Crawford County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 83,938. Its county seat is Meadville. The county was created on March 12, 1800, from part of Allegheny County and named for Colonel William Crawford. The county is part of the Northwest region of the commonwealth.

Crawford County comprises the Meadville micropolitan statistical area, which is also included in the Erie-Meadville combined statistical area.

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which (2.4%) are covered by water. It has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Dfb) and average monthly temperatures in Meadville range from 24.9 °F in January to 69.5 °F in July, while in Titusville they range from 24.2 °F in January to 68.8 °F in July.

Adjacent counties Erie County (north) Warren County (east) Venango County (southeast) Mercer County (south) Trumbull County, Ohio (southwest) Ashtabula County, Ohio (west)

National protected area Erie National Wildlife Refuge

State protected area Pymatuning State Park is on Pymatuning Reservoir.

Major highways

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition +Crawford County, Pennsylvania – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)87,10184,38187,26384,93077,34798.01%97.93%96.57%95.68%92.15%Black or African American alone (NH)1,0761,0581,4281,5031,4961.21%1.23%1.58%1.69%1.78%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)1151081741501090.13%0.13%0.19%0.17%0.13%Asian alone (NH)1862722543973650.21%0.32%0.28%0.45%0.43%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census221326xx0.02%0.01%0.03%Other race alone (NH)604746272290.07%0.05%0.05%0.03%0.27%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census6429223,125xx0.71%1.04%3.72%Hispanic or Latino (any race)3313035378231,2410.37%0.35%0.59%0.93%1.48%Total88,86986,16990,36688,76583,938 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 83,938. The median age was 44.2 years. 20.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.4 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 92.7% White, 1.8% Black or African American, 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.6% from some other race, and 4.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.5% of the population.

34.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 65.8% lived in rural areas.

There were 33,930 households in the county, of which 25.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 47.8% were married-couple households, 19.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 42,063 housing units, of which 19.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.1% were owner-occupied and 27.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.7% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.8%.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, 90,366 people, 34,678 households, and 23,858 families were residing in the county. The population density was . The 42,416 housing units had an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.00% White, 1.59% African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, and 0.77% from two or more races. About 0.59% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race. About 45.1% were self-described English or Welsh, 10.9% American, 10.3% German, 8.2% Irish, 7.8% Scotch-Irish or Scottish, 3.8% Italian 2.6% Dutch, and 2.3% French by ancestry.

Of the 34,678 households, 30.4% had children under 18 living with them, 55.6% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.2% were not families. About 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the county, the age distribution was 24.7% under 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males.

Micropolitan statistical area The United States Office of Management and Budget has designated Crawford County as the 'Meadville, PA micropolitan statistical area. As of the 2010 census the micropolitan area ranked fifth-most populous in Pennsylvania and the 52nd-most populous in the United States with a population of 88,765. Crawford County is also a part of the Erie-Meadville combined statistical area, which combines the population of both Crawford County and Erie County. The combined statistical area ranked seventh in Pennsylvania and 102nd-most populous in the United States with a population of 369,331.

Government

Voter registration

As of February 6, 2024, there were 49,786 registered voters in Crawford County.

Republican: 29,457 (59.17%) Democratic: 14,454 (29.03%) Independent: 4,039 (8.11%) Third Party: 1,836 (3.69%)

County Commissioners Office Holder Party Commissioner Eric Henry Republican Commissioner Scott T. Schell Republican Commissioner Christopher R. Seeley Democratic

Other County Row Officers Office Holder Party Clerk of Courts Patti Wetherbee Republican County Auditor Kelsey Zimmerman Republican County Auditor Renee Kiser Republican County Auditor Darien Pfaff Democratic County Coroner Eric Coston Republican District Attorney Paula DiGiacomo Republican Prothonotary Emmy Arnett Republican Register & Recorder Beth M. Forbes Republican Sheriff Dave Powers Republican Treasurer Chris Krzysiak Republican

