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| Venango County, Pennsylvania | ||
 Venango County Courthouse
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 Location in the state of Pennsylvania | ||
 Pennsylvania's location in the U.S. | ||
| Founded | September 1, 1805 | |
|---|---|---|
| Named for | Native American word for otter | |
| Seat | Franklin | |
| Largest city | Oil City (population) Sugarcreek (area) | |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
683 sq mi (1,769 km²) 674 sq mi (1,746 km²) 8.6 sq mi (22 km²), 1.3% | |
| Population - (2020) - Density |
50,454 79/sq mi (31/km²) | |
| Congressional district | 15th | |
| Time zone | Eastern: UTC-5/-4 | |
| Website | www.co.venango.pa.us | |
Venango County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 50,454.[1] Its county seat is Franklin.[2] The county was created in 1800 and later organized in 1805.[3]
Venango County comprises the Oil City, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area. It is defined as part of the Pittsburgh media market.
History[]
Venango County was created on March 12, 1800, from parts of Allegheny and Lycoming Counties. The name "Venango" comes from the Native American name of the region, Onenge, meaning Otter. This was corrupted in English as the Venango River.[4] The settlement at its mouth was likewise called Venango, and is the site of present-day South Side of Oil City, Pennsylvania.
Venango County was home to an oil boom in the years following discovery of natural oil (petroleum) in the mid-1850s.
George Bissell, a Yale University Chemistry professor, and Edwin L. Drake, a former railroad conductor, made the first successful use of a drilling rig on August 28, 1859, near Titusville, Pennsylvania. (Although Titusville is in Crawford County, the first oil well was drilled outside of town, less than a mile inside of the Venango County boundary.) This single well soon exceeded the entire cumulative oil output of Europe since the 1650s. Within weeks oil derricks were erected all over the area. Other oil boom towns located in Venango County included Franklin, Oil City, and the now defunct Pithole City. The principal product of the oil was kerosene.
Drake Well Museum in Cherrytree Township
McClintocksville was a small community in Cornplanter Township in Venango County. In 1861, it was the location of Wamsutta Oil Refinery, the first business venture of Henry Huttleston Rogers, who became a leading United States capitalist, businessman, industrialist, financier, and philanthropist. Rogers and his young wife Abbie Palmer Gifford Rogers lived in a one-room shack there along Oil Creek for several years beginning in 1862.
Wells along Benninghoff Run in 1866
Shortly later, Rogers met oil pioneer Charles Pratt who purchased the entire output of the tiny Wamsutta Oil Refinery. In 1867, Rogers joined Pratt in forming Charles Pratt and Company, which was purchased by Standard Oil in 1874. Rogers became one of the key men in John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Trust.
After joining Standard Oil, Rogers invested heavily in various industries, including copper, steel, mining, and railways. The Virginian Railway is widely considered his final life's achievement. Rogers amassed a great fortune, estimated at over $100 million, and became one of the wealthiest men in the United States. He was also a generous philanthropist, providing many public works for his hometown of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, and financially assisting helping such notables as Mark Twain, Helen Keller, and Dr. Booker T. Washington.
Perhaps in one of history's ironies, another resident of Venango County about the same time as Henry and Abbie Rogers was a little girl named Ida M. Tarbell, whose father was an independent producer whose small business was ruined by the South Improvement Company scheme of 1871 and the conglomerate which became Standard Oil. Introduced to each other in 1902 by their mutual friend Mark Twain, Tarbell who had become an investigative journalist and Rogers, who knew of her work, shared meetings and information over a two-year period which led to her epoch work, The History of the Standard Oil Company, published in 1904, which many historians feel helped fuel public sentiment against the giant company and helped lead to the court-ordered break-up of it in 1911.
The oil heritage of Venanago County is remembered by a Pennsylvania State Park and many heritage sites which help tell the story and memorialize the people of the oil boom of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Geography[]
French Creek (left) meets the Allegheny River at Riverfront Park in Franklin.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 683 square miles (1,770 km2), of which 674 square miles (1,750 km2) is land and 8.6 square miles (22 km2) (1.3%) is water.[5]
French Creek is formed near French Creek, New York and extends for a length of 117 miles (188 km) with a drainage area of 1,270 square miles (3,289 km2). It joins the Allegheny River near Franklin, Pennsylvania. The watershed area includes parts of Erie, Crawford, Venango, and Mercer Counties in Pennsylvania as well as Chautauqua County, New York.
