal, extending over a vast stretch of county and with a seemingly inexhaustible quantity of coal. These discoveries brought excitement and speculation; lands were bought and sold; roads were laid out in the forest, mines were opened and railroads projected, and innumerable town plots planned. The demand for houses was so great that the lumber for many was framed in Philadelphia and sent by canal to the burgeoning coal region.[11]

At this stage, coal mining firms were predominantly small and family owned. The residents and entrepreneurs of the Schuylkill region opposed the entry here of incorporated coal companies. In these years, coal mining operations in the Schuylkill region were conducted with economy, and relatively little capital was required. As the workings were all above the water level, no machinery was required for water drainage or for hoisting coal to the surface. Coal breakers and other expensive fixtures and appliances for the preparation of coal had not then been introduced. Numerous operators produced from five to six thousand tons for market annually, which was then considered a respectable business, who had never committed thousands of dollars to their enterprises, including their first land purchases of coal mines. Coal land could be bought and mines opened for less capital than the purchase and stocking of a decent farm, and coal mines could be worked for less capital than that required to establish a line of stagecoaches or transportation wagons.[11]

Railroads ultimately replaced the canals as the primary means of transporting coal to markets. Mining was taken over by major corporate business, especially after the Civil War. As a result, the Middle Coal Field was developed in the 1860s and the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad created a subsidiary, Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company, to buy or lease, and develop the expanding industrial coal trade. Consumption of coal along the Schuylkill above Philadelphia in 1839 was 30,290 tons when Pottsville, the first anthracite furnace in the United States, became operational. By 1849, consumption had increased to 239,290 tons, to 554,774 tons in 1859, and to 1,787,205 tons in 1873.[11]

The numerous jobs in the mining industry comprised a catalyst for mass immigration to Schuylkill County from the British Isles and Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries. As mines became more numerous (by 1846 there were 110 operators in the region and 142 collieries in Schuylkill County) and more complex (in 1846 there were 35 collieries below water level), mechanical breakers, steam locomotive, it became more labor-intensive both for accomplishing mining tasks and supporting mining's peripheral industries. Such industries included manufacturing of explosives, metal screens, pump components, piping, and timber for support. This led to an influx of population into Schuylkill and other anthracite counties to fill these jobs.

Beginning with the Irish immigration in the 1840s, which was fueled by the Great Famine and followed the end of the Civil War, immigrants from Eastern Europe, including Poles, Hungarians, Lithuanians, Slovaks, Rusyns, Ukrainians, and Belarusians (which were usually known as Ruthenians), often from the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, settled in Schuylkill County and labored in the county coal mines. By the 1880s and 1890s, thousands of Italians immigrated to the county in pursuit of mining jobs.

20th century

[edit]
Further information: Kelayres massacre
The Schuylkill Haven Fire Company in May 2012
Orwigsburg in May 2012
The Deer Lake Dam in June 2012

The anthracite mining industry peaked in production in 1917 and subsequently declined with the exception of periods during World War I and World War II. In the 1950s and 1960s, underground mining operations closed in Schuylkill County and throughout the Coal Region and surface mining became predominate.[12]

On November 5, 1934, the eve of the 1934 United States elections, a parade marched through Kelayres in Kline Township.[13] A crowd of Democratic Party supporters walked toward the home of Republican Party leader Joseph Bruno. Frustration with Bruno family's control of the school board and other local offices had been growing for years. Shots were fired from the Bruno home and yard located at Fourth and Centre Streets. Several people were killed and more than 20 marchers were injured.[14]

Year Production Net (Tons) Number of Employees
1950 44,076,703 72,624
1955 26,204,554 33,523
1960 18,817,441 19,051
1965 14,865,955 11,132
2016 1,500,000 952

In 2016, Schuylkill County had six underground mines and 25 surface mines operating, producing 62,000 tons and 833,000 tons of coal, respectively.[15] In 2024, Schuylkill County had four underground mines and 17 surface mines operating, producing 52,000 and 1,624,000 tons of coal, respectively[16] Operators today are re-mining areas of anthracite that were previously mined. It is estimated that 98 percent of the anthracite produced is from existing mines.[17]

Business and industry

[edit]

Farming history

[edit]

Schuylkill County's history is not solely a story about coal mining and railroads. The first settlers were farmers or lumbermen. In the fertile agricultural valleys (not underlain with coal) between the Blue Mountain range in the south to near the Susquehanna River to the north, generations of farming families have helped feed their neighbors in the mines, on the rails, on the canals, and in the towns within and surrounding the county. After settlement of the farms, came a period of diversified, small scale production that lasted until about the late 19th century. After then, more highly mechanized small farms combined livestock and crop production for new, mainly local and regional markets. Then the system re-oriented to add orchard products, trees and plant products and poultry farming.

