Blair County is a county in the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 122,822. Its county seat is Hollidaysburg. The county was created on February 26, 1846, from parts of Huntingdon and Bedford counties. Blair County comprises the Altoona, PA metropolitan statistical area. It is also part of the Altoona-Huntingdon, PA Combined Statistical Area, which includes Blair and Huntingdon counties.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water.

Features

Brush Mountain Brush Mountain may refer to: United States The USGS Geographical Names Information System lists 35 summits, including: Other countries * Brush Mountain (Alberta) Brush Mountain may refer to: United States The US ...

* Logan Valley *

Morrison Cove Morrisons Cove (also referred to as Morrison Cove or Morrison's Cove), is an eroded anticlinal valley in Blair and Bedford counties of central Pennsylvania, United States, extending from Evitts Mountain near New Enterprise, north to the Frankstow ...

* Tussey Mountain

Adjacent counties

Centre County Centre County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,172. Its county seat is Bellefonte. Centre County comprises the State College, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The lands ...

(north) *

Huntingdon County Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cr ...

(east) * Bedford County (south) * Cambria County (west) *

Clearfield County Clearfield County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 80,562. The county seat is Clearfield, and the largest city is DuBois. The county was created in 1804 and later organized in 1822. C ...

(northwest)

National protected area

* Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site (part)

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Climate

Blair has a warm-summer humid continental climate (''Dfb'').

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 127,089 people and 52,159 households within the county. The population density was 246 people per square mile (95/km²). There were 55,061 housing units at an average density of 105 per square mile (40/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.18% White, 1.68% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.56%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.23% from other races, and 1.22% from two or more races. 0.97% of the population were Hispanic or

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. 40.0% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, 12.2% Irish, 10.7% Italian, 9.9%

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

and 6.0% English ancestry. There were 52,159 households, out of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.60% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 11.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.30% were non-families. 27.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.96. In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.1% under the age of 18, 3.5% from 18 to 19, 5.9% from 20 to 24, 11.1% from 25 to 34, 19.3% from 35 to 49, 21.4% from 50 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. The population was 48.55% male, and 51.45% female.

2020 Census

Law and government

Blair County is a

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

stronghold. In only two elections has the Democrat won the vote of the county, and one other election won by the Progressive Party.

County commissioners

*Bruce Erb, Chair, Republican *Laura Burke, Vice-chair, Democrat *Amy Webster, Secretary, Republican

Other county offices

*Clerk of Courts and Prothonotary, Robin Patton, Republican *Controller, A.C. Stickel, Republican *Coroner, Patricia Ross, Republican *District Attorney, Pete Weeks, Republican *Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds, Mary Ann Bennis, Republican *Sheriff, James Ott, Republican *Treasurer, James Carothers, Republican

Police agencies

*Allegheny Township Police *Altoona City Police *Altoona Area School District Police * Amtrak Police Department *Bellwood Borough Police *Blair County District Attorneys Office *Blair County Parole & Probation Office *Blair County Sheriff's Office *Blair Township Police *Central Pennsylvania Humane Society Police *Duncansville Borough Police *Freedom Township Police *Greenfield Township Police *Hollidaysburg Borough Police *Logan Township Police *Martinsburg Borough Police *Norfolk Southern Railroad Police *North Woodbury Township Police * Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources *

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is an independent state agency responsible for the regulation of all fishing and boating in the state of Pennsylvania within the United States of America. Unlike many U.S. states, Pennsylvania has a separ ...

* Pennsylvania Game Commission *

Pennsylvania State Police The Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) is the state police agency of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, responsible for statewide law enforcement. The Pennsylvania State Police is a full service law enforcement agency which handles both traffic and cr ...

*Pennsylvania State University Altoona Police *Roaring Spring Borough Police *Spring Cove School District Police *Tyrone Borough Police *Tyrone Area School District Police * United States Postal Inspection Service *UPMC Altoona Hospital Police *Van Zandt VA Hospital Police *Williamsburg Borough Police

State Senate

Judy Ward Judith "Judy" Ward is a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate, representing the 30th Senatorial district in Blair County, Pennsylvania. She is registered as Republican. Education and career Ward graduated from Hollidaysburg High School and ...

