Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

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Not to be confused with Luzerne, Pennsylvania.

Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
Luzerne County Courthouse
Seal
Location in the state of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's location in the U.S.
Founded	September 25, 1786
Named for	Chevalier de la Luzerne
Seat	Wilkes-Barre
Largest city	Wilkes-Barre
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	907 sq mi (2,349 km²) 891 sq mi (2,308 km²) 16 sq mi (41 km²), 1.80%
Population  - (2020)  - Density	325,594 360/sq mi (139/km²)
Congressional district	17th
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website	www.luzernecounty.org

Luzerne County Head of State
Government
• Chairperson	Tim McGinley (D)

Luzerne County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 325,594. Its county seat is Wilkes-Barre.

Luzerne County is included in the Scranton—Wilkes-Barre—Hazleton, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located in the northern anthracite area called The Coal Region in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

History

The Luzerne County Historical Society maintains the storehouse for the collective memory of Luzerne County and its environs. It records and interprets the history, traditions, events, people and cultures that have directed and molded life within the region.

18th century

Battle of Wyoming in 1778

• 1769: The Pennamite-Yankee War (or the Yankee-Pennamite Wars) began when settlers from Connecticut and Pennsylvania fought over land claims along the North Branch of the Susquehanna River in the present Wyoming Valley.
• July 3, 1778: A force of British and Tories led by John Butler, with the assistance of about 700 Indians, attacked and killed nearly 300 Wyoming Valley settlers. Today in Wyoming, PA a monument marks the grave site of the victims from the Battle of Wyoming.
• September 11, 1780: Reports of Tory activity in the region caused Captain Daniel Klader and a platoon of 40 to 50 men from Northampton County, Pennsylvania to investigate. Captain Klader's men made it as far north as present-day Conyngham, when they were ambushed by the Seneca nation and by the Tories. 18 of Klader's men were killed in what is known as the Sugarloaf Massacre.
• September 25, 1786: Luzerne County was formed from part of Northumberland County.

19th century

File:Lattimer massacre.jpg

Mine workers began their protest march near Harwood and many were eventually killed by the Luzerne County sheriff in Lattimer in 1897.

• September 6, 1869: A mine fire killed 110 people in Avondale, an unincorporated community in Plymouth Township.
• June 28, 1896: The Newton Coal Company's Twin Shaft Mine in Pittston City caved-in and killed 58 miners.
• September 10, 1897: Sheriff James Martin formed a posse and fired on a group of unarmed miners in what is known today as the Lattimer massacre. Luzerne is infamous for being the last county whose sheriff legally formed a posse to restore order in a time of civil unrest.

20th century

Remnants of Agnes over Pennsylvania. This resulted in major flooding

• 1915: A mine fire in Laurel Run, Pennsylvania caused a section of the town to be relocated.
• June 5, 1919: An explosion at the Baltimore Colliery in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania killed 92 miners.
• 1934: The right arm of Hughestown, Pennsylvania resident, Harry Tompkins, was crushed by an Erie Railroad train. This resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court case, Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins, which laid the foundation for a large part of modern American civil procedure.
• January 22, 1959: The Knox Mine disaster in Port Griffith, Jenkins Township claimed the lives of 12 people and essentially shut down the mining industry in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
• June 1972: Hurricane Agnes was responsible for massive flooding in and around Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
• 1974–1989: Alleged ghost hauntings took place in the home of Jack and Janet Smurl in West Pittston. This resulted in the 1991 film The Haunted.
• September 25, 1982: George Banks kills 13 people in a shooting rampage in Wilkes-Barre and Jenkins Township.
• 1992: The opening scenes from the movie School Ties was filmed in West Pittston; it shows David Green, the hero of the movie (played by Brendan Fraser), hanging out with friends in the streets of the tiny town.

21st century

• May 21, 2000: A plane crash in Bear Creek Township, Pennsylvania near the intersection of Bear Creek Boulevard (PA-Route 115) and the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike killed the pilot as well as all 19 passengers.
• December 1, 2006: a tornado left a path of destruction approximately 15 miles (24 km) long (this included parts of Mountain Top).
• 2008: The Kids for Cash scandal resulted in federal convictions and sentences of juvenile court judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan.
• September 2011: Luzerne County witnessed historical flooding from Tropical Storm Lee. The Susquehanna River reached a record high of 42.6 feet (13 meters) in Wilkes-Barre. The river topped the 40.9-foot (12.5 meters) level in flooding caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972. The Greater Pittston, Wilkes-Barre, and Nanticoke areas were hit the hardest.

