The town was founded in 1799 as "Evansburg", named for local farmer Abner Evans. It took the name of the neighboring lake in 1892.
Geography
Conneaut Lake borough is located southwest of the center of Crawford County at . Its northeastern border follows Second Street, which parallels the southwest shore of Conneaut Lake, the largest natural lake in Pennsylvania. The entire borough is surrounded by Sadsbury Township, a separate municipality. According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of, all of it land. U.S. Route 6 and U.S. Route 322 pass through the borough, leading east together to Meadville, the Crawford County seat. US 6 leads northwest to Linesville at the northeast end of Pymatuning Reservoir and to the Ohio border, while US 322 leads southwest to Jamestown at the south end of Pymatuning Reservoir and to the Ohio border. Conneaut Lake Park, an amusement resort which opened in 1892, is located north of the borough, near the north end of the lake. Other attractions include the Hotel Conneaut, which is famous for alleged hauntings. In summer, Pennsylvania vacationers are drawn to the lake due to the lack of boating restrictions. Many different vessels can be found on the lake in the warm-weather months. In winter, the frozen lake surface attracts skaters and ice-fishermen. The Adair House is also located in Conneaut Lake. The house is plays host to the annual Thomas Family reunion.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 708 people, 331 households, and 187 families residing in the borough. The population density was 1,927.9 people per square mile. There were 370 housing units at an average density of 1,007.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the borough was 97.18% White, 0.14% African American, 0.14% Native American, 1.98% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, and 0.42% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.42% of the population. There were 331 households, out of which 22.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.7% were married couplesliving together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.5% were non-families. 35.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.80. In the borough the population was spread out, with 20.3% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.1 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $34,306, and the median income for a family was $42,375. Males had a median income of $35,000 versus $21,417 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $18,486. About 5.5% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.