In 2012, the estimated value of agricultural products in Schuylkill County sold was $165,853,000, ranking 9th in the State and 704th in the US (counties).[18] The county ranks in the top 100 in the US counties for nursery, greenhouse, floriculture, and sod products and cut Christmas trees and short rotation woody crops.[18]

Railroad history

[edit]
Map of East Penn Railroad's rail lines, c. 1907

In the early 19th century, southern Schuylkill County was served by the Union Canal out of Pine Grove Township with connections west, and the Schuylkill Canal southward from Port Carbon to Philadelphia.[19] Coal mined by the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company in the Tamaqua and Coaldale areas was often shipped down the Lehigh Canal from Jim Thorpe in neighboring Carbon County. To the north, mountain and ridges were a natural barrier to navigation.

Other means were required to transport coal out of the rich basin of the Mahanoy Valley. Several railroads were founded in the late 1820s and early 1830s north of the Schuylkill Canal to enable the transport of coal to the canal terminus in Philadelphia and other markets, including:[20]

Mine Hill and Schuylkill Haven, served the Schuylkill Canal. Chartered in 1831, tracks were laid from the flats in Schuylkill Haven along the river through Cressona and Minersville to Tremont. The railroad eventually reached Ashland and Locust Gap via the Gordon Planes.

Construction on the Little Schuylkill Railroad began in 1829. It ran from Port Clinton northward to Mahanoy Junction above Tamaqua. It would become the keystone of the Philadelphia and Reading system, serving as a gauntlet for its eastern and western branches. Connecting with it were four important lines. The 146 miles (235 km) Catawissa Railroad operated from Mahanoy Junction to West Milton, providing access to the Mahanoy region by joining the northern terminus of the Little Schuylkill with connections to New York City, Scranton and also points west.[21] At Port Clinton, it connected with the P&R's main line from Mount Carbon. Its most important connection would be with the Mahanoy and Broad Mountain Railway via Mahanoy Tunnel and East Mahanoy Railroad.

There was once over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of railroad track in Schuylkill County.[citation needed] At one point in the 19th century, the largest railyard and roundhouse in the world was located at Mill Creek between Pottsville and St. Clair.

Renewable energy

[edit]

Since the early 21st century, Schuylkill County has decreased its use of coal power and become a major producer of renewable energy. Twenty-five percent of the county's electrical production currently comes from renewable energy sources.[22] Wind power is the largest producer, accounting for 80% of the renewable energy output, while solar and biomass account for 20%.[22]

The Locust Ridge wind turbines in the north of the county produce enough electricity for 37,500 homes, equivalent to the 48 MW of electricity generated by the Wheelabrator Frackville's waste coal plant.[23][24]

Textile industry history

[edit]

Textile manufacturing evolved as a major industry in the county near the beginning of the 20th Century. Phillips & Jones Co., Now known as Phillips Van Heusen, began in Pottsville, and was once Schuylkill County's largest employer.[25] Another textile giant, John E. Morgan Knitting Mills, began manufacturing in 1945 in Tamaqua, eventually becoming the largest employer in the county in the between 1970 and 1980.[26] In addition there were numerous smaller shops all over the county, doing subcontract work for major manufacturers all over the nation.

In the latter half of the 20th century, the textile industry, which employed significant numbers of women, began to rival the coal mining industry in size, especially after the end of World War II, when that industry began to collapse. As a consequence of the Great Depression, garment manufacturers began to look for people willing to work at lower wages outside of New York City, the center of the industry. Pennsylvania became the third-highest ranked apparel manufacturer in the United States by 1940. Women's clothing became the state's fastest growing product.[27]

The dominance of the industry in Schuylkill County lasted until the last decade of the 20th century,[28] when it was clear that the garment manufacturing industry was leaving Schuylkill County and other regions of the U.S. and moving to foreign countries. By 2011, only six manufacturers employing 341 people remained in the county.[29]

Geography

[edit]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 783 square miles (2,030 km2), of which 779 square miles (2,020 km2) is land and 4.2 square miles (11 km2) (0.5%) is water.[30]

