Conneaut Lake is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

in Crawford County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, located at the southern end of the lake of the same name. The population was 625 at the 2020 census, down from 653 at the 2010 census.

History

The town was founded in 1799 as "Evansburg", named for local farmer Abner Evans, who had opened a successful

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * Factory * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Paper mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * Sugarcane mill * Textile mill * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic ...

, of which several more followed. The town’s population would continue to grow as soon it would be connected to other towns by a

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

and later by railroad. By the 1880’s the town’s economy boomed with the foundation of several important businesses, most notably, the famous tool company

Channellock Channellock is an American company that produces hand tools and automotive accessories. It is best known for its pliers—the company manufactures more than 75 types and sizes of pliers—particularly its eponymous style of tongue-and-groove pl ...

and The Conneaut Lake Ice Company (which was a major supplier of fresh ice for cities and towns around the

northeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—eac ...

). As locals around the area were colloquially referring to the town as the name of the neighboring lake, the town was officially renamed Conneaut in 1892. The same year the famous local park was also opened, and the town became become a major tourist destination in

Western Pennsylvania Western Pennsylvania is a region in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the Unite ...

In 1907 trolley lines were installed that connected the town and park with several other local towns, but by the 1920s these were mostly removed due to the automobile rendering it obsolete. By the 1930’s the rise of

refrigeration Refrigeration is any of various types of cooling of a space, substance, or system to lower and/or maintain its temperature below the ambient one (while the removed heat is ejected to a place of higher temperature).IIR International Dictionary of ...

meant that most towns no longer needed fresh ice to preserve food, and thus saw the closure of the town’s Ice Company. This along and the closure/moving of other companies caused town’s local population to decline (although the population rose once again in the mid 20th century). Today the town serves mainly as a resourt town, home to many shops, restaurants and other amenities.

Geography

Conneaut Lake borough is located southwest of the center of Crawford County at (41.602322, -80.306733). Its northeastern border follows Second Street, which parallels the southwestern shore of Conneaut Lake, the largest natural lake in Pennsylvania. The entire borough is surrounded by Sadsbury Township, a separate municipality. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the borough has a total area of , all land. U.S. routes 6 and 322 pass through the borough, leading east together to Meadville, the Crawford County seat. US 6 leads northwest to Linesville at the northeast end of Pymatuning Reservoir and to the

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

border, while US 322 leads southwest to Jamestown at the southern end of Pymatuning Reservoir and to the Ohio border. Conneaut Lake Park, the local amusement resort which opened over 130 years ago, is located north of the borough, near the northwestern end of the lake.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 708 people, 331 households, and 187 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 370 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 97.18%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.14%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.14% Native American, 1.98% Asian, 0.14%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, and 0.42% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.42% of the population. There were 331 households, out of which 22.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.7% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.5% were non-families. 35.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.80. In the borough the population was spread out, with 20.3% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.1 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $34,306, and the median income for a family was $42,375. Males had a median income of $35,000 versus $21,417 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the borough was $18,486. About 5.5% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

Conneaut Lake Area Business Association
{{authority control Populated places established in 1796 Boroughs in Crawford County, Pennsylvania 1796 establishments in Pennsylvania