Indiana County is a
county
A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
in the
Commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
of
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 ...
. It is located in the west central part of Pennsylvania. As of the
2020 census, the population was 83,246. Its
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
is
Indiana
Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
.
Indiana County comprises the
Indiana, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the
Pittsburgh-New Castle-Weirton, PA-WV-OH Combined Statistical Area. The county is part of the Southwest region of the commonwealth.
Prior to the
Revolutionary War, some settlers proposed this as part of a larger, separate colony to be known as Vandalia, but opposing interests and the war intervened. Afterward, claims to the territory by both the states of
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
and Pennsylvania had to be reconciled. After this land was assigned to Pennsylvania by the federal government according to the placement of the
Mason–Dixon line
The Mason–Dixon line, sometimes referred to as Mason and Dixon's Line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and West Virginia. It was Surveying, surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason ...
, Indiana County was created on March 30, 1803, from parts of
Westmoreland and
Clearfield counties and was formally organized in 1806.
History
Indiana County (Indiana meaning "land of the Indians") derives its name from the so-called "Indiana Grant of 1768" that the Iroquois Six Nations were forced to make to "suffering traders" under the
Fort Stanwix Treaty of 1768. The Iroquois had controlled much of the Ohio River valley as their hunting grounds since the 17th century, and Anglo-American colonists were moving into the area and wanted to develop it. Traders arranged to force the Iroquois to grant land under the treaty in relations to losses due to
Pontiac's Rebellion.
[Anderson, James Donald, "Vandalia: The First West Virginia?" ''West Virginia History'', Volume 40, No. 4 (Summer 1979), pp. 375-92]
online
/ref>
Some of the grantees joined forces with the Ohio Company
The Ohio Company, formally known as the Ohio Company of Virginia, was a land speculation company organized for the settlement by Virginians of the Ohio Country (approximately the present U.S. state of Ohio) and to trade with the Native Ameri ...
, forming a larger development company based on enlarging their grant of land. They proposed that the entire large area would become a new British colony, possibly to be called Pittsylvania or Vandalia. It was to be bordered on the north and west by the Ohio River
The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...
, and made up of what are now parts of eastern Kentucky, northern West Virginia (then part of the Virginia Colony), and western Pennsylvania. Anglo-European colonists from Virginia and Pennsylvania had already started to move into the area, which was identified by these various names as Indiana and the other above names on some maps of the late 1700s.Mason–Dixon line
The Mason–Dixon line, sometimes referred to as Mason and Dixon's Line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and West Virginia. It was Surveying, surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason ...
, the federal government assigned the Indiana Grant to Pennsylvania.[David W. Miller. ''The Taking of American Indian Lands in the Southeast: A History of Territorial Cessions and Forced Relocations, 1607-1840.'' McFarland, 2011. p. 41. ] As population increased after the war, this county was made up in 1803 of territory from Westmoreland and Clearfield counties; it was formally organized in 1806.Baptists
Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...
.abolitionist
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world.
The first country to fully outlaw slavery was Kingdom of France, France in 1315, but it was later used ...
leader James Moorhead published several anti-slavery newspapers. The first of these was ''The Clarion of Freedom'', founded in 1843. Moorhead eventually sold the ''Clarion'' and founded a new anti-slavery paper, the ''Indiana Independent,'' which he published until his death in 1857. The ''Independent'' was published by his son J. W. Moorhead after his death. Blairsville was home to another abolitionist newspaper, ''The Appalachian'', which was pro- Free Soil from 1848. Some of the nearby anti-slavery families like the Mitchells and Van Leers, became conductors or contributors in 1958. In a letter to abolitionist Theodore Parker, a local geologist Peter Lesley stated there we over 3,000 men helping the railroad in the area.
Indiana County was an active hub of the Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an organized network of secret routes and safe houses used by freedom seekers to escape to the abolitionist Northern United States and Eastern Canada. Enslaved Africans and African Americans escaped from slavery ...
.Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television station, television and radio broadcasting, ra ...
. Indiana County is served by three different area code
A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, rea ...
s: 724, 814, and 582.
