Portal:Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Portal

Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Maryland to its south, West Virginia to its southwest, Ohio and the Ohio River to its west, Lake Erie and New York to its north, the Delaware River and New Jersey to its east, and the Canadian province of Ontario to its northwest via Lake Erie. Pennsylvania's most populous city is Philadelphia.

Pennsylvania was founded in 1681 through a royal land grant to William Penn, the son of the state's namesake. Before that, between 1638 and 1655, a southeast portion of the state was part of New Sweden, a Swedish colony. Established as a haven for religious and political tolerance, the colonial-era Province of Pennsylvania was known for its relatively peaceful relations with native tribes, innovative government system, and religious pluralism.

Pennsylvania later played a vital and historic role in the American Revolution and the ultimately successful quest for independence from the British Empire, hosting the First and Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia, which formed the Continental Army and elected George Washington as its commander in 1775 during the American Revolutionary War, and unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence the following year. In 1787, following the establishment of the nation's independence, the Constitution of the United States, now the world's oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution, was written at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, and was ratified in Philadelphia the following year. On December 12, 1787, Pennsylvania was the second state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. (Full article...)

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1861 portrait

George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American military officer, politician and engineer who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey from 1878 to 1881 and as Commanding General of the United States Army from November 1861 to March 1862. He was also chief engineer and vice president of the Illinois Central Railroad, and later president of the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad in 1860.

A West Point graduate, McClellan served with distinction during the Mexican–American War. He was a railway executive and engineer until the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861. Early in the conflict, McClellan was appointed to the rank of major general and played an important role in raising the Army of the Potomac, which served in the Eastern Theater. (Full article...)

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Pennsylvania Route 463 (PA 463) is a 12.9-mile-long (20.8 km) state highway completely in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Its western terminus is at PA 63 in Hatfield Township and its eastern terminus is at PA 611 in Horsham. PA 463 runs through the northern suburbs of Philadelphia and passes through the towns of Hatfield, Montgomeryville, and Horsham. The route intersects PA 309, U.S. Route 202 Business (US 202 Bus.), and US 202 in Montgomeryville and PA 152 in Prospectville. Through its length, the route carries the names Forty Foot Road, Broad Street, Main Street, Cowpath Road, and Horsham Road. PA 463 was designated in 1928 and fully paved by 1940. In 2010, a portion of the route in Montgomery Township was widened. (Full article...)

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Credit: surplusparts
The Benjamin Franklin Parkway is a scenic avenue that runs through the cultural heart of Philadelphia.

Did you know -

... that Mid-State Regional Airport (pictured) is a Keystone Opportunity Zone to promote economic growth, but, to protect the Pennsylvania state park and forest it was formed from, cannot legally expand?
... that the 1852 Lombard Street Riot capped thirteen years of recurring racial violence in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania?
... that both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama refused to hand out street money, a political tactic common in Philadelphia, during the 2008 Pennsylvania primary?
... that when the YMCA of Berwick was incorporated in Pennsylvania in 1883, the majority of the organization's trustees were current executives of Jackson and Woodin Manufacturing Company?
... that of the 30 covered bridges that once stood in Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, only Forksville, Hillsgrove, and Sonestown remain, all of which were built in 1850?

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Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	Pittsburgh

Erie	Lehigh Valley	Pennsylvania Roads

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Washington's map of the Ohio River and surrounding region containing notes on French intentions, 1753 or 1754

The Battle of Jumonville Glen, also known as the Jumonville affair, was the opening battle of the French and Indian War, fought on May 28, 1754, near present-day Hopwood and Uniontown in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. A company of provincial troops from Virginia under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Washington, and a small number of Mingo warriors led by the chieftain Tanacharison (also known as the "Half King"), ambushed a force of 35 French Canadians under the command of Joseph Coulon de Jumonville.

A larger French Canadian force had driven off a small crew attempting to construct Fort Prince George under the auspices of the Ohio Company at present-day Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, land claimed by the French. A British colonial force led by George Washington was sent to protect the fort under construction. The French Canadians sent Jumonville to warn Washington about encroaching on French-claimed territory. Washington was alerted to Jumonville's presence by Tanacharison, and they joined forces to ambush the French Canadian camp. Washington's force killed Jumonville and some of his men in the ambush and captured most of the others. The exact circumstances of Jumonville's death are a subject of historical controversy and debate. (Full article...)