Adjacent counties[]
- Crawford County (northwest)
- Warren County (north)
- Forest County (northeast)
- Clarion County (east)
- Butler County (south)
- Mercer County (west)
Demographics[]
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1800 | 1,130 | ||
| 1810 | 3,060 | 170.8% | |
| 1820 | 4,915 | 60.6% | |
| 1830 | 9,470 | 92.7% | |
| 1840 | 17,900 | 89.0% | |
| 1850 | 18,310 | 2.3% | |
| 1860 | 25,043 | 36.8% | |
| 1870 | 47,925 | 91.4% | |
| 1880 | 43,670 | −8.9% | |
| 1890 | 46,640 | 6.8% | |
| 1900 | 49,648 | 6.4% | |
| 1910 | 56,359 | 13.5% | |
| 1920 | 59,184 | 5.0% | |
| 1930 | 63,226 | 6.8% | |
| 1940 | 63,958 | 1.2% | |
| 1950 | 65,328 | 2.1% | |
| 1960 | 65,295 | −0.1% | |
| 1970 | 62,353 | −4.5% | |
| 1980 | 64,444 | 3.4% | |
| 1990 | 59,381 | −7.9% | |
| 2000 | 57,555 | −3.1% | |
| 2010 | 54,984 | −4.5% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[6] 1790–1960[7] 1900–1990[8] 1990–2000[9] 2010–2020[1] | |||
  Age pyramid for Venango County based on census 2000 data |
As of the census[10] of 2000, there were 57,565 people, 22,747 households, and 15,922 families residing in the county. The population density was 85 people per square mile (33/km2). There were 26,904 housing units at an average density of 40 per square mile (15/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.64% White, 1.09% Black or African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.23% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.17% from other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. 0.52% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 43.9% English or Welsh, 12.5% were of German, 11.1% American, 9.9% Irish, 8.3% Scotch-Irish, 2.8% Dutch, 2.1% Italian, and 1.6% French ancestry.
There were 22,747 households, out of which 30.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.80% were married couples living together, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.00% were non-families. 26.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.20% under the age of 18, 7.20% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 25.10% from 45 to 64, and 16.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.
Micropolitan Statistical Area[]
The United States Office of Management and Budget[11] has designated Venango County as the Oil City, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area (µSA).[12] As of the 2010 U.S. Census[13] the micropolitan area ranked 9th most populous in the State of Pennsylvania and the 182nd most populous in the United States with a population of 54,984.
Law and government[]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 18,569 | 69.81% | 7,585 | 28.51% | 447 | 1.68% |
| 2016 | 16,021 | 68.09% | 6,309 | 26.81% | 1,200 | 5.10% |
| 2012 | 13,815 | 62.07% | 7,945 | 35.70% | 497 | 2.23% |
| 2008 | 13,718 | 58.42% | 9,238 | 39.34% | 525 | 2.24% |
| 2004 | 14,472 | 61.17% | 9,024 | 38.14% | 163 | 0.69% |
| 2000 | 11,642 | 56.68% | 8,196 | 39.90% | 703 | 3.42% |
| 1996 | 8,398 | 42.96% | 8,205 | 41.97% | 2,946 | 15.07% |
| 1992 | 8,545 | 39.64% | 8,230 | 38.18% | 4,779 | 22.17% |
| 1988 | 11,468 | 56.60% | 8,624 | 42.56% | 171 | 0.84% |
| 1984 | 13,507 | 59.44% | 9,114 | 40.11% | 104 | 0.46% |
| 1980 | 11,547 | 56.04% | 7,800 | 37.86% | 1,257 | 6.10% |
| 1976 | 12,270 | 57.58% | 8,653 | 40.60% | 388 | 1.82% |
| 1972 | 13,991 | 67.28% | 6,302 | 30.31% | 501 | 2.41% |
| 1968 | 12,323 | 56.14% | 8,319 | 37.90% | 1,307 | 5.95% |
| 1964 | 9,873 | 42.89% | 13,065 | 56.75% | 84 | 0.36% |
| 1960 | 17,193 | 68.01% | 8,064 | 31.90% | 23 | 0.09% |
| 1956 | 17,107 | 75.31% | 5,594 | 24.63% | 14 | 0.06% |
| 1952 | 17,006 | 72.16% | 6,356 | 26.97% | 204 | 0.87% |
| 1948 | 11,920 | 67.97% | 5,144 | 29.33% | 472 | 2.69% |
| 1944 | 14,916 | 68.91% | 6,426 | 29.69% | 304 | 1.40% |
| 1940 | 17,728 | 71.90% | 6,873 | 27.87% | 57 | 0.23% |
| 1936 | 17,676 | 64.12% | 9,212 | 33.42% | 677 | 2.46% |
| 1932 | 12,230 | 64.07% | 6,174 | 32.34% | 684 | 3.58% |
| 1928 | 17,450 | 79.00% | 4,531 | 20.51% | 108 | 0.49% |
| 1924 | 10,841 | 74.29% | 1,886 | 12.92% | 1,865 | 12.78% |
| 1920 | 7,718 | 65.71% | 2,669 | 22.72% | 1,359 | 11.57% |
| 1916 | 3,856 | 40.98% | 3,938 | 41.85% | 1,616 | 17.17% |
| 1912 | 1,660 | 18.26% | 2,507 | 27.57% | 4,925 | 54.17% |
| 1908 | 4,868 | 49.73% | 2,815 | 28.76% | 2,105 | 21.51% |
| 1904 | 5,892 | 57.33% | 1,747 | 17.00% | 2,639 | 25.68% |
| 1900 | 5,931 | 52.75% | 4,014 | 35.70% | 1,299 | 11.55% |
| 1896 | 5,133 | 49.82% | 4,599 | 44.63% | 572 | 5.55% |
