Forest County, Pennsylvania

Forest County is a county located in Western Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 7,716,[1] making it the third-least populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Tionesta.[2] The county was created in 1848 and later organized in 1857.[3]

Forest County
U.S. county
Forest County Courthouse, Tionesta
Location within the U.S. state of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°31′N 79°14′W
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
FoundedSeptember 1, 1857
SeatTionesta
Largest communityMarienville
Area
 • Total430 sq mi (1,100 km2)
 • Land427 sq mi (1,110 km2)
 • Water3.3 sq mi (9 km2)  0.8%%
Population
 • Estimate 
(2018)
7,279
 • Density17/sq mi (7/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district15th
Websitewww.co.forest.pa.us

History

Forest County was created on April 11, 1848, from part of Jefferson County. The county was enlarged on October 31, 1866, when part of Venango County was incorporated into the county. Forest County was named for the forests contained within its limits.[4]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 430 square miles (1,100 km2), of which 427 square miles (1,110 km2) is land and 3.3 square miles (8.5 km2) (0.8%) is water.[5] It has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Dfb) and average monthly temperatures in Tionesta range from 25.3 °F in January to 69.8 °F in July.

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Part of Allegheny National Forest covers Forest County.

State protected area

Part of Cook Forest State Park is in Forest County.

Major highways

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.%±
1860898—
18704,010346.5%
18804,3859.4%
18908,48293.4%
190011,03930.1%
19109,435−14.5%
19207,477−20.8%
19305,180−30.7%
19405,79111.8%
19504,944−14.6%
19604,485−9.3%
19704,9269.8%
19805,0723.0%
19904,802−5.3%
20004,9463.0%
20107,71656.0%
2018 (est.)7,279[6]−5.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]
1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9]
1990-2000[10] 2010-2017[1]

As of the census[11] of 2000, there were 4,946 people, 2,000 households, and 1,328 families residing in the county. The population density was 12 people per square mile (4/km2). There were 8,701 housing units at an average density of 20 per square mile (8/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.94% White, 2.22% Black or African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.69% from other races, and 0.61% from two or more races. 1.21% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 40.5% English or Welsh, 14.4% were of German, 10.1% Irish, 12.5% American, 10.1% Irish, 6.8% Scotch-Irish, 2.4% Dutch, and 2.2% French ancestry.

There were 2,000 households, out of which 23.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.70% were married couples living together, 6.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.60% were non-families. 29.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.81.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.70% under the age of 18, 5.90% from 18 to 24, 22.60% from 25 to 44, 28.90% from 45 to 64, and 19.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 111.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.30 males.

Birth rate

Forest County's live birth rate was 52 births in 1990. The county's live birth rate in 2000 declined to 40 births, while in 2011 it had declined again to 39 babies.[12] Over the past 50 years (1960 to 2010), rural Pennsylvania saw a steady decline in both the number and proportion of residents under 18 years old. In 1960, 1.06 million rural residents, or 35 percent of the rural population, were children.

County poverty demographics

According to research by The Center for Rural Pennsylvania, which is a legislative Agency of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the poverty rate for Forest County was 21.9% in 2014.[13] The statewide poverty rate was 13.6% in 2014. The 2012 childhood poverty rate at Forest Area School District was 57.8% living at 185% or below than the Federal Poverty Level.[14]

Teen Pregnancy rate

Forest County reported no babies born to teens (ages 15–19) in 2011. In 2015, the number of teen births in Forest County was 16.[15]