The Schuylkill River headwaters are found in the county, starting in the Appalachian Mountains, and flows through many towns and the city of Reading, Pennsylvania, to Philadelphia where it flows into the Delaware River. The Schuylkill drains the majority of the county while some western and northern areas of the county are drained by the Susquehanna River. The Swatara Creek, Wiconisco Creek, Mahantango Creek, Mahanoy Creek, and Catawissa Creek all start in Schuylkill County and are tributaries of the Susquehanna. Areas of the eastern portion of the county drain into the Lehigh River via the Quakake Creek, Nesquehoning Creek, Mahoning Creek, and Lizard Creek, all of which also start in the county. To the south, southern Schuylkill county is home to Blue Mountain and the Appalachian Trail. Broad Mountain crosses the county from northeast to southwest.

Schuylkill County is located in northeastern Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It is located just north of the Lehigh Valley and Reading metropolitan areas. Portions of eastern Schuylkill County around Tamaqua are located in the Pocono Mountains. As a result, like other portions of the Poconos, eastern Schuylkill has experienced an influx of people from New York City and New Jersey who commute into Manhattan each day. The commute can take up to two hours each way due to distance and traffic. Far western areas of the county are located near Harrisburg and are sometimes considered to be located in South Central Pennsylvania.

Climate

[edit]

The county has a humid continental climate (Dfa/Dfb) with four distinct seasons. The hardiness zone is 6b in most of the county, 7a in lowlands of the south-central and SW areas of the county and upriver to Pottsville and Minersville, and 6a in small higher northern areas. [1] Average monthly temperatures in the vicinity of downtown Pottsville range from 27.3 °F in January to 72.3 °F in July, while in Mahanoy City they range from 24.3 °F in January to 69.3 °F in July.[31]

Adjacent counties

[edit]

Interstates, US Routes, and State Routes

Demographics

[edit]
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
182011,339—
183020,74482.9%
184029,05340.1%
185060,713109.0%
186089,51047.4%
1870116,42830.1%
1880129,97411.6%
1890154,16318.6%
1900172,92712.2%
1910207,89420.2%
1920217,7544.7%
1930235,5058.2%
1940228,331−3.0%
1950200,577−12.2%
1960173,027−13.7%
1970160,089−7.5%
1980160,6300.3%
1990152,585−5.0%
2000150,336−1.5%
2010148,289−1.4%
2020143,049−3.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[32]
1790–1960[33] 1900–1990[34]
1990–2000[35] 2010–2019[36]

2020 census

[edit]
Schuylkill County Racial Composition[37]
Race Num. Perc.
White (NH) 126,192 88.2%
Black or African American (NH) 4,115 3%
Native American (NH) 155 0.11%
Asian (NH) 748 0.52%
Pacific Islander (NH) 13 0.01%
Other/Mixed (NH) 3,762 2.62%
Hispanic or Latino 8,064 5.6%

Micropolitan statistical area

[edit]
See also: List of micropolitan statistical areas

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget[38] has designated Schuylkill County as the Pottsville, PA micropolitan statistical area (μSA).[39] As of the 2010 U.S. Census[40] the micropolitan area ranked the number 1 most populous in the State of Pennsylvania and the 5th most populous in the United States with a population of 148,289.

Law and government

[edit]
Schuylkill County Sheriff's Department
AbbreviationSCSD
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionSchuylkill, Pennsylvania, USA
Map of Schuylkill County Sheriff's Department's jurisdiction
Size778 square miles (2,000 km2)
Population150,336(est.)
Operational structure
HeadquartersPottsville, Pennsylvania
Police Officers12
Elected officer responsible
Agency executive
  • Brian Tobin, Chief Deputy
Website
Schuylkill Sheriff Webpage

The Schuylkill County Sheriff's Department consists of the Sheriff's Office and operates the Central Booking unit. The Sheriff's Office is composed of a Civil and Criminal Division. The Civil Division processes real estate and property paperwork, as well as issue firearms permits. The Criminal Division is responsible for the security of the courthouses, as well as the transportation of prisoners to and from court hearings and to other correctional facilities. The Sheriff's Department is also responsible for detecting and interdicting weapons before they can enter the courthouse and making criminal arrests of persons when weapons are found. The Sheriff's Department provides all facets of security for the County courthouse and makes arrests inside the courthouse for various offenses including possession of weapons and controlled substances as well as the arrest of disorderly persons and other violations of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code Title 18. All Deputy Sheriffs are sworn law enforcement officers who must attend the state Sheriff Academy in State College to be certified as a Deputy Sheriff. The Sheriff Academy is a paramilitary Sheriff academy that consists of 6 months of intense training in all facets of criminal and civil law of Pennsylvania as well as physical training, self defense training, weapons certification and training, as well as tactical training, training in handcuffing and restraint, courtroom and courthouse security, and conducting security assessments of Courthouse and courtroom facilities. Central Booking processes fingerprints and photographs of arrested individuals. When requested by other police agencies, the Sheriff's Department performs patrol duties in various communities within Schuylkill county and provides support to other Police agencies during major incidents, search warrant executions, arrest warrant operations, special events and in various other capacities.