, Republican,

Pennsylvania's 30th Senatorial District Pennsylvania State Senate District 30 includes all of Blair County, Fulton County, Huntingdon County, Juniata County, and Mifflin County. It is currently represented by Republican Judy Ward Judith "Judy" Ward is a member of the Pennsylvania S ...

State House of Representatives

Louis C. Schmitt Jr. Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewi ...

, Republican, Pennsylvania's 79th Representative District * James Gregory, Republican,

Pennsylvania's 80th Representative District The 80th Pennsylvania House of Representatives District is located in central Pennsylvania and has been represented by James V. Gregory since 2019. District profile The 80th District is located in Blair County and Huntingdon County and includ ...

United States House of Representatives

John Joyce John Joyce or Johnny Joyce may refer to: * John Joyce (New Zealand politician) (1839–1899), New Zealand Member of Parliament (MP) * John Joyce (American politician) (born 1957), United States Representative * John Joye or Joyce, MP * Jack Joyce ...

, Republican, Pennsylvania's 13th congressional district

United States Senate

* Pat Toomey, Republican * Bob Casey,

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Politics

As of November 1, 2021, there are 77,618 registered voters in Blair County. * Republican: 47,140 (60.73%) * Democratic: 20,800 (26.8%) * Independent: 6,530 (8.41%) * Third Party: 3,148 (4.06%)

Education

Colleges and universities

* Penn State Altoona

Community, junior and technical colleges

South Hills School of Business and Technology South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*su ...

* YTI Career Institute * Pennsylvania Highlands Community College

Public school districts

* Altoona Area School District * Bellwood-Antis School District * Claysburg-Kimmel School District (also in Bedford County) * Hollidaysburg Area School District *

Penn Cambria School District Penn Cambria School District is a small, rural, public school district located in Cambria County, Pennsylvania. The district serves the boroughs of Ashville, Cresson, Gallitzin, Lilly, Loretto, Sankertown and Tunnelhill in both Blair Count ...

(also in Cambria County) *

Spring Cove School District The Spring Cove School District is a small rural, public school district in Blair County, Pennsylvania. It serves the boroughs of Roaring Spring and Martinsburg plus the townships of North Woodbury, Huston, Taylor, and Freedom. Spring Cove S ...

* Tyrone Area School District (also in Centre and Huntingdon Counties) * Williamsburg Community School District

Charter schools

Agora Cyber Charter School The agora (; grc, ἀγορά, romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Greek city-states. It is the best representation of a city-state's response to accommodate the social and political order ...

Central Pennsylvania Digital Learning Foundation Charter School Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center (disambiguation), center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa ...

(K-12). Altoona.

Technology school

Greater Altoona Career and Technology Center Greater Altoona Career and Technology Center is a vocational school that serves the area around Blair County, Pennsylvania Blair County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 122,822. Its cou ...

- Altoona

Private schools

*Alternative Education Program - Hollidaysburg *Holy Trinity Middle School - Altoona *Holy Trinity Elementary School - Altoona Campus *Holy Trinity Elementary School - Hollidaysburg Campus *Altoona Hospital School of Nursing *

Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic High School Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic High School is an independent, private, college preparatory high school located in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1922, it is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown. The school's motto is "Goodness, Di ...