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Portrait c. 1850–1868

James Buchanan Jr. (/bjuːˈkænən/ ^ⓘ bew-KAN-ən; April 23, 1791 – June 1, 1868) was the 15th president of the United States, serving from 1857 to 1861. He also served as the secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and represented Pennsylvania in both houses of the U.S. Congress. Buchanan was an advocate for states' rights, particularly regarding slavery, and minimized the role of the federal government preceding the American Civil War.

Buchanan was a lawyer in Pennsylvania and won his first election to the state's House of Representatives as a Federalist. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1820 and retained that post for five terms, aligning with Andrew Jackson's Democratic Party. Buchanan served as Jackson's minister to Russia in 1832. He won the election in 1834 as a U.S. senator from Pennsylvania and continued in that position for 11 years. He was appointed to serve as President James K. Polk's secretary of state in 1845, and eight years later was named as President Franklin Pierce's minister to the United Kingdom. (Full article...)

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Pennsylvania news

State facts

State Facts

Nickname: The Keystone State
Capital: Harrisburg
Largest city: Philadelphia
Total area: 119,283 square kilometers (46,055 square miles)
Population (2000 census): 12,281,054
Date admitted to the Union: December 12, 1787 (2^nd)

State symbols

Bird: Ruffed grouse
Fish: Brook trout
Floral emblem: Mistletoe
Flower: Mountain laurel
Insect: Pennsylvania firefly
Mammal: White-tailed deer
Tree: Eastern Hemlock
Fossil: Trilobite
Soil: Hazleton
Song: Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania topics

