clarion+county

__Clarion County__       Clarion County, located in the beautiful Appalachian Mountain range, consists of twenty two townships and twelve boroughs. As of the census of 2000, there were 41,765 people, 16,052 households, and 10,738 families residing in this county. Clarion County was established on March 11, 1839 consisting of parts of Armstrong, Venango counties, and Pittsburg. It was named after the Clarion River. The river was the dividing line between the two counties. In the early years, the river was known as Stump Creek and Tobys Creek. As people camped by the river, they heard ripples of water that sounded like a distant clarion. Since then, the river has been known as the Clarion River. Clarion County is the 54th county to be formed in the state of Pennsylvania. By March 14, 1839 submission was made to the legislature and governor to authorize the appointment of three citizens. Those citizens were James Thompson, John Gilmore, and Samuel L. Carpenter. Their jobs were to take deeds of trust from people donationg land, laying out the town in lots, and to make contracts for public buildings. Not long after Thompson resigned and by July 25th John P. Davis, of Crawford County, filled his position. Growth of enterprise and population was due to the rise of iron, lumber, and oil industries. The iron business declined after the Civil War with the emergence of the new steel industry. The amount of timber in the forest attracted the lumbermen. The sawmills that produced lumber was floated to market at Pittsburg. Later the larger scale operations replaced the sawmills and made providing market, with the use of the Clarion River, easier. Clarion County was part of the oil producing region and shared the development of natural resource after the drilling of Colonel Edwin L. Drake's well at Titusville in 1859. At one point the county was a leading oil producer. In adition to an oil belt, the county has widespread gas fields, sand for glass making, good fire clay and bituminous coal reserves. Clarion, the county seat, was incorporated as a borough on April 6,1841. Under Pennsylvania law there are four incoporated municipalities: boroughs, cities, townships, and towns. Some boroughs and townships are                          Callensburg, East Brady, Knox, New Bethlehem, St. Petersburg, Ashland Township, Highland Township, Perry Township, Washington Township, and Salem Township. Clarion County has many festivals and fairs throughout the year. Some of these events are their local festivals, such as the Clarion County Fair, the Autumn Leaf Festival, the Cookie Daze Celebration, Once Upon a Christmas, and the Horsethief Festival. The most famous tourist attraction is Cook Forest State Park, which is 8,500 acres and lies in Northwestern Pennsylvania. The Clarion River borders the east and is popular for canoeing and rafting. Another great tourist attraction is in Pittsburg, it is known as the "Largest French and Indian War Exhibition in the World". The French and Indian War, also known as the Seven Years War because of the time it took for the war itself to come to a close, is a big part in the history of Pennsylvania. It is open for public viewing. "     It was a struggle between three empires," the British, the French and American Indian people -- the Iroquois Nation.", said CEO Andy Masic. I      t originally began in Western Pennsylvania. This two day encampment reenacts the war with cannon firing, surgical teqniques, cooking, and the traditional fighting. Over all Clarion County provides scenic views and recreational areas.
 * History and Present Day :  **

** Famous People & Things **: *  Highest bridge — spans the Allegheny River on I-80 near Emlenton * Astronaut Clark McClelland

* President James Buchman *  Mrs. Nancy McCloskey, known locally as "Mother," died in 1897 at the age of 107. She had been Western Pennsylvania's oldest living person


 * Timeline :**
 * **march 11, 1839** - Clarion County was established
 * **march 14, 1839** submission was made to the legislature and governor to authorize the appointment of three citizens
 * **Apr 6, 1841** Located in Clarion County, Clarion was incorporated as a borough on April 6, 1841
 * **1842** the courthouse started being buit
 * **1843** the courthouse was finished
 * **1847** jail was finished


 * **March 10, 1859** - the courthouse burnt down


 * **1863** - second courthouse was built
 * **1875** - a new jail was built because the old one was insecure
 * **1889** clock was illuminated at night


 * **1907** exterior wood and lady of justice was painted


 * **1910** newly graded and terraced landscaping


 * **1918** erection of flagpole (clarion woman’s club) 70 feet high


 * **1920** county memorial in front lawn


 * **1922** installation of 2 drinking fountains


 * **1923** wired for electric lights


 * **1941** lights in tower darkened during W.W.II period


 * **1944** lights back on in tower


 * **1977** complete re-wiring of the electrical system

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 * **1981** a complete exterior renovation

__** Bibliography **__
 * http://news.google.com/archivesearch?gbv=2&hl=en&resnum=0&q=of+in+clarion+county&um=1&ie=UTF-8&scoring=t&sa=X&oi=archive&ct=title
 * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarion_County
 * http://www.clarioncounty.info/content/category/5/19/32/
 * http://www.co.clarion.pa.us/history.html