Law and government
Presidential elections results
Presidential elections results[16]
Year Republican Democratic Third parties
2020 71.1% 1,882 27.5% 728 1.4% 36
2016 69.6% 1,683 25.9% 626 4.6% 110
2012 59.5% 1,383 38.6% 896 1.9% 45
2008 55.4% 1,366 42.1% 1,038 2.6% 64
2004 61.1% 1,571 38.4% 989 0.5% 13
2000 60.1% 1,371 36.9% 843 3.0% 69
1996 41.0% 902 43.8% 964 15.2% 335
1992 37.4% 801 41.5% 890 21.1% 453
1988 56.1% 1,159 43.3% 895 0.5% 11
1984 63.4% 1,468 36.2% 839 0.4% 10
1980 56.1% 1,206 38.1% 819 5.8% 124
1976 51.9% 1,135 46.5% 1,017 1.6% 35
1972 71.8% 1,374 26.6% 509 1.7% 32
1968 59.4% 1,172 33.9% 669 6.7% 132
1964 41.8% 900 58.0% 1,249 0.2% 5
1960 64.2% 1,497 35.5% 828 0.3% 7
1956 71.1% 1,535 28.8% 622 0.1% 1
1952 69.9% 1,511 29.0% 627 1.1% 23
1948 62.3% 1,209 35.4% 687 2.3% 45
1944 66.0% 1,344 33.0% 673 1.0% 21
1940 66.2% 1,811 33.6% 919 0.2% 6
1936 59.5% 1,757 39.2% 1,157 1.3% 39
1932 63.3% 1,090 33.1% 569 3.6% 62
1928 84.6% 1,707 14.3% 289 1.1% 22
1924 71.2% 1,130 17.6% 280 11.2% 177
1920 56.4% 993 22.1% 389 21.6% 380
1916 47.0% 617 35.3% 463 17.7% 232
1912 15.4% 240 23.9% 373 60.7% 947
1908 60.9% 1,119 27.9% 512 11.2% 206
1904 68.1% 1,328 21.1% 411 10.8% 210
1900 61.3% 1,309 33.4% 714 5.3% 114
1896 57.7% 1,224 38.0% 805 4.3% 91
1892 54.3% 938 38.2% 660 7.5% 129
1888 57.2% 917 38.2% 612 4.6% 73

State Senate[17]

State House of Representatives[17]

United States House of Representatives

United States Senate

Education

The Forest Area School District serves the entire Forest County. The District ranked 421st out of the 493 ranked Pennsylvania school districts in 2015.[18]

Private schools
  • Cornell Abraxas I Arlene Lissner (9th-12th) Marienville

Libraries
  • Marienville Area Library - Marienville
  • Sarah Stewart Bovard Memorial Library - Tionesta

Communities
Map of Forest County, Pennsylvania with Municipal Labels showing Boroughs (red) and Townships (white).

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

Borough

Townships

Census-designated place

Unincorporated communities

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Forest County.[19] The jump in census figures between the 2000 and 2010 census, is due in a large part to the opening of the State Correctional Institution - Forest (SCI - Forest) in October 2004. SCI Forest houses approximately 2,200 inmates at their facility in Marienville, PA.

† county seat

Rank City/Town/etc. Population (2010 Census) Municipal type Incorporated
1 Marienville 3,137 CDP
2 † Tionesta 483 Borough 1805

See also

References
  1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. "Pennsylvania: Individual County Chronologies". Pennsylvania Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2008. Archived from the original on March 25, 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
  4. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 128. Retrieved 2016-10-15.
  5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  6. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  9. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 20, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  10. "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 December 18, 2014. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  11. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  12. Pennsylvania Department of Health, Birth Age County Reports 1990 and 2011, 2011
  13. US Census Bureau (2015). "Poverty Rates by County Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates". Archived from the original on 2015-12-22. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  14. Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (2012). "Student Poverty Concentration 2012". Archived from the original on 2015-12-22. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  15. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (2016). "Pennsylvania Teen Births 2015". Archived from the original on 2017-08-28. Retrieved 2016-05-12.
  16. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Archived from the original on 23 March 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
  17. Center, Legislativate Data Processing. "Find Your Legislator". The official website for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Archived from the original on 2017-05-06. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
  18. Pittsburgh Business Times (April 10, 2015). "Guide to Pennsylvania Schools Statewide School District Ranking 2015". Archived from the original on August 20, 2015. Retrieved December 31, 2015.
  19. "2010 U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2013-02-10.

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