- Altoona *Blair County Christian School - Duncansville *Champion Life Christian Academy - Altoona *Cove Lane Parochial School - Martinsburg *Crawford Elementary at Adelphoi Village *Emmanuel Baptist Christian School - Claysburg *Faith Tabernacle School - Altoona *Great Commission Schools - Altoona *Harbor House Center Early Academy - Altoona *Heritage Christian School - Martinsburg *Hollidaysburg Catholic School - Hollidaysburg *Living Water Christian Academy - Williamsburg *Northwestern Human Services Autism School *Penn Mont Academy - Hollidaysburg *Penn Mont at Penn State Altoona *Piney Creek Parochial School - New Enterprise *Shady Grove School - Martinsburg *Shady Pond School - Altoona *St John Evangelist School - Altoona *St Matthew School - Tyrone *St Patrick School - Newry *Sylvan Learning Center - Hollidaysburg *Tender Love for Children - Altoona *The Nehemiah Project - Altoona *Training & Development Tech - Hollidaysburg *White Oak School - Tyrone Data taken from Pennsylvania EdNA - PDE database of public private schools 2012

Libraries

Blair County hosts a system of nine libraries that can be accessed with one library card. Resource sharing exists between the eight libraries. Books from any of the eight system libraries can be placed on hold and delivered to a patron's home library and then returned to any of the eight libraries in the system.
Altoona Area Public Library
- Altoona
Bellwood Antis Public Library
- Bellwood
Blair County Library System
- Altoona
Claysburg Area Public Library
- Claysburg
Hollidaysburg Area Public Library
- Hollidaysburg
Martinsburg Community Library
- Martinsburg
Roaring Spring Community Library
- Roaring Spring
Tyrone-Snyder Twnshp Pub Library
- Tyrone
Williamsburg Public Library
- Williamsburg

Recreation

There is one Pennsylvania state park in Blair County. * Canoe Creek State Park

Communities

Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, in at most two cases,

towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Blair County:

City

* Altoona

Boroughs

* Bellwood *

Duncansville Duncansville is a borough in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Altoona, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Duncansville is one of the communities that comprises the Altoona Urban Area. The population was 1,258 at the 2020 ...

* Hollidaysburg (county seat) * Martinsburg * Newry *

Roaring Spring Roaring Spring is a borough in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,392 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Altoona, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area History Roaring Spring was established around the Big Spri ...

* Tunnelhill (mostly in Cambria County) * Tyrone *

Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...

Townships

* Allegheny * Antis *

Blair Blair is an English-language name of Scottish Gaelic origin. The surname is derived from any of the numerous places in Scotland called ''Blair'', derived from the Scottish Gaelic ''blàr'', meaning "plain", "meadow" or "field", frequently a “ba ...

Catharine Catharine may refer to: * Catharine (given name) In geography: * Catharine, New York * St. Catharine, Missouri * Saint Catharine, Kentucky * Catharine, Illinois * Catharine, Kansas * St. Catharines, Ontario See also *Catherina (and similar spe ...

Frankstown Frankstown Township is a township in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Altoona Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,399 at the 2020 census. The township was named after Stephen Franks, a pioneer citizen. ...

Freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...

Greenfield Greenfield or Greenfields may refer to: Engineering and Business * Greenfield agreement, an employment agreement for a new organisation * Greenfield investment, the investment in a structure in an area where no previous facilities exist * Greenf ...

* Huston * Juniata *

Logan Logan may refer to: Places * Mount Logan (disambiguation) Australia * Logan (Queensland electoral district), an electoral district in the Queensland Legislative Assembly * Logan, Victoria, small locality near St. Arnaud * Logan City, local gover ...

* North Woodbury * Snyder *

Taylor Taylor, Taylors or Taylor's may refer to: People * Taylor (surname) **List of people with surname Taylor * Taylor (given name), including Tayla and Taylah * Taylor sept, a branch of Scottish clan Cameron * Justice Taylor (disambiguation) Plac ...

* Tyrone *

Woodbury Woodbury may refer to: Geography Antarctica *Woodbury Glacier, a glacier on Graham Land, British Antarctic Territory Australia * Woodbury, Tasmania, a locality in Australia England * Woodbury, Bournemouth, an area in Dorset *Woodbury, East Devo ...

