Pennsylvania - Fast Facts

Area, 45,333 sq mi (117,412 sq km).  Ranked 33rd among the states. Highest Elevation, Mount Davis, 3,213 ft  (979 m). Pop. (2000) 12,281,054, a 3.4% increase since the 1990 census. Ranked 6th among states in the US. Capital, Harrisburg (Dauphin County) Largest city, Philadelphia. (part of Southeastern Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley) Nickname, Keystone State. (was geographic and financial center of original 13 colonies).  Also known as the Quaker State because of it's original Quaker settlements and the Quaker beliefs of it's original founder, William Penn. Motto, Virtue, Liberty, and Independence. State bird, ruffed grouse. State flower, mountain laurel. State tree, hemlock.

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Pennsylvania's economy ranks 6th in terms of GDP by state. The Pittsburgh and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, situated at opposite ends of the state and dominating the commercial and industrial life of their regions, present startling contrasts in production and culture. 

Agriculture is an important part of Pennsylvania's economy.  Some of the best farmland is concentrated in the fertile counties of the Southeast (specifically Chester and Lancaster counties) and in the Great Appalachian Valley, rich with limestone soils; there the Pennsylvania Dutch farmer built a culture that is identified with the bountiful agrarian life.  Statewide, there are over 58,000 farms, averaging 133 acres per farm, with over 90% family owned. 1 in 7 jobs are agriculture related.

With a growing season ranging from three to seven months, Pennsylvania can produce a wide variety of crops as well as some interesting agricultural specialties. Around the towns of Avondale and Kennett Square in the Southeast many farmers cultivate mushrooms inside sheds where light and temperatures can be controlled. Kennett Square calls itself the "Mushroom Capital of the World" and holds an annual Mushroom Festival.   Mushrooms have become an important crop for the state as a whole. They rank second in economic importance behind greenhouse and nursery items. Other principal agricultural products include dairy products, cattle, hay, corn, wheat, oats, poultry, potatoes, and fruit.  Pennsylvania also leads all states in food production.

Large areas of woodland remain and, in some isolated sections, have retained an almost primitive wildness.

Pennsylvania has enormous coal reserves. The great forests and lush vegetation that once covered the entire state were transformed during the Carboniferous period into deposits of anthracite coal in the northeast and extensive bituminous beds in the west. For more than two centuries, Pennsylvania has produced nearly all the anthracite coal mined in the United States and far more bituminous coal than any other state. For many decades the state led the nation in total coal production, but it now ranks fourth (behind Wyoming, West Virginia, and Kentucky). It is the Industrial Age's oldest producer of petroleum. Limestone, sand and gravel, clay, and peat are also mined or quarried in significant quantities. 

The state's three major navigable waterways, the Delaware River, the Ohio River, and Lake Erie, have helped make Pennsylvania an important trade and transportation center since colonial times.

There are many historic sites and parks that have been preserved and are well worth the visit to see, learn and remember our history. Pennsylvania maintains many parks and historic sites, such as Brandywine Battlefield.  Those under federal ownership include Fort Necessity National Battlefield, Gettysburg National Military Park, and Independence and Valley Forge national historical parks. The City of Philadelphia has a large portion of historic landmarks.


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Copyright 2008 by Lawrence Yerkes. All Rights Reserved.