Politics

[edit]
United States presidential election results for Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania[41]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2024 51,665 70.43% 20,882 28.46% 814 1.11%
2020 48,871 69.07% 20,727 29.29% 1,157 1.64%
2016 44,001 69.42% 16,770 26.46% 2,614 4.12%
2012 32,278 55.61% 24,546 42.29% 1,224 2.11%
2008 33,767 53.09% 28,300 44.49% 1,538 2.42%
2004 35,640 54.60% 29,231 44.79% 398 0.61%
2000 29,841 51.19% 26,215 44.97% 2,244 3.85%
1996 22,920 40.47% 24,860 43.90% 8,849 15.63%
1992 25,780 40.90% 23,679 37.57% 13,570 21.53%
1988 32,666 56.47% 24,797 42.87% 379 0.66%
1984 37,330 58.96% 25,758 40.68% 224 0.35%
1980 36,273 55.83% 24,968 38.43% 3,728 5.74%
1976 31,944 47.71% 33,905 50.64% 1,099 1.64%
1972 44,071 61.56% 26,077 36.42% 1,447 2.02%
1968 37,194 48.53% 34,982 45.64% 4,469 5.83%
1964 26,386 34.25% 50,560 65.63% 96 0.12%
1960 44,187 49.82% 44,430 50.10% 70 0.08%
1956 51,670 61.95% 31,645 37.94% 91 0.11%
1952 51,437 59.39% 34,987 40.40% 186 0.21%
1948 44,176 60.11% 28,194 38.36% 1,122 1.53%
1944 40,671 53.00% 35,852 46.72% 221 0.29%
1940 43,505 47.05% 48,739 52.71% 231 0.25%
1936 44,353 43.95% 55,183 54.68% 1,385 1.37%
1932 32,492 46.88% 35,023 50.53% 1,790 2.58%
1928 46,033 53.05% 40,424 46.59% 311 0.36%
1924 34,578 64.44% 10,111 18.84% 8,967 16.71%
1920 30,259 59.46% 18,746 36.84% 1,882 3.70%
1916 17,806 55.03% 13,396 41.40% 1,155 3.57%
1912 3,557 11.09% 11,812 36.83% 16,706 52.08%
1908 18,758 52.57% 15,481 43.39% 1,440 4.04%
1904 21,046 65.10% 10,115 31.29% 1,167 3.61%
1900 15,327 50.73% 14,496 47.98% 392 1.30%
1896 17,045 52.60% 14,745 45.50% 617 1.90%
1892 11,426 44.94% 13,677 53.80% 321 1.26%
1888 12,522 48.20% 13,054 50.25% 404 1.56%
1884 11,272 46.87% 11,200 46.58% 1,575 6.55%
1880 9,337 40.01% 11,511 49.32% 2,491 10.67%

As of November 2008, there were 94,110 registered voters in Schuylkill County.[42]

As of January 2023, there were 88,642 registered voters in Schuylkill County.[43]

While the Republican Party has been historically dominant in Schuylkill County politics, Democrats became dominant at the county level after the 2007 elections. John McCain received 53.6% of the vote to 44.9% for Barack Obama in November 2008. In the state row offices of the same election, each statewide winner carried the county. In 2006 Democrat Tim Seip won the heavily Republican 125th House district and Bob Casey Jr. carried Schuylkill when he unseated incumbent Republican US Senator Rick Santorum. For many years, the county was represented in the United States House of Representatives by conservative Democrat Tim Holden of St. Clair. Former State Representative Dave Argall won the special election of March 3 to succeed the late State Senator Jim Rhoades and was sworn in on March 17. Jerry Knowles won the special election for Argall's seat in the 124th House district on May 19. In 2010, the GOP regained ground when Seip was defeated for reelection by Republican Mike Tobash. In 2011, the GOP reclaimed the county government.