| 1892 | 4,099 | 49.31% | 3,288 | 39.55% | 926 | 11.14% |
| 1888 | 4,424 | 50.49% | 3,475 | 39.66% | 863 | 9.85% |
| 1884 | 3,961 | 46.50% | 3,432 | 40.29% | 1,125 | 13.21% |
| 1880 | 4,089 | 48.32% | 3,573 | 42.22% | 800 | 9.45% |
Venango County has long been powerfully Republican. Only twice since the Civil War has the county selected a Democratic presidential candidate, and only Lyndon Johnson in his 1964 landslide has gained an absolute majority for the Democratic Party. In 1984 Venango County actually voted fractionally more Democratic than the nation at-large due to hostility towards Reaganomics in industrial districts, and in the 1992 and 1996 elections it came within 2 points and 1 point of voting for Democrat Bill Clinton, but by 2016 Donald Trump had gained 68.1 percent to Hillary Clinton's 26.8 percent – figures which were long typical of the county.
Voter Registration[]
As of February 21, 2022, there are 32,319 registered voters in Venango County [15]
Chart of Voter Registration
- Democratic: 9,181 (28.41%)
- Republican: 18,864 (58.37%)
- Independent: 2,868 (8.87%)
- Third Party: 1,406 (4.35%)
County Commissioners[]
- Samuel H. Breene (Republican)
- Michael C. Dulaney (Republican)
- Albert "Chip" Abramovic (Democrat)
State Senate[16][]
- Scott Hutchinson, Republican, Pennsylvania Senate, District 21
State House of Representatives[16][]
- Lee James, Republican, Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 64
United States House of Representatives[]
- G.T. Thompson, Republican, Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district
United States Senate[]
- Pat Toomey, Republican
- Bob Casey Jr., Democrat
Economy[]
Major employers[]
- Joy Mining Machinery
- Pennzoil
- Quaker State
Pennzoil and Quaker State left the Venango area for Texas. After leaving the area they merged and stopped refining oil. They now concentrate on retail oil and automotive additives produced for them by other companies. As of 2007, the two companies only exist as brand names after the company disappeared because of successive mergers.
With global crude oil prices touching US$100 in early 2008, long-dormant interest reawakened in Venango County's remaining oil reserves, 70% undrilled by one estimate. High prices make less accessible oil deposits worth extracting. For instance, a Canadian firm proposed drilling several large mines and allowing oil to flood the tunnels.[17]
Education[]
Map of Venango County, Pennsylvania Public School Districts
Public school districts[]
- Cranberry Area School District
- Franklin Area School District
- Oil City Area School District
- Valley Grove School District
Partial districts[]
These public school districts are only partially in Venango County:
- Allegheny-Clarion Valley School District
- Forest Area School District
- Penncrest School District
- Titusville Area School District
Colleges and universities[]
- Clarion University, Venango Campus
- Dubois Business College (closed 2016)
- Penn State University Venango County Co-Op Extension
Transportation[]
Airport[]
- Venango Regional Airport
Major highways[]
I-80- US 62
- US 322
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 8]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 27]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 36]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 38]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 157]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 208]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 227]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 257]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 308]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 417]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 427]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 428]]
- [[Template:Infobox road/PA/link PA|PA 965]]
Recreation[]
Pennsylvania State Parks and Forests[]
- Oil Creek State Park
- Cornplanter State Forest
- Clear Creek State Forest
Attractions and tourism[]
- DeBence Antique Music World
- Oil Region Astronomical Observatory
- Franklin Silver Cornet Band
- Franklin Public Library. The Franklin Public Library was founded in 1894 and has had several homes, although its current location on Twelfth Street in Franklin, Venango County, PA has been its home since 1921. The original structure on Twelfth Street was built in 1849 as a residence and required extensive renovations in 1921 to make it suitable for library use.
