About 130 miles (210 km) northwest ofPhiladelphia and 165 miles (270 km) east-northeast ofPittsburgh, Lycoming is Pennsylvania's largest county by land area.
Lycoming County was originally named Jefferson County in honor ofThomas Jefferson. This name proved to be unsatisfactory. The name change went through several steps. First a change to Lycoming County was rejected, next the name Susquehanna County was struck down as was Muncy County, before the legislature revisited and settled on Lycoming County forLycoming Creek, the stream that was the center of thepre-Revolutionary border dispute.
1786: The first church built in the county was LycomingPresbyterian church in what was known as Jaysburg and is now the Newberry section of Williamsport.[4]
1795: The first elections for Lycoming County government are held soon after the county was formed fromNorthumberland County. The elected officers were Samuel Stewart, countysheriff and the firstcounty commissioners were John Hanna, Thomas Forster and James Crawford. Andrew Gregg was elected to represent Lycoming County in theUnited States Congress, William Hepburn was voted to thePennsylvania State Senate and Flavel Roan, Hugh White and Robert Martin served as representatives in thePennsylvania General Assembly.[4]
1823: The county government funded the construction of the first bridges overLoyalsock and Lycoming Creeks.[4]
1839: The firstrailroad is built. It connected Williamsport with Ralston in northern Lycoming County. The railroad followedLycoming Creek.[4]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,244 square miles (3,220 km2), of which 1,229 square miles (3,180 km2) is land and 15 square miles (39 km2) (1.2%) is water.[5] Lycoming County is the largest county in Pennsylvania by land area and second-largest by total area; it is larger than the state ofRhode Island. The county has ahumid continental climate which is warm-summer (Dfb) except in lower areas near the river which are hot-summer (Dfa). Average monthly temperatures in downtown Williamsport average from 26.5 °F in January to 72.4 °F in July, while in Trout Run they average from 25.5 °F in January to 71.2 °F in July.[6]
The West Branch of the Susquehanna enters Lycoming County from Clinton County just west of theborough ofJersey Shore, which is on the northwest bank of the river. The river then flows generally east and a little north with some large curves for 15 miles (24 kilometres) to the city of Williamsport, followed by the borough ofMontoursville (both on the north bank) as well as the boroughs ofDuboistown andSouth Williamsport (on the south bank).
The river flows just north ofBald Eagle Mountain (one of the northernmost ridges of theRidge-and-valley Appalachians) through much of its course in Lycoming County, but it passes the end of the mountain and turns south just before the borough ofMuncy (on the east bank). It continues south past the borough ofMontgomery and leaves Lycoming County, where it forms the border between Union and Northumberland Counties. From there the West Branch merges with the North BranchSusquehanna River atNorthumberland, Pennsylvania, and then flows south to theChesapeake Bay.
The major creeks of Lycoming County are all tributaries of the West Branch Susquehanna River. On the north orleft bank of the river they are (from west to east):Pine Creek (and its tributary Little Pine Creek) which the river receives just west of Jersey Shore;Larrys Creek, which the river receives about 7 km (4.3 mi) south ofSalladasburg;Lycoming Creek which the river receives in western Williamsport;Loyalsock Creek which the river receives between Williamsport and Montoursville; andMuncy Creek (and its tributary Little Muncy Creek), which the river receives just north of Muncy. Loyalsock and Muncy Creeks are also the majorwatersheds ofSullivan County.
Finally there isWhite Deer Hole Creek, the only major creek in Lycoming County on the right bank (i.e. south and west) of the river. It is south of Bald Eagle Mountain, and flows from west to east. The river receives it at the village of Allenwood inGregg Township in Union County. Other creeks found on the right bank (south and west) of the West Branch Susquehanna River in Lycoming County are relatively minor, including Antes Creek in the Nippenose valley (inLimestone andNippenose Townships), Mosquito Creek (atDuboistown), Hagermans Run (atSouth Williamsport), and Black Hole Creek (atMontgomery).
The entire county is in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The percent of the county drained by each creek's watershed is as follows: Pine Creek, 15.27%; Little Pine Creek, 11.25% (if these two are considered together, 26.52%); Larry's Creek, 7.17%; Lycoming Creek, 17.80%; Loyalsock Creek, 13.23%; Muncy Creek, 4.82%; Little Muncy Creek, 5.86% (if these two are considered together, 10.68%); and White Deer Hole Creek, 4.40%.[7] Minor creeks account for the rest.
As of thecensus[14] of 2000, there were 120,044 people, 47,003 households, and 31,680 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 97 people per square mile (37 people/km2). There were 52,464 housing units at an average density of 42 units per square mile (16/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 93.9%White, 4.3%Black orAfrican American, 0.2%Native American, 0.4%Asian, <0.1%Pacific Islander, 0.3% fromother races, and 0.9% from two or more races. 0.7% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race. 38.5% were ofGerman, 11.7%American, 9.0%Irish, 7.4%Italian and 7.3%English ancestry.
There were 47,003 households, out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.1% weremarried couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.6% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.80 males.
There are only two public use airports in the county. TheWilliamsport Regional Airport has commercial flights to Washington D.C.,[23] and a FBO for private jets and charters. There is also theJersey Shore Airport, which only has a grass runway and can only handle light aircraft.
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 Lycoming County:
Census-designated places are geographical areas designated by theU.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.