This GOP resurgence has been followed by the subsequent election of Donald Trump in 2016, where he received 69% of the area's popular vote to Hillary Clinton's 26.7%. Trump received the highest percentage of the vote of any Republican presidential candidate in the county's history. He subsequently received 70.6% of the vote in his triumph in 2024, making it the best performance for a Republican in the county in presidential history, and the first Republican presidential candidate to crack 70% of the vote in the county.[44][45]

Pennsylvania House of Representatives[46]

[edit]

Pennsylvania Senate[46]

[edit]

United States House of Representatives

[edit]

United States Senate

[edit]

Education

[edit]
Pottsville Area High School in Pottsville

Colleges and universities

[edit]

Public school districts

[edit]
Map of Schuylkill County public school districts

School districts include:[47]

Communities

[edit]
Map of Schuylkill County with municipal labels showing cities and boroughs (red), townships (white), and census-designated places (blue)
Farming near Klingerstown
Vraj Hindu Temple in Schuylkill Haven

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 Schuylkill County:

City

[edit]

Boroughs

[edit]

Townships

[edit]

Census-designated places

[edit]

Census-designated places are unincorporated communities 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

[edit]

Population ranking

[edit]

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Schuylkill County.[40]

† county seat

Rank City/Town/etc. Municipal type Population (2010 Census)
1 † Pottsville City 14,324
2 Tamaqua Borough 7,107
3 Schuylkill Haven Borough 5,437
4 Shenandoah Borough 5,071
5 Minersville Borough 4,397
6 Mahanoy City Borough 4,162
7 Frackville Borough 3,805
8 Orwigsburg Borough 3,099
9 St. Clair Borough 3,004
10 Ashland (partially in Columbia County) Borough 2,817
11 Lake Wynonah CDP 2,640
12 McAdoo Borough 2,300
13 Coaldale Borough 2,281
14 Pine Grove Borough 2,186
15 Port Carbon Borough 1,889
16 Tremont Borough 1,752
17 Valley View CDP 1,683
18 Cressona Borough 1,651
19 Girardville Borough 1,519
20 Hometown CDP 1,349
21 Tower City Borough 1,346
22 Shenandoah Heights CDP 1,233
23 New Philadelphia Borough 1,085
24 Palo Alto Borough 1,032
25 Tuscarora CDP 980
26 Friedensburg CDP 858
27 Ringtown Borough 818
28 Hegins CDP 812
29 Gilberton Borough 769
30 Gordon Borough 763
31 Lavelle CDP 742
32 Auburn Borough 741
33 Deer Lake Borough 687
34 Ravine CDP 662
35 Marlin CDP 661
36 Altamont CDP 602
37 Renningers CDP 574
38 Park Crest CDP 542
39 Kelayres CDP 533
40 Englewood CDP 532
41 Mechanicsville Borough 457
42 Muir CDP 451
43 Cumbola CDP 443
44 Forestville CDP 435
45 Nuremberg (partially in Luzerne County) CDP 434
46 Reinerton CDP 424
47 Middleport Borough 405
48 Branchdale CDP 388
49 Seltzer CDP 350
50 Delano CDP 342
51 Donaldson CDP 328
52 Port Clinton Borough 326
53 Orwin CDP 314
54 Fountain Springs CDP 278
55 New Ringgold Borough 276
56 Newtown CDP 243
57 Grier City CDP 241
58 Sheppton CDP 239
59 Heckscherville CDP 220
60 Oneida CDP 200
61 Brandonville CDP 197
62 Locustdale (partially in Columbia County) CDP 177
63 Buck Run CDP 176
64 Summit Station CDP 174
65 McKeansburg CDP 163
66 Landingville Borough 159
67 Klingerstown CDP 127
68 Beurys Lake CDP 124
69 Mount Carbon Borough 91

Notable people

[edit]

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Includes Luzerne, Lackawanna, Monroe, Schuylkill, Carbon, Pike, Bradford, Wayne, Susquehanna, Wyoming and Sullivan Counties
  2. ^ In the 1760s, surveyors discovered anthracite coal in the vicinity of Pottsville and Minersville. The survey team was plotting the course of the King's Highway from Reading to Sunbury. http://portcarbonborough.org/history