Communities[]
Map of Venango 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 at most two cases, towns. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Venango County:
Cities[]
- Franklin (county seat)
- Oil City
Boroughs[]
- Barkeyville
- Clintonville
- Cooperstown
- Emlenton (partly in Clarion County)
- Pleasantville
- Polk
- Rouseville
- Sugarcreek
- Utica
Townships[]
- Allegheny
- Canal
- Cherrytree
- Clinton
- Cornplanter
- Cranberry
- French Creek
- Irwin
- Jackson
- Mineral
- Oakland
- Oil Creek
- Pinegrove
- Plum
- President
- Richland
- Rockland
- Sandycreek
- Scrubgrass
- Victory
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. Other unincorporated communities, such as villages, may be listed here as well.
- Hannasville
- Hasson Heights
- Kennerdell
- Seneca
- Woodland Heights
Unincorporated communities[]
- Bredinsburg
- Cranberry
- Dempseytown
- Fertigs
- Petroleum Center
- Raymilton
- Siverly[18]
- Venus
Population ranking[]
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Venango County.[13]
† county seat
| Rank | City/Town/etc. | Municipal type | Population (2018 Census) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oil City | City | 9,897 |
| 2. | Cranberry | Township | 6,789 |
| 3 | † Franklin | City | 6,231 |
| 4 | Sugar Creek | Borough | 5,008 |
| 5. | Cornplanter | Township | 2,316 |
| 6 | Hasson Heights | CDP | 1,437 |
| 7 | Woodland Heights | CDP | 1,726 |
| 8 | Cherrytree | Township | 1,378 |
| 9 | Seneca | CDP | 1,289 |
| 10 | Pleasantville | Borough | 887 |
| 11 | Polk | Borough | 826 |
| 12 | Emlenton (partially in Clarion County) | Borough | 625 |
| 13 | Rouseville | Borough | 523 |
| 14 | Clintonville | Borough | 508 |
| 15 | Cooperstown | Borough | 460 |
| 16 | Kennerdell | CDP | 247 |
| 17 | Barkeyville | Borough | 207 |
| 18 | Utica | Borough | 189 |
| 19 | Hannasville | CDP | 176 |
Notable people[]
- Orrin Dubbs Bleakley
- Cornplanter
- William Holmes Crosby Jr.
- Hildegarde Dolson
- Frank Evans
- Gabby Gabreski
- Leon H. Gavin
- Alexander Hays
- Kathryn Kuhlman
- Judge Robert Lamberton
- Ted Marchibroda
- Jesse L. Reno
- George C. Rickards
- Henry H. Rogers
- Joseph Sibley
- Peter Moore Speer
- Ida M. Tarbell
- John Wesley Van Dyke
See also[]
- Oil Creek Library District
- Oil Region
References[]
- ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/42/42121.html.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx.
- ^ "Pennsylvania: Individual County Chronologies". The Newberry Library. 2008. http://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp/documents/PA_Individual_County_Chronologies.htm.
- ^ Donehoo, George (1995). "French Creek". Indian Villages and Place Names in Pennsylvania. Gateway Press. http://www.crawfordcopa.com/history/FrenchCk.html.
- ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_42.txt.
- ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html.
- ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu.
- ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/pa190090.txt.
- ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov.
- ^ "Office of Management and Budget – The White House". https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb.
- ^ "Archived copy". https://www.census.gov/econ/census/media/forms/pa.html.
- ^ a b CNMP, US Census Bureau. "This site has been redesigned and relocated. – U.S. Census Bureau". https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.2010.html.
- ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS.
- ^ "Voter Registration Statistics by county". February 23, 2022. https://www.dos.pa.gov/VotingElections/OtherServicesEvents/VotingElectionStatistics/Documents/currentvotestats.xls.
- ^ a b Center, Legislativate Data Processing. "Find Your Legislator". http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/findyourlegislator/county_list.cfm?CNTYLIST=Venango.
- ^ "As Oil Prices Soar, Prospectors Return to Pennsylvania". The Wall Street Journal. February 19, 2008. http://www.energybulletin.net/40819.html.
- ^ "Siverly Populated Place Profile / Venango County, Pennsylvania Data". http://pennsylvania.hometownlocator.com/pa/venango/siverly.cfm.
External links[]
- Venango County Government Home Page
- Venango County interactive map
- Franklin Area Chamber of Commerce
- Venango County History and Genealogy Archive
- Venango Area Chamber of Commerce
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