Lebanon County, Pennsylvania


Lebanon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 133,568. Its county seat is Lebanon. The county was formed from portions of Dauphin and Lancaster counties in 1813, with minor boundary revisions in 1814 and 1821. Lebanon County comprises the Lebanon, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Harrisburg-York-Lebanon, Pennsylvania Combined Statistical Area. Lebanon is 72 miles northwest of Philadelphia, which is the nearest major city.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. Most of it is drained by the Swatara Creek into the Susquehanna River while some eastern portions are drained by the Tulpehocken Creek eastward into the Schuylkill River. It consists in large part of a valley.

Climate

The county has a hot-summer humid continental climate and the hardiness zone is 6b except along the northern boundary with Dauphin where it is 6a. Average monthly temperatures in center-city Lebanon range from 29.4 °F in January to 74.3 °F in July.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 120,327 people and 32,771 families residing in the county. The population density was 332 people per square mile. There were 49,320 housing units at an average density of 136 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 94.46% White, 1.29% Black or African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.89% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.26% from other races, and 0.94% from two or more races. 4.96% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 45.6% were of German, 11.8% American and 6.1% Irish ancestry. 92.5% spoke English, 4.2% Spanish and 1.1% Pennsylvania Dutch as their first language.
There were 46,551 households out of which 30.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.40% were married couples living together, 9.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.60% were non-families. 25.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county, the population was spread out with 23.70% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 23.70% from 45 to 64, and 16.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 95.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.70 males.

Metropolitan Statistical Area

The United States Office of Management and Budget has designated Lebanon County as the Lebanon, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area . As of the 2010 U.S. Census the metropolitan area ranked 16th most populous in the State of Pennsylvania and the 296th most populous in the United States with a population of 133,568. Lebanon County is also a part of the larger Harrisburg-York-Lebanon, PA Combined Statistical Area , which combines the populations of Lebanon County as well as Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Perry and York Counties in Pennsylvania. The Combined Statistical Area ranked 5th in the State of Pennsylvania and 43rd most populous in the United States with a population of 1,219,422.

Politics and government

Lebanon County has been a Republican Party stronghold for the vast majority of its history. The only two elections Republican presidential candidates failed to win the county in from 1888 to the present were when third-party candidate & former Republican president Theodore Roosevelt won it thanks to a split Republican vote in 1912 & as a part of a national landslide victory by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936. As a testament to how Republican the county is, FDR in the two following elections & Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 are the lone Democratic candidates since 1936 to crack forty percent of the county's votes.

United States House of Representatives

The county is located in the 9th congressional district, represented by Dan Meuser, Republican.

State Senate

All of the county falls within the 48th Senatorial District. The seat is currently held by former DA Republican Dave Arnold.

State House of Representatives

The county is divided into the 101st, 102nd and 104th Pennsylvania House Districts.

101st District

102nd District

104th District

The 104th District, which includes North Annville Twp. and East Hanover Twp., is represented by Republican Sue Helm.

County government

The county is governed by three commissioners, who are elected every four years from a slate of four candidates. Other elected officials include County Controller, Sheriff, Coroner, Prothonotary and Clerk of Court, Recorder of Deeds, County Treasurer, and Jury Commissioners.

Voter registration

As of November 2008, there are 82,394 registered voters in Lebanon County.
The county has a history of being one of the most Republican counties in Pennsylvania. No Democratic Presidential candidate has won Lebanon County since 1936, when Franklin Delano Roosevelt narrowly carried it even as he won re-election in a landslide nationally. The only other time in the 20th century that the county didn't support a Republican was in 1912, when Theodore Roosevelt carried it on the Bull Moose ticket.
Republicans are no less dominant at the state and local level. The row offices and all but one county commission seat are held by Republicans, and there are no elected Democrats above the county level.
Lebanon County was one of only four counties in the state to vote for Barry Goldwater in 1964, along with Snyder, Union, and Wayne counties.
In the 2006 election for U.S. Senate, the county cast 21,756 votes for Republican Rick Santorum and 17,737 for Democrat Bob Casey, Jr., who won the race. In that year's gubernatorial election, the county cast 22,775 votes for Republican Lynn Swann and 16,813 for Democrat Ed Rendell, who won the race.
In the 2004 presidential election, the county cast 37,089 votes for Republican George W. Bush and 18,109 for Democrat John Kerry. In that same year's election for U.S. Senate, the county cast 35,336 votes for Republican Arlen Specter, 13,182 for Democrat Joe Hoeffel, 3,320 for Constitution Party candidate Jim Clymer, and 1,083 for Libertarian Betsy Summers. In the 2008 presidential election the county cast 34,314 votes for Republican John McCain and 23,310 votes for Barack Obama. In the 2016 presidential election, the county cast 38,804 votes for Republican Donald Trump and 17,860 votes for Democrat Hillary Clinton.
In the 2002 gubernatorial election, the county cast 22,659 votes for Republican Mike Fisher and 12,712 for Democrat Ed Rendell, who won the race. In the 2002 race for the U.S. House of Representatives, Republican George Gekas received 21,733 votes from the county while Democrat Tim Holden received 13,945 ; Holden won.

Education

Colleges and universities

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 Lebanon County:

City

s 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.
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Lebanon County.
† county seat
RankCity/Town/etc.Municipal typePopulation
1† LebanonCity25,477
2PalmyraBorough7,320
3Annville CDP4,767
4CornwallBorough4,112
5CampbelltownCDP3,616
6MyerstownBorough3,062
7Pleasant HillCDP2,643
8Sand HillCDP2,496
9NewmanstownCDP2,478
10Lebanon SouthCDP2,270
11CleonaBorough2,080
12JonestownBorough1,905
13AvonCDP1,667
14RichlandBorough1,519
15FredericksburgCDP1,357
16HebronCDP1,305
17SchaefferstownCDP941
18QuentinCDP594
19Timber HillsCDP360
20Mount Gretna HeightsCDP323
21Mount GretnaBorough196
22Fort Indiantown GapCDP143

Parks & Recreational Places to Visit

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