The county proclaims itself the "Christmas Tree
A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen pinophyta, conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, associated with the celebration of Christmas. It may also consist of an artificial tree of similar appearance.
The custom was deve ...
Capital of the World", shipping over one million trees annually.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.9%) is water.humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
(''Dfb''), except along the Conemaugh, from below Strangford and the Kiskiminetas River, where it is (''Dfa''). Average monthly temperatures in the borough of Indiana range from 27.2 °F in January to 70.9 °F in July. Indiana County is one of the 423 counties served by the Appalachian Regional Commission
The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a United States federal–state partnership that works with the people of Appalachia to create opportunities for self-sustaining economic development and improved quality of life. Congress established A ...
,
Adjacent counties
* Jefferson County (north)
* Clearfield County (northeast)
* Cambria County (southeast)
* Westmoreland County (south)
* Armstrong County (west)
Major highways
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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 ...
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 ...
, 1.57% Black
Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
or 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 ...
, 0.08% Native American, 0.74% Asian, 0.01% 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 ...
, 0.16% from other races, and 0.58% from two or more races. 0.51% of the population were 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. 25.9% were of German, 11.6% Italian, 10.7% Irish, 8.6% American, 7.1% English and 6.8% Polish ancestry.
There were 34,123 households, out of which 27.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.30% 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, 8.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.00% were non-families. 26.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.10% under the age of 18, 16.60% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 22.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.60 males.
2020 census
Micropolitan Statistical Area
The United States Office of Management and Budget
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). The office's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, while it also examines agency pro ...
has designated Indiana County as the Indiana, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area (μSA). As of the 2010 United States censusBeaver
Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...
, Butler, Fayette, Lawrence, Washington and Westmoreland county areas in Pennsylvania. In West Virginia
West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...
the counties included are Brooke and Hancock. And in 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 ...
, Jefferson County. The Combined Statistical Area ranked 4th in the State of Pennsylvania and 20th most populous in the United States with a population of 2,660,727.
Government and politics
Indiana County has been strongly Republican in presidential elections for most of its history, only backing Democratic party candidates four times in presidential elections from 1880 to the present day.
As of February 5, 2024, there were 48,654 registered voters across Indiana County's 69 precincts: 27,290 Republicans (56.09%); 15,193 Democrats (31.23%), 4,334 Independents (8.91%) and 1,837 from other parties (3.77%).
County commissioners
*Michael Keith, chairman, Republican
*Robin Gorman, Republican
*Sherene Hess, Democrat
Other county offices
*Coroner, Jerry L Overman Jr, Republican
*District Attorney, Robert Manzi, Republican
*Prothonotary, Randy Degenkolb, Republican
*Recorder of Deeds and Register of Wills, Maria Jack, Republican
*Sheriff, Robert Fyock, Republican
*Treasurer, Kimberly McCullough, Republican
*Board of Auditors, Donna Cupp, Republican; Bonni S. Dunlap, Ph.D., Republican; James P. Smith Jr., Democrat
State representatives
Source:
State senator
* Joe Pittman, Republican, 41st district
United States representative
* Glenn Thompson, Republican, 15th district
* Guy Reschenthaler, Republican, 14th district
United States senators
* Dave McCormick
David Harold McCormick (born August 17, 1965) is an American politician, businessman, and former United States Army, Army officer serving since 2025 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senato ...
, Republican
* John Fetterman, Democrat
Education
Public school districts
School districts include:[ ]
Text list
/ref>
* Armstrong School District (part)
* Apollo-Ridge School District (part)
* Harmony Area School District (part)
* Homer-Center School District
* Indiana Area School District
* Marion Center Area School District
* Penns Manor Area School District
* Punxsutawney Area School District (part)
* Purchase Line School District (part)
* River Valley School District ''formerly Blairsville-Saltsburg School District''
* United School District
Post-secondary education
* Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) is a Public university, public research university in Indiana, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and Carnegie Classification o ...