Pennsylvania Senate District Senator Party50 Michele Brooks Republican

Pennsylvania House of Representatives District Representative Party6 Brad Roae Republican17 Parke Wentling Republican65 Kathy Rapp Republican

United States House of Representatives District Representative Party16 Mike Kelly Republican

United States Senate Senator PartyJohn Fetterman DemocratDave McCormick Republican

Education

Colleges and universities Allegheny College, located in Meadville University of Pittsburgh at Titusville, a branch campus of the University of Pittsburgh, located in Titusville

Community, junior, and technical colleges Precision Manufacturing Institute (PMI) Laurel Technical Institute (LTI)

Public school districts School districts are: - Text list

Conneaut School District Corry Area School District Crawford Central School District Jamestown Area School District Penncrest School District Titusville Area School District Union City Area School District

Communities

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

Cities Meadville (county seat) Titusville

Boroughs

Blooming Valley Cambridge Springs Centerville Cochranton Conneaut Lake Conneautville Hydetown Linesville Saegertown Spartansburg Springboro Townville Venango Woodcock

Townships

Athens Beaver Bloomfield Cambridge Conneaut Cussewago East Fairfield East Fallowfield East Mead Fairfield Greenwood Hayfield North Shenango Oil Creek Pine Randolph Richmond Rockdale Rome Sadsbury South Shenango Sparta Spring Steuben Summerhill Summit Troy Union Venango Vernon Wayne West Fallowfield West Mead West Shenango Woodcock

Census-designated places Census-designated places 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.

Adamsville Atlantic Canadohta Lake Conneaut Lakeshore Fredericksburg Geneva Guys Mills Harmonsburg Hartstown Kerrtown Lincolnville Pymatuning Central Pymatuning North Pymatuning South Riceville

Unincorporated communities Buells Corners Custards Frenchtown Rundell

Population ranking The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Crawford County.

† county seat

RankCity/Town/etc.Municipal typePopulation (2010 Census) 1 † Meadville City 13,388 2 Titusville City 5,601 3 Cambridge Springs Borough 2,595 4 Conneaut Lakeshore CDP 2,395 5 Pymatuning Central CDP 2,269 6 Cochranton Borough 1,136 7 Linesville Borough 1,040 8 Saegertown Borough 997 9 Conneautville Borough 774 10 Fredericksburg CDP 733 11 Conneaut Lake Borough 653 12 Hydetown Borough 526 13 Canadohta Lake CDP 516 14 Pymatuning South CDP 479 15 Springboro Borough 477 16 Harmonsburg CDP 401 17 Blooming Valley Borough 337 18 Townville Borough 323 19 Pymatuning North CDP 311 T-20 Spartansburg Borough 305 T-20 Kerrtown CDP 305 21 Venango Borough 239 22 Centerville Borough 218 23 Hartstown CDP 201 24 Woodcock Borough 157 25 Guys Mills CDP 124 26 Geneva CDP 109 27 Lincolnville CDP 96 28 Atlantic CDP 77 29 Riceville CDP 68 30 Adamsville CDP 67

Notable people The abolitionist John Brown lived in Crawford County for 11 years, more than he lived anywhere else. He was the first postmaster of Randolph Township, a position he held from 1828 to 1836, and he carried the mail from Meadville. In 1825 he started the county's first industry, a tannery, today the John Brown Farm, Tannery & Museum. In his barn, an Underground Railroad station, he had a secret, well-ventilated room in which to hide fugitive slaves. One reason he relocated to Crawford County, he said, was that it was a good location for helping them. Robert F. Kent (1911–1982) was born in Meadville and represented Crawford County in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1947 to 1956. He was elected Pennsylvania State Treasurer in 1956 and held this office from January 1957 to January 1961.

See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Crawford County, Pennsylvania

References

External links

Crawford County Official Website Crawford County Website archived as of 2013 Crawford County Historical Society History of Townships in Crawford County, PA Crawford County's Historic Bridges Crawford County Convention and Visitors Bureau