Dauphin County, Pennsylvania


Dauphin County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 268,100. The county seat and the largest city is Harrisburg, Pennsylvania's state capital and tenth largest city. The county was created on March 4, 1785, from part of Lancaster County and was named after Louis-Joseph, Dauphin of France, the first son of king Louis XVI.
Dauphin County is included in the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Located within the county is Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station, site of the 1979 nuclear core meltdown.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. The county is bound to its western border by the Susquehanna River. It has a humid continental climate and the hardiness zone ranges from 6a to 7a. The area code is 717 with an overlay of 223.

Adjacent counties

As of the 2010 census, the county was 72.7% White, 18.0% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 3.2% Asian, and 3.1% were two or more races. 7.0% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry.
As of the census of 2000, there were 251,798 people, 102,670 households, and 66,119 families residing in the county. The population density was 479 people per square mile. There were 111,133 housing units at an average density of 212 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 77.11% White, 16.91% Black or African American, 0.16% Native American, 1.96% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.97% from other races, and 1.85% from two or more races. 4.13% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 29.2% were of German, 7.5% Irish, 7.3% American and 7.2% Italian ancestry. 91.8% spoke English and 3.9% Spanish as their first language.
According to 2005 estimates, 73.9% of the county's population was non-Hispanic whites. 17.8% of the population was African-Americans. 2.5% were Asians. Latinos now were 5.0% of the population.
In 2000 there were 102,670 households out of which 29.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.60% were married couples living together, 12.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.60% were non-families. 30.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county, the population was spread out with 24.30% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 30.10% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 14.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.80 males.
A study by Echelon Insights found Dauphin County to be the most typical county in America, with its 2016 presidential vote, median income, higher education rate, and religiosity all very close to the national averages.
;County poverty demographics
According to research by The Center for Rural Pennsylvania, which is a legislative Agency of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the poverty rate for Dauphin County was 13.4% in 2014. The statewide poverty rate was 13.6% in 2014. The 2012 childhood poverty rate by school district was: Central Dauphin School District - 39.3% living at 185% or below than the Federal Poverty Level; Derry Township School District - 14.3, Halifax Area School District - 30.8, Harrisburg City School District - 89.7%, Lower Dauphin School District - 20.0%, Middletown Area School District - 38.9, Millersburg Area School District - 38.9%, Steelton-Highspire School District - 74.8%, Susquehanna Township School District - 35.5% and Millersburg Area School District - 33.8%.
;Live Birth rate
Dauphin County's live birth rate was 3,688 births in 1990. The County's live birth rate in 2000 was 3,137 births, while in 2011 it was 3,439 babies. Over the past 50 years, rural Pennsylvania saw a steady decline in both the number and proportion of residents under 18 years old. In 1960, 1.06 million rural residents, or 35 percent of the rural population, were children.

Amish community

Dauphin County is home to an Amish community that resides in the Lykens Valley in the northern part of the county, consisting of eight church districts. The community was settled by Amish from Lancaster County seeking cheaper land.

Metropolitan Statistical Area

The United States Office of Management and Budget has designated Dauphin County as the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area . As of the 2010 U.S. Census the metropolitan area ranked 5th most populous in the State of Pennsylvania and the 96th most populous in the United States with a population of 549,475. Dauphin County is also a part of the larger Harrisburg-York-Lebanon, PA Combined Statistical Area , which combines the populations of Dauphin County as well as Adams, Cumberland, Lebanon, 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

Like most of the rest of the Susquehanna Valley, Dauphin County was once reliably Republican. However, there has been a decided shift toward the Democrats in national and statewide elections in recent years, who overtook the Republican countywide registration during the summer of 2008. Bob Casey Jr. carried the county in the 2006 Senate election when he unseated Rick Santorum. According to the Dauphin County Board of Elections, in 2008 Barack Obama became the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Dauphin County since 1964, receiving 9.0% more of the vote than John McCain. It was also only the third time Dauphin County had supported a Democrat for president since 1936. Obama won Dauphin with a slightly reduced majority in 2012, while Hillary Clinton won it with a narrow plurality in 2016. It is now the only blue county in traditionally heavily-Republican south-central Pennsylvania.
Nonetheless, the GOP still holds all of the county row offices, as well as a majority on the county commission. All but one state house seat is in Republican hands, as well as both of the state senate seats and the congressional seat. Most local elected officials are also Republican, by a margin of 3 to 1. This is because most Democratic strength is concentrated in Harrisburg, while the suburbs and rural areas remain heavily Republican.

County commissioners

In December 2015, the Commissioners adopted a new $5 per year car registration fee. The funds to be used for development programs. The County receives substantial dollars from the taxes on Gaming. The commissioners disperse these funds for community projects and development on an annual basis. The county also levies an annual property tax. Real estate tax levy is 6.876 millage.
;Budget

Education

Colleges and universities

Several public charter schools are established in Dauphin County
The Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15 is a state approved education agency that offers: school districts, charter schools, private schools, and home school students, a variety of services including: a completely developed K–12 curriculum that is mapped and aligned with the Pennsylvania Academic Standards, shared services, a group purchasing program and a wide variety of special education and special needs services.

Library system

The Dauphin County Library System provides library service to the residents of the county through a main central library in the state capital and county seat of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and eight branch libraries. DCLS is a private, non-profit corporation. It is governed by a 17-member Board of Trustees, five appointed annually by the Dauphin County Commissioners, and twelve elected for three-year terms. The Library is a member of the Pennsylvania library system.

Private schools

As reported by the National Center for Educational Statistics
The largest employers in Dauphin County in 2019 were:
There are two Pennsylvania state parks in Dauphin County.
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 Dauphin 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. Other unincorporated communities, such as villages, may be listed here as well.
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Dauphin County.
† county seat
RankCity/Town/etc.Municipal typePopulation
1† Harrisburg City49,528
2HersheyCDP14,257
3Colonial ParkCDP13,229
4ProgressCDP9,765
5MiddletownBorough8,901
6LinglestownCDP6,334
7SteeltonBorough5,990
8PaxtoniaCDP5,412
9HummelstownBorough4,538
10RutherfordCDP4,303
11Skyline ViewCDP4,003
12LawntonCDP3,813
13PenbrookBorough3,008
14MillersburgBorough2,557
15HighspireBorough2,399
16LykensBorough1,799
17PaxtangBorough1,561
18ElizabethvilleBorough1,510
19BresslerCDP1,437
20WilliamstownBorough1,387
21PalmdaleCDP1,308
22EnhautCDP1,007
23WiconsicoCDP921
24RoyaltonBorough907
25HalifaxBorough841
26DauphinBorough791
27GratzBorough765
28OberlinCDP588
29LenkervilleCDP550
30Union DepositCDP407
31BerrysburgBorough368
32PillowBorough298

Notable people