Sullivan County, Pennsylvania

Sullivan County Education, Geography, and History

Sullivan County is a county located in the state of Pennsylvania. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 6,428, making it the second-least populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Laporte. The county was created on March 15, 1847, from part of Lycoming County and named for Charles C. Sullivan, leader of the Pennsylvania Senate at that time.

Etymology - Origin of Sullivan County Name

Named for Senator Charles C. Sullivan, Butler District, who took an active part in procuring passage of the bill.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Sullivan County History

Created on March 15, 1847 from part of Lycoming County and named for Senator Charles C. Sullivan, Butler District, who took an active part in procuring passage of the bill. Laporte, the county seat, was laid out in 1850 and incorporated as a borough in 1853. It was named for John La Porte, surveyor general of Pennsylvania from 1845 to 1851.

The area was included in the New Purchase from the Indians in 1768, but Connecticut settlers who had been ousted from the Wyoming Valley entered and had to be run off by Pennsylvania agents. Pennsylvania settlers were themselves pushed out by the Indian and Tory attacks of 1778-1780. The Genesee Road from New York opened up the area, and in 1794 a French refugee founded Dushore. A woolen industry was productive from 1802 until about 1900. Lumber and the related leather tanning industry were most productive from 1850 to 1900. Coal was discovered and mined by the Sullivan and State Line Railroad after 1871. Eagles Mere became a famous tourist resort in the late nineteenth century. The population peaked at 12,134 in 1900. Today tourism and some lumber and leather production survives. Farms cover 11 percent of the land but agricultural receipts rank low among the sixty-seven counties. State game lands and forest lands are extensive.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 452 square miles (1,172 km²), of which, 450 square miles (1,165 km²) of it is land and 2 square miles (6 km²) of it (0.53%) is water.

Elevation ranges from 2593 ft at North Mountain in Davidson Township to 779 ft on Loyalsock Creek at the Lycoming County line.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Bradford County (north)
• Wyoming County (east)
• Luzerne County (southeast)
• Columbia County (south)
• Lycoming County (west)

Education

Public school districts

Sullivan County School District

Sullivan County School District has one high school, grades 7-12, and one elementary school, grades K-6. Sullivan County High School is located in Laporte, PA. Sullivan County Elementary School is located just behind the high school.

Compare More Colleges and Universities

Find more schools to match to your needs.

Start Now