References

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  1. ^ "Schuylkill River - Definition of Schuylkill River in US English by Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford Dictionaries - English. Archived from the original on September 25, 2017.
  2. ^ "Census - Geography Profile: Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  4. ^ a b The History of Schuylkill County Pa. with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of some of its Prominent Men and Pioneers, New York: W.W. Munsell and Co., 1881, p. 74
  5. ^ DAVIES, JOSEPH H. (CHAIRMAN), ENGLE CHARLES H., YOUNG, ELWOOD M., Area History: A Centennial History - Mahanoy City, (1963), p.9
  6. ^ a b c Old Schuylkill Tales: A History of Interesting Events, Traditions and Ella Zerbey Elliott - Google Books. Books.google.com. Retrieved on August 15, 2013.
  7. ^ Day, Sherman, History of Schuylkill County (1843)
  8. ^ a b The Legislation was signed by Governor Simon Snyder on March 18. See, History of Schuylkill County, Munsell, 1881, p.74
  9. ^ a b Dives, Pomeroy & Stewart, The History of Schulykill County in Honor of the County's Centenary (1911)
  10. ^ Watson, J.F., Annals of Philadelphia, being a collection of memoirs, anecdotes, and incidents of the city and its inhabitants, Philadelphia: Cary and Hart (1830)
  11. ^ a b c d Munsell, W., History of Schuylkill County, New York: Macnamara, 1881
  12. ^ Pennsylvania Abstract, 1975 and Annual Coal Report 2016, USEIA (November 2017)
  13. ^ Hoover, Stephanie (2014). The Kelayres Massacre: Politics and Murder in Pennsylvania's Anthracite Coal Country. History Press.
  14. ^ King of the Mountain: The Bruno Family Story, Bruce Boyd author, 2016, Ingram Press p. 167
  15. ^ Annual Coal Report 2016, USEIA, US Energy Information Administration (November 2017)
  16. ^ Annual Coal Report 2023, USEIA, US Energy Information Administration (November 2024).
  17. ^ Elizabeth Skrapits, Citizens' Voice: "Anthracite mining remains vital in northeast Pa.", Pocono Record, June 12, 2015
  18. ^ a b USDA, Census of Agriculture Schuylkill County Profile (2012)
  19. ^ Munsell, W., History of Schuylkill County, Macnamara, New York (1881), pp. 80-81
  20. ^ Munsell, W., History of Schuylkill County, Macnamara, New York (1881), p. 46
  21. ^ "Tamaqua Railroad Station - History". www.tamaquastation.com.
  22. ^ a b State Maps, US Energy Information Administration
  23. ^ Usalis, John E. (April 15, 2020). "Wind Farms in County Produce Electricity for Thousands of Homes". Republican Herald. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  24. ^ "Wheelabrator Frackville". Wheelabrator Technologies, Inc. 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  25. ^ Pottsville Republican, Business successes wax, wane: Van Heusen heyday recalled in Schuylkill by L.L. Ward, (December 3, 1994)
  26. ^ Lehighton Times-News-Record, Death of an industry giant, Donald R. Serfass (April 26, 2013)
  27. ^ Smith Jr., J. K., Dublin, T., Hardy III, C., & Pencak W. (2011). A diversity of industries. See Explore Pennsylvania History
  28. ^ McGuigan, M. (Producer), & Migliore, M. (Director). (2008). A Shop on every corner: Memories of the garment industry [Motion picture]. United States: Poetic Stage Productions
  29. ^ U.S. Census Bureau. (2011). County Business Patterns (NAICS): United States Manufacturing 1999, 2005, 2011 [Data files]
  30. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  31. ^ "PRISM Climate Group at Oregon State University".
  32. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  33. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  34. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  35. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  36. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
  37. ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania".
  38. ^ "Office of Management and Budget". The White House.
  39. ^ "Businesses that Received Forms in 2012: Pennsylvania - U.S. Census Bureau". Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  40. ^ a b "Decennial Census by Decades". www.census.gov.
  41. ^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org.
  42. ^ Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of State. "November 2008 Voter Registration Statistics". Archived from the original (XLS) on November 26, 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2008.
  43. ^ "Home".
  44. ^ "Pennsylvania 2016 Presidential And State Election Results". NPR.org. November 8, 2016. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
  45. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org.
  46. ^ a b Center, Legislativate Data Processing. "Find Your Legislator". The official website for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
  47. ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Schuylkill County, PA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved December 13, 2024. - Text list
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40°42′N 76°13′W / 40.70°N 76.21°W / 40.70; -76.21

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