Formed from, successively,Lancaster,Cumberland, andBedford counties, Westmoreland County was founded on February 26, 1773, and was the first county in the colony of Pennsylvania whose entire territorial boundary was located west of theAllegheny Mountains. The county originally included the present-day counties ofFayette,Washington,Greene, and parts ofBeaver,Allegheny,Indiana, andArmstrong counties.
On December 20, 1785, Joseph Ross of Westmoreland County was sentenced to death for the crime ofsodomy. This is the only known execution for sodomy to take place in Pennsylvania’s history.[4]
Westmoreland has ahumid continental climate (Dfa/Dfb). Average monthly temperatures in Greensburg range from 28.7 °F in January to 71.8 °F in July, while in Murrysville they range from 29.4 °F in January to 73.1 °F in July, in Latrobe they range from 28.9 °F in January to 72.0 °F in July, and in Ligonier they range from 28.1 °F in January to 71.1 °F in July.[8]
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 354,663. The median age was 47.6 years. 18.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 23.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.0 males age 18 and over.[15]
73.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 26.5% lived in rural areas.[17]
There were 152,833 households in the county, of which 23.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.3% were married-couple households, 18.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 26.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[15]
There were 167,776 housing units, of which 8.9% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 76.6% were owner-occupied and 23.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.3%.[15]
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
At the2010 census,[21] there were 365,169 people, 153,650 households and 101,928 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 355.4 people per square mile (137.2 people/km2). There were 168,199 housing units at an average density of 163.7 units per square mile (63.2/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.3%White, 2.3%Black orAfrican American, 0.1%Native American, 0.7%Asian, 0.03%Pacific Islander, 0.2% fromother races, and 1.2% from two or more races. 0.9% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
There were 153,650 households, of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.2% weremarried couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.7% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32, and the average family size was 2.86.
22.3% of the population were under 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 22.4% from 25 to 44, 31.3% from 45 to 64, and 18.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.3 males.
The Democratic Party historically dominated county-level politics between theNew Deal realignment and the turn of the century; however, Westmoreland has trended Republican at the national and statewide levels in the 21st century (in direct lockstep with most otherAppalachian counties).
In 2000, Republican George W. Bush became the first Republican to carry the county since 1972. Republicans have won the county in every election since, increasing the margin of victory in every successive election until 2020. Democratic GovernorEd Rendell lost Westmoreland in 2002 and 2006. In 2004 RepublicanBob Regola flipped the39th Senate district by beating out incumbentAllen Kukovich. Then in 2008, RepublicanTim Krieger picked up the57th House district left open by the retirement of Democratic state representative Tom Tangretti.Kim Ward also held39th Senate district for the GOP the seatBob Regola flipped four years earlier.
In 2010, bothPat Toomey andTom Corbett won Westmoreland in their statewide bids. Also, the GOP gained control of two more State House districts, the54th withEli Evankovich and the56th withGeorge Dunbar. In 2011, the Republican Party swept all county row offices.[23] A Democratic resurgence in 2015 gave that party a majority of the county commissioners. However, in the 2019 elections, Democratic elected officials lost that majority and carried only one row office. In 2020 the County Sheriff who was the lone Democrat who won a row office in 2019 switched party affiliations from Democratic to Republican. In 2021 Republicans carried all of the row offices including defeating the incumbent District Attorney and County Coroner, following the 2021 election the minority County Commissioner was the only Democrat to hold Countywide office. In 2023 Republicans retained their majority on the Board of Commissioners and held every row office.
As of2020, the only majority-Democratic cities within the county areArnold andMonessen.[24] That being said, local Democrats running statewide sometimes win additional cities and boroughs. For example, in the 2022 Gubernatorial race, the cities of Greensburg, New Kensington, Latrobe, and Jeannette all voted for Democrat Josh Shapiro over RepublicanDoug Mastriano despite voting Republican in the 2020 Presidential election.[25]
United States presidential election results for Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania[26]
Westmoreland County is administered by a three-member publicly elected commission. Each commissioner serves in four-year terms. Elections occur in the odd-numbered years that precede U.S. presidential elections. All three Commissioners are chosen in the same election, and voters may vote for no more than two candidates. By state law, the commission must have a minority party guaranteeing a political split on the commission. The Commissioners are responsible for the management of the fiscal and administrative functions of the county.
Coal mining became a major industry in the county after the Civil War, followed by the expansion of iron, steel, and glass manufacturing. The 600-acre coke works for theIsabella Furnace were built inCokeville (then Coketown) in the Spring of 1872.[33][34] At one point, company "coal patches" (towns built for miners) represented about one-third of the county's settlements.[35] Amajor strike by coal miners represented by the United Mine Workers of America took place in 1910–1911. Sixteen people were killed in the strike.[36]
In 2020, the top industries in the county were health care and social services (16.3% of jobs), manufacturing (13.8%), and retail trade (13.7%).[37] Mining comprised less than 1% of the jobs in the county. Westmoreland County is now believed to be the site of over 100 abandoned mines.[38][39]
Volkswagen's Westmoreland plant nearNew Stanton in Westmoreland County was the first foreign-owned factory mass-producing automobiles in the U.S. It operated from 1978 to 1988.
Map of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania with Municipal Labels showing cities and boroughs (red), Townships (white), and Census-designated places (blue).
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 Westmoreland 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. Otherunincorporated communities, such as villages, may also be listed here.
^Baer, Christopher T. (May 2016)."PRR Chronology 1872"(PDF).Pennsylvania Railroad Historical and Technical Society.Archived(PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. RetrievedJuly 23, 2022.
