Philadelphia is one of the original three counties in Pennsylvania, founded in 1682 by William Penn. It is the most populous with about 1.6M people in the 2020 census, and the second smallest in area at 143 square miles. Philadelphia is also the only county in the commonwealth which contains only one municipality, the City of Philadelphia. The 1854 Act of Consolidation brought all municipalities within the county under city rule, but the names of those towns live on as neighborhoods.
The other two original counties are Bucks County and Chester County. Bucks County is north of Philadelphia and divided from New Jersey by the Delaware River. It's the fourth most populated and 36th largest in area. Suburban developer William Levitt built his second Levittown (after New York) in lower Bucks County. Chester County is seventh in population and 28th in area among Pennsylvania's counties. It was originally much larger, but Lancaster, Berks, and Delaware Counties were carved from its original borders. Chester County has a substantial mushroom growing industry and on New Year's Eve, Kennett Square drops a lighted mushroom at midnight.
Allegheny County is the second most populated county in Pennsylvania with about 1.25M people in 2020 and its county seat, Pittsburgh, is Pennsylvania's second largest city with about 302,000 residents. The region was part of the territory fought over during the French and Indian War (known as the Seven Years War in Europe), and became a center of steel production in the 19th Century. Today, Pittsburgh is a technology hub, with computer and medical research led by Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.
The next two counties bookend the list of largest and smallest in area. Lycoming County is the largest and its county seat, Williamsport, is the home of the Little League World Series. Montour County is the smallest at only 132 square miles, and is also the sixth smallest in population. It was named after Madame Montour, a French and Iroquois woman who acted as an interpreter and diplomat between Native Americans and Europeans.
Centre County is, as its name suggests, in the center of Pennsylvania. Its largest community is State College, the location of the main campus of Penn State University. Indiana County, in the western part of the commonwealth, also contains a large public college, Indiana University of Pennsylvania. As well as containing a college, Indiana, PA is the birthplace of actor James Stewart.
Dauphin County, in the south central part of the state, contains the state capitol, Harrisburg, and is also the location of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant which suffered a partial meltdown in 1979. Lackawanna County, in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the last county formed when it separated from Lucerne County in 1878, also has a political connection. Scranton, the county seat and largest municipality in the county, is the birthplace of President Joe Biden.
Erie County is the northernmost county, occupying the northwest corner of Pennsylvania and bordering Lake Erie. The largest city is the county seat, Erie, which grew as a shipping hub in the 19th Century and a manufacturing center in the early 20th Century.
Cameron County in western Pennsylvania is the least populated county according to the 2020 census with 4,348 residents. It is also the birthplace of Tom Mix, the star of over 200 western movies during the silent era.
Bradford County is the second largest county in area. It's in northeastern Pennsylvania along the New York border and was named for William Bradford who served as the Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Venango County is in northwestern Pennsylvania and contains Oil City, PA which was a 19th Century center of petroleum extraction and production.
Lebanon County is in south central Pennsylvania, bordering Dauphin and Lancaster Counties. Its largest city is the county seat Lebanon. A cured, smoked, and fermented beef sausage called Lebanon bologna was developed in the area in the late 18th Century and became a popular cold cut. Lebanon is also the home of San Giorgio Pasta, formerly an independent company but now a subsidiary of Riviana Foods.
The wrong answers are counties in the neighboring states of Delaware and New Jersey. Both states have a Middlesex County and Delaware's other two counties are Kent and New Castle. Morris, Gloucester, Cape May, Camden, Sussex, and Hunterdon Counties are in New Jersey.
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