Geography

Lehigh Gorge State Park in Luzerne County during the fall

Nescopeck State Park in Dennison Township, Luzerne County

Ricketts Glen State Park

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 907 square miles (2,350 km²), of which 891 sq mi (2,307 km²) is land and 16 sq mi (42 km²) (1.80%) is water. The Wyoming Valley in the North and Mid part of the county is flat at the Susquehanna Basin and rises from 700 feet (210 m) to 2,000 feet (610 m) in some places. Bear Creek, on the eastern side of the valley, has a mean elevation of about 2,000 feet (610 m), while Pittston, on the Susquehanna Basin, is about 700 feet (210 m). The Valley goes as north as Exeter Township-Dallas Township to as on the west side from Plymouth Township-Bear Creek Township and as on the east side from Duryea to Bear Creek Township; South as Hanover Township to Bear Creek Township. The county is crossed by a series of east-to-west mountains. The Susquehanna River drains most of the county while the Lehigh River drains some eastern and southeastern portions and forms part of its southeast boundary.

Adjacent counties

• Wyoming County (north)
• Lackawanna County (northeast)
• Monroe County (east)
• Carbon County (southeast)
• Schuylkill County (south)
• Columbia County (west)
• Sullivan County (northwest)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1790	4,892		—
1800	12,839		162.4%
1810	18,109		41.0%
1820	20,027		10.6%
1830	27,379		36.7%
1840	44,006		60.7%
1850	56,072		27.4%
1860	90,244		60.9%
1870	160,915		78.3%
1880	133,065		−17.3%
1890	201,203		51.2%
1900	257,121		27.8%
1910	343,186		33.5%
1920	390,991		13.9%
1930	445,109		13.8%
1940	441,518		−0.8%
1950	392,241		−11.2%
1960	346,972		−11.5%
1970	342,301		−1.3%
1980	343,079		0.2%
1990	328,149		−4.4%
2000	319,255		−2.7%
2010	320,918		0.5%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the 2010 census, the county was 90.7% White, 3.4% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 3.3% were of some other race, and 1.5% were two or more races. 6.7% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino ancestry.

According to the census of 2000, there were 319,250 people, 130,687 households, and 84,293 families residing in the county. The population density was 358 people per square mile (138/km²). There were 144,686 housing units at an average density of 162 per square mile (63/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.63% White, 1.69% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.43% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. 1.16% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 22.2% were of Polish, 15.6% Italian, 13.8% Irish, 12.1% German and 5.3% Slovak ancestry according to the 2000 census.

There were 130,687 households out of which 26.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.80% were married couples living together, 11.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.50% were non-families. 31.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the county, the population was spread out with 21.00% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 27.20% from 25 to 44, 24.00% from 45 to 64, and 19.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.50 males.

Luzerne County is the only county in the United States with a plurality of citizens reporting Polish as their primary ancestry; the majority of Pennsylvanians report German or Pennsylvania Dutch.