– Indiana
* Westmoreland County Community College – Indiana
Environment
In 2003, the county was recommended for non-attainment under EPA ozone
Ozone () (or trioxygen) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic molecule with the chemical formula . It is a pale blue gas with a distinctively pungent smell. It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less stable than the diatomic allotrope , break ...
standards based upon mobile source contribution to smog
Smog, or smoke fog, is a type of intense air pollution. The word "smog" was coined in the early 20th century, and is a portmanteau of the words ''smoke'' and ''fog'' to refer to smoky fog due to its opacity, and odour. The word was then inte ...
-forming emissions.power plant
A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electr ...
. In 2002 the plant was ranked as second in emissions in the Toxics Release Inventory
The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) is a publicly available database containing information on toxic chemical releases and other waste management activities in the United States.
Summary of requirements
The database is available from the United ...
(TRI) in Pennsylvania.sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless gas with a pungent smell that is responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is r ...
and carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...
, ranking 4th and 28th, respectively, in the nation.
Communities
Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
, boroughs
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
...
, townships, and, in at most two cases, towns
A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city.
The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
. The following boroughs and townships are located in Indiana County:
Boroughs
* Armagh
Armagh ( ; , , " Macha's height") is a city and the county town of County Armagh, in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Primates of All ...
* Blairsville
* Cherry Tree
* Clymer
* Creekside
* Ernest
Ernest is a given name derived from the Germanic languages, Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious", often shortened to Ernie.
Notable people and fictional characters with the name include:
People
*Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), ...
* Glen Campbell
Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...
* Homer City
* Indiana
Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
(county seat)
* Marion Center
* Plumville
* Saltsburg
* Shelocta
* Smicksburg
Townships
* Armstrong
* Banks
* Black Lick
* Brush Valley
* Buffington
* Burrell
* Canoe
A canoe is a lightweight, narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles.
In British English, the term ' ...
* Center
* Cherryhill
* Conemaugh
* East Mahoning
* East Wheatfield
* Grant
* Green
Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...
* Montgomery
* North Mahoning
* Pine
A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae.
''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...
* Rayne
* South Mahoning
* Washington
* West Mahoning
* West Wheatfield
* 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 ...
* Young
Census-designated places
Census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
s 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.
* Alverda
* Black Lick
* Chevy Chase Heights
* Commodore
* Coral
Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...
* Dicksonville
* Graceton
* Heilwood
* Jacksonville
Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
* Lucerne Mines
* Robinson
* Rossiter
Unincorporated communities
* Arcadia
* Clarksburg
* Covode
* Dilltown
* Dixonville
* Gipsy
* Home
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...
* Iselin
* Jewtown
* Locust
Locusts (derived from the Latin ''locusta'', locust or lobster) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstances they b ...
* Loop
* Mentcle
* Nolo
* Rexis
* Rochester Mills
* Starford
* Strongstown
* Wehrum
* West Lebanon
Population ranking
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Indiana County.
Notable people
* Edward Abbey
Edward Paul Abbey (January 29, 1927 – March 14, 1989) was an American author and essayist noted for his advocacy of environmental issues, criticism of public land policies, and anarchist political views. His best-known works include the nov ...
, environmentalist and author
* Henry Homer "Doc" Gessler, professional baseball player and manager; born and died in Indiana Borough.
* James H. Brady, Governor of Idaho 1909–11, U.S. Senator 1913–18, born in Indiana County
* John Buccigross, ESPN anchor, former co-host of NHL 2Night
''NHL 2Night'' is a former news magazine that used to broadcast highlights of National Hockey League games and stories about the league up to five nights a week on ESPN and ESPN2. It was usually broadcast live at 10:00 PM ET or immediately fol ...
* Samuel Kier, "Grandfather of the American Oil Industry"
* Mary D. Lowman, one of first women mayors in Kansas
Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
; county native
* Ben McAdoo, former head coach, New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
* Jim Nance, football player, running back for Syracuse University
Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...
and professionally with New England/Boston Patriots
* James Stewart
James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...
, iconic actor, born in Indiana Borough
See also
* Indiana County Transit Authority
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Indiana County, Pennsylvania
References
External links
*
The Indiana County Tourist Bureau
The Historical & Genealogical Society of Indiana County
{{Coord, 40.65, -79.09, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-PA_source:UScensus1990
Pittsburgh metropolitan area
1806 establishments in Pennsylvania
Populated places established in 1806