General images

The following are images from various Pennsylvania-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Stephen Decatur, a 19th-century naval commander who served in the War of 1812 and other engagements (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 2Ethnic origins of Pennsylvanians (from Pennsylvania)
Image 3One of only two confirmed photos of Abraham Lincoln (sitting in center, facing camera, without his traditional top hat) at Gettysburg a few hours prior to giving the Gettysburg Address at Gettysburg National Cemetery on November 19, 1863. The address, which was only 271 words in length, ranks among the most famed speeches in American history. (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 4Philadelphia International Airport, the busiest airport in the state and the 21st-busiest airport in the nation with over 13 million passengers in 2023 (from Pennsylvania)
Image 5Pittsburgh Steelers' fans waving the Terrible Towel, a tradition that dates back to 1975 (from Pennsylvania)
Image 6The colonial possessions of Britain (in pink), France (in blue), and Spain (in orange) as of 1750. The French later lost their possessions in North America to Britain following its defeat in the French and Indian War, fought from 1754 to 1763 (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 7The Hershey Company in Hershey (from Pennsylvania)
Image 8
Pennsylvania's unemployment rate between 1976 and 2021
The U.S. unemployment rate during these years
(from Pennsylvania)
Image 9Citizens Bank Park in South Philadelphia, home of the Philadelphia Phillies, the oldest continuous same-name, same-city franchise in American professional sports (from Pennsylvania)
Image 102024 U.S. presidential election results by county in Pennsylvania
Democratic
Republican
(from Pennsylvania)
Image 11Pat's King of Steaks in South Philadelphia is widely credited with inventing the cheesesteak in 1933. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 12Benjamin Franklin, a Founding Father of the United States and Pennsylvania delegate to the Second Continental Congress, which created the Continental Army in 1775 and unanimously adopted and issued the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 13The Birth of Pennsylvania, a portrait of William Penn (standing with document in hand), who founded the Province of Pennsylvania in 1681 as a refuge for Quakers after receiving a royal deed to it from King Charles II (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 14The Köppen climate types of Pennsylvania based on 1991–2020 climate normals (from Pennsylvania)
Image 15Pennsylvania Municipalities (from Pennsylvania)
Image 16Pennsylvania population density map (from Pennsylvania)
Image 17An Amish family riding in a traditional Amish buggy in Lancaster County. As of 2024, Pennsylvania has an Amish population of 92,660, the largest of any state in the nation. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 18The Statue of Benjamin Franklin on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania in West Philadelphia, which pays tribute to Benjamin Franklin, a Founding Father who founded the university, now an Ivy League institution and one of the world's top universities, in 1740 (from Pennsylvania)
Image 19Bethlehem Steel in Bethlehem was one of the world's leading steel manufacturers for most of the 19th and 20th century. In 1982, however, it discontinued most of its operations, declared bankruptcy in 2001, and was dissolved in 2003. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 20Independence Hall in Philadelphia, where the Declaration of Independence and United States Constitution were adopted in 1776 and 1787–88, respectively (from Pennsylvania)
Image 21The Stonycreek Township crash site of Flight 93, one of four planes hijacked in the September 11 attacks; the site is now a national memorial. Flight 93 passengers wrestled with al-Qaeda terrorist hijackers for control of the plane, preventing it from being flown into the White House or U.S. Capitol. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 22The Gettysburg campaign, which culminated in the Battle of Gettysburg, was a major turning point in the American Civil War and the war's bloodiest battle with an estimated 46,000 to 51,000 casualties (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 23The Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg (from Pennsylvania)
Image 24The Philadelphia Eagles are presented with the Vince Lombardi Trophy on February 4, 2018, after winning Super Bowl LII, in which they defeated the New England Patriots 41–33. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 25Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom's Steel Force and Thunderhawk roller coasters in Allentown; Steel Force is the eighth-longest steel roller coaster in the world with a first drop of 205 feet (62 m) and a top speed of 75 miles per hour (121 km/h). Founded in 1884, Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom is the fifth-oldest amusement park in the nation. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 26NASCAR racing at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond (from Pennsylvania)
Image 27Map of Pennsylvania's 67 counties (from Pennsylvania)
Image 28Shelter House in Emmaus, constructed in 1734 by Pennsylvania German settlers, is the oldest continuously occupied building structure in the Lehigh Valley and one of the oldest in Pennsylvania (from Pennsylvania)
Image 29The Battle of Gettysburg, an 1887 portrait by Thure de Thulstrup depicting the Battle of Gettysburg, fought over three days from July 1 to July 3, 1863, in Gettysburg, which was the deadliest battle in both the Civil War and all of American military history. The Union army's victory at Gettysburg proved the Civil War's turning point, paving the way for the Union's ultimate victory two years later and the nation's preservation. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 30Simon Cameron of Maytown was Secretary of War and head of Pennsylvania's Republican Party, whose party machine controlled Pennsylvania into the 20th century. (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 31A woodcut illustration of the crowd at the first Republican National Convention in 1856 at Musical Fund Hall at 808 Locust Street in Philadelphia (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 32A map of New Netherland (in magenta) and New Sweden (in blue) in the 17th century; New Sweden was later absorbed by New Netherland and then the British in the Second Anglo-Dutch War. (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 33Frederick Winslow Taylor of Philadelphia, a late 19th and early 20th century pioneer in scientific management (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 34Lenape chief Lappawinsoe, depicted in a 1735 painting by Gustavus Hesselius (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 35On November 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln (center, facing camera) traveled to present-day Gettysburg National Cemetery and delivered the Gettysburg Address, a 271-word address considered one of the most famous speeches in American history. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 36South Philadelphia High School on Broad Street in South Philadelphia in February 2010 (from Pennsylvania)
Image 37Rivers Casino, located in the Chateau section of Pittsburgh on the Ohio River, one of Pennsylvania's 16 casinos (from Pennsylvania)
Image 38The locomotive Tioga in Philadelphia in 1848; Pennsylvania was an important railroad center throughout the 19th century. (from History of Pennsylvania)
Image 39William Penn, a Quaker and son of a prominent admiral, founded the colonial Province of Pennsylvania in 1681. (from Pennsylvania)
Image 40Amtrak's Pennsylvanian on Horseshoe Curve in Logan Township (from Pennsylvania)
Image 41Autumn in North Branch Township in Wyoming County in October 2011 (from Pennsylvania)

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