Politics

United States presidential election results for Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	86,929	56.63%	64,873	42.26%	1,697	1.11%
2016	78,688	57.90%	52,451	38.60%	4,762	3.50%
2012	58,325	46.72%	64,307	51.51%	2,213	1.77%
2008	61,127	44.96%	72,492	53.32%	2,349	1.73%
2004	64,953	47.75%	69,573	51.15%	1,502	1.10%
2000	52,328	43.76%	62,199	52.01%	5,059	4.23%
1996	43,577	37.30%	60,174	51.51%	13,066	11.19%
1992	49,285	38.76%	56,623	44.53%	21,238	16.70%
1988	59,059	50.01%	58,553	49.58%	480	0.41%
1984	69,169	53.50%	58,482	45.23%	1,640	1.27%
1980	67,822	50.21%	59,976	44.40%	7,282	5.39%
1976	60,058	44.16%	74,655	54.89%	1,296	0.95%
1972	81,358	60.89%	51,128	38.27%	1,120	0.84%
1968	57,044	39.79%	79,040	55.13%	7,296	5.09%
1964	43,895	28.86%	106,397	69.97%	1,779	1.17%
1960	70,711	40.58%	102,998	59.10%	562	0.32%
1956	92,458	58.22%	65,155	41.02%	1,207	0.76%
1952	88,967	54.83%	72,579	44.73%	715	0.44%
1948	71,674	52.85%	61,869	45.62%	2,068	1.52%
1944	67,984	47.81%	73,674	51.81%	541	0.38%
1940	79,685	43.81%	101,577	55.85%	622	0.34%
1936	81,572	43.26%	105,008	55.68%	1,997	1.06%
1932	52,672	45.44%	60,975	52.60%	2,281	1.97%
1928	67,872	48.00%	73,319	51.85%	220	0.16%
1924	46,475	53.18%	20,472	23.42%	20,449	23.40%
1920	49,419	65.39%	23,473	31.06%	2,683	3.55%
1916	25,348	53.73%	19,999	42.39%	1,832	3.88%
1912	4,970	12.02%	13,461	32.56%	22,907	55.41%
1908	24,594	56.24%	17,379	39.74%	1,760	4.02%
1904	27,809	64.83%	13,518	31.51%	1,568	3.66%
1900	21,793	54.87%	16,470	41.47%	1,454	3.66%
1896	22,718	55.08%	17,305	41.95%	1,225	2.97%
1892	14,118	45.21%	15,734	50.38%	1,377	4.41%
1888	15,543	49.25%	15,218	48.22%	797	2.53%
1884	12,859	47.18%	13,806	50.65%	592	2.17%
1880	11,028	45.94%	12,575	52.38%	403	1.68%

As of November 1, 2021, there are 202,396 registered voters in Luzerne County.

• Democratic: 95,182 (47.03%)
• Republican: 81,263 (40.15%)
• Independent: 19,380 (9.58%)
• Third Party: 6,571 (3.25%)

The Democratic Party has been historically dominant in county-level politics. However, during the 2019 Luzerne County Council election, Republicans – for the first time – secured a majority on council, the county's governing body. Thomas Baldino, professor emeritus of political science at Wilkes University, suspected that the 2019 Luzerne County Council election results were due to the trending Republican preference in the county (mostly due to then-President Trump's popularity in the region).

During presidential elections, the county is considered a bellwether of the state. Until 2020, it had voted for the presidential candidate who carried Pennsylvania in every election since 1936. Luzerne County has leaned Democratic in past presidential elections; however, that trend has changed in recent years. During the 2000 U.S. presidential election, Democrat Al Gore won 52% of the vote to Republican George W. Bush's 44%. In 2004, it was much closer, with Democrat John Kerry winning 51% to Republican George Bush's 48%. Democrat Barack Obama carried the county twice (once in 2008, and again in 2012). During the 2016 presidential election, the county swung dramatically to Republican Donald Trump, who won it with 58% of the vote, the largest margin since President Richard Nixon in 1972. It was the first time a Republican presidential candidate carried the county since 1988. Trump won the county almost as easily in 2020.

In recent years, Luzerne County has witnessed mixed results in U.S. senate elections. In 2000, 2004, 2016, and 2018, the Republican candidates for U.S. senate won the county. However, Democratic candidates for U.S. senate carried the county in 2006 (with 60.6% of the vote), 2010, and 2012.

Democratic candidates for Pennsylvania governor won Luzerne County in 2002, 2006 (with 67.5% of the vote), 2014, and 2018. In recent years, the county voted for a Republican gubernatorial candidate only once (in 2010).

United States Senate

• Bob Casey, D
• Pat Toomey, R

United States House of Representatives

• Matthew Cartwright, D, Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district
• Dan Meuser, R, Pennsylvania's 9th congressional district

State Senate

• John Yudichak, I, Pennsylvania's 14th Senatorial District
• Lisa Baker, R, Pennsylvania's 20th Senatorial District
• John Blake, D, Pennsylvania's 22nd Senatorial District
• John Gordner, R, Pennsylvania's 27th Senatorial District

State House of Representatives

• Tarah Toohil, R, Pennsylvania's 116th Representative District
• Karen Boback, R, Pennsylvania's 117th Representative District
• Michael B. Carroll, D, Pennsylvania's 118th Representative District
• Gerald Mullery, D, Pennsylvania's 119th Representative District
• Aaron Kaufer, R, Pennsylvania's 120th Representative District
• Eddie Day Pashinski, D, Pennsylvania's 121st Representative District