Census-designated places

Census-designated places are geographical areas designated by the

for the purposes of compiling demographic data. They are unincorporated communities and not actual jurisdictions under Pennsylvania law. *

Bald Eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

* Beavertown * Blue Knob * Brooks Mill * Canan Station * Canoe Creek * Carson Valley * Charlottsville * Clappertown * Claysburg * Cotton Town * Cove Forge *

Cross Keys Cross Keys or Crosskeys may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Crosskeys, Wales ** Crosskeys railway station ** Crosskeys College, a campus of Coleg Gwent * Crosskeys Bridge, a swing bridge in Lincolnshire, England * The Cross Keys (disambiguatio ...

* Culp * Curryville * Dumb Hundred * East Altoona * East Freedom * East Sharpsburg * Elberta *

Eldorado El Dorado (, ; Spanish for "the golden"), originally ''El Hombre Dorado'' ("The Golden Man") or ''El Rey Dorado'' ("The Golden King"), was the term used by the Spanish in the 16th century to describe a mythical tribal chief (''zipa'') or king o ...

* Fisherville * Foot of Ten * Fort Fetter * Fostoria * Franklin Forge *

* Fredericksburg * Friesville * Ganister * Geeseytown * Gray * Grazierville *

Greenwood Green wood is unseasoned wood. Greenwood or Green wood may also refer to: People * Greenwood (surname) Settlements Australia * Greenwood, Queensland, a locality in the Toowoomba Region * Greenwood, Western Australia, a suburb of Perth C ...

* Henrietta * Homewood at Martinsburg * Ironville * Jugtown * Juniata Gap * Klahr * Lakemont *

Larke Larke is a surname. Notable people with the name include: *Alex Larke (born 1979), British singer *Glenda Larke, Australian writer *Joan Larke (c.1490–1532), English mistress *John Larke (c.1500–1544), English priest *John Short Larke (1840– ...

* Leamersville * Linds Crossing *

Loop Loop or LOOP may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Loop (mobile), a Bulgarian virtual network operator and co-founder of Loop Live * Loop, clothing, a company founded by Carlos Vasquez in the 1990s and worn by Digable Planets * Loop Mobile, an ...

* Martinsburg Junction *

McKee McKee is a surname of Scottish or Irish origin. The surname is derived from the Gaelic ''Mac Aodha'' ("son of ''Aodh''") a patronymic form of an old Gaelic personal name which means "fire". Similar surnames which also are derived from the same Ga ...

* Mill Run * Millerstown * Moores Mill * Nealmont * Newburg * Northwood * Olivia * Ore Hill * Oreminea * Penn Farms *

Pinecroft Pinecroft, also known as the Powel Crosley Jr. Estate is located at 2366 Kipling Avenue in the Mount Airy neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. It is significant both as a Tudor Revival estate designed by Dwight James Baum, and for its associatio ...

* Point View * Puzzletown * Red Hill * Reese * Reightown * Reservoir * Robeson Extension *

Roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusing ...

Royer Royer may refer to: Surnames *Alain de Royer-Dupré, French racehorse trainer *Alphonse Royer, French writer *Augustin Royer, French astronomer *Bentley Royer, a Dominican politician *Casey Royer, American drummer *Charles Royer, former mayor of Se ...

* Shelltown * Shellytown * Sickles Corner * Skelp * Ski Gap * Smith Corner * Spring Drive Mobile Home Park * Sproul * St. Clair * Sunbrook * Sylvan Hills * Tipton * Tyrone Forge * Vail *

Vicksburg Vicksburg most commonly refers to: * Vicksburg, Mississippi, a city in western Mississippi, United States * The Vicksburg Campaign, an American Civil War campaign * The Siege of Vicksburg, an American Civil War battle Vicksburg is also the name of ...

* Wopsononock * Yellow Springs

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Blair County. † ''county seat''

References

External links

Blair County Business and Information DirectoryForever Free: Blair County's Civil WarThe Blair County Historical SocietyBlair County governmentBlair County Chamber of CommerceCatharine TownshipMorrisons Cove Herald
{{coord, 40.47, -78.35, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-PA_source:UScensus1990 1846 establishments in Pennsylvania Counties of Appalachia Populated places established in 1846