Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania

Susquehanna County Education, Geography, and History

Susquehanna County is a county located in the state of Pennsylvania. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 43,356. Its county seat is Montrose. The county was created on February 21, 1810, from part of Luzerne County and later organized in 1812. It is named for the Susquehanna River.

Etymology - Origin of Susquehanna County Name

Named for the Susquehanna River.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Susquehanna County History

Created on February 21, 1810, from part of Luzerne County and named for the Susquehanna River. It remained attached to Luzerne County until 1812. Montrose, the county seat was laid out in 1812 and incorporated as a borough on March 19, 1824. Its name is a combination of "mont," the French word for "mountain" and Rose, for Dr. L R. Rose, a prominent citizen.

In 1787 entrepreneur John Nicholson sent some settlers to the site of Brooklyn, although a Hessian deserter may have been the very first in the area. Pennsylvania purchased the land from Indians at Fort Stanwix in 1784, and Connecticut formally yielded its claim in 1786 (although individual Connecticut settlers eventually re-purchased their land from Pennsylvania). Maple sugar was the first major product; lumbering followed. Woodworking factories developed, producing furniture, artistic scrolls and designs, and toys. A fire in Montrose in 1886 destroyed a large toy factory. Tanning was important while the stands of hemlock survived. Valuable anthracite was discovered at Forest City in 1871. Good railroad connections with Lake Erie and New York did much for the economy. Once Susquehanna had a superior dairy production that was marketed to urban areas by railroads. Flagstone is profitable to mine. Bendix Corporation came to Montrose in 1951, and its flight systems division now employs one thousand in South Montrose. Farms cover 36 percent of the county land, and Susquehanna has the twelfth largest number of cows among the sixty-seven counties and the twelfth highest figure for cash receipts from dairy products. It is also a major producer of hay.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 832 square miles (2,156 km²), of which, 823 square miles (2,131 km²) of it is land and 10 square miles (25 km²) of it (1.15%) is water.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Broome County, New York (north)
• Wayne County (east)
• Lackawanna County (southeast)
• Wyoming County (southwest)
• Bradford County (west)
• Tioga County, New York (northwest)

Education

Public school districts

Blue Ridge School District (New Milford)
Elk Lake School District (Dimock) (also in Wyoming County)
Forest City Regional School District (Forest City) (also in Lackawanna and Wayne Counties)
Montrose Area School District (Montrose)
Mountain View School District (Kingsley)
Susquehanna Community School District (also in Wayne County)

Vocational schools

Susquehanna County Career and Technology Center (Dimock Township)

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