Municipalities

Wilkes-Barre, the county seat and largest city of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

Hazleton, the second largest city in Luzerne County

Map of Luzerne 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 the case of Bloomsburg, towns. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Luzerne County:

Cities

• Hazleton: 25,340
• Nanticoke: 10,465
• Pittston: 7,739
• Wilkes-Barre (county seat): 41,498

Boroughs

Ashley Avoca Bear Creek Village Conyngham Courtdale Dallas Dorranceton Dupont Duryea Edwardsville Exeter Forty Fort Freeland Harveys Lake Hughestown Jeddo Kingston Laflin Larksville

Laurel Run Luzerne Mountain Top Nescopeck New Columbus Nuangola Penn Lake Park Plymouth Pringle Shickshinny Sugar Notch Swoyersville Warrior Run West Hazleton West Pittston West Wyoming White Haven Wyoming Yatesville

Townships

Bear Creek Black Creek Buck Butler Conyngham Dallas Dennison Dorrance Exeter Fairmount Fairview Foster

Franklin Hanover Hazle Hollenback Hunlock Huntington Jackson Jenkins Kingston Lake Lehman Nescopeck

Newport Pittston Plains Plymouth Rice Ross Salem Slocum Sugarloaf Union Wilkes-Barre Wright

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.

Beech Mountain Lakes Browntown Chase East Berwick Georgetown Glen Lyon Harleigh Hickory Hills Hilldale

Hudson Inkerman Lattimer Mocanaqua Mountain Top Nuremberg Pardeesville Pikes Creek Plains

Shavertown Sheatown Silkworth Trucksville Upper Exeter Wanamie West Nanticoke Weston

Other places

• Wapwallopen

Recreation

Frances Slocum State Park

There are four Pennsylvania state parks in Luzerne County:

• Frances Slocum State Park (northern Luzerne County)
• Lehigh Gorge State Park (eastern Luzerne County)
• Nescopeck State Park (southern Luzerne County)
• Ricketts Glen State Park (western Luzerne County)

Other recreation

The Susquehanna Warrior Trail is in Luzerne County.

Education

Public school districts

Map of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania School Districts

• Berwick Area School District (also in Columbia County)
• Crestwood School District
• Dallas School District
• Greater Nanticoke Area School District
• Hanover Area School District
• Hazleton Area School District (also in Carbon and Schuylkill Counties)
• Lake-Lehman School District (also in Wyoming County)
• Northwest Area School District
• Pittston Area School District
• Wilkes-Barre Area School District
• Wyoming Area School District (also in Wyoming County)
• Wyoming Valley West School District

Charter schools

• Bear Creek Community Charter School

Public vocational technical schools

• West Side Area Vocational Technical School

Private schools

• Dallas Township School
• Graham Academy
• Holy Redeemer High School
• Jenny Lynn Ferraro Academy
• Milford E Barnes Junior School
• MMI Preparatory School
• New Story School
• Wilkes Barre Academy
• Wyoming Seminary

Colleges and universities

• Luzerne County Community College
• King's College
• Misericordia University
• Penn State Hazleton
• Penn State Wilkes-Barre
• Wilkes University

Luzerne County Public Library Branches

The Luzerne County Library System includes the following locations:

• Back Mountain Memorial Library, Back Mountain, Pennsylvania
• Hazleton Area Public Library, Hazleton, Pennsylvania
• Hoyt Library, Kingston, Pennsylvania
• Marian Sutherland Kirby Library, Mountaintop, Pennsylvania
• Mill Memorial Library, Nanticoke, Pennsylvania
• Osterhout Free Library, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
• Pittston Memorial Library, Pittston, Pennsylvania
• Plymouth Public Library, Plymouth, Pennsylvania
• West Pittston Library, West Pittston, Pennsylvania
• Wyoming Free Library, Wyoming, Pennsylvania

See also

• Luzerne County Transportation Authority
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
• Pennamite-Yankee War
• USS Luzerne County (LST-902)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

• Luzerne County official site
• "Luzerne County Library System.". Archived from the original on February 12, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080212070523/http://www.luzerneco.lib.pa.us/. 
• Luzerne County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
• The Luzerne Foundation – Luzerne County's Community Foundation
• Luzerne County Community College.

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