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WELCOME TO CLARION COUNTY Clarion Area Chamber of Business & Industry 2019-2020 Clarion is a great place to provide guidance, offer live, work, and raise a assistance to those in times family. Some of the most of need, and encourage beautiful land in community togetherness. Inside this issue: Pennsylvania as well as Every fall, anywhere from truly wonderful Rich Beginning 2 250,000 to 500,000 people opportunities for hunting flock to Clarion for the Natural Highlights 4 and fishing in the state can Autumn Leaf Festival™. People of Clarion Co. 4 be found in the area. There This nine-day, award- are over 159,000 acres of Government 5 winning event celebrates forest here, of which the the area’s fall foliage and Autumn Leaf Festival™ 5 Clarion County, created on largest portion lies within features the largest daytime Economy & Labor 5 March 11, 1839 from parts Cook Forest. of Venango and Armstrong parade in Pennsylvania as Transportation 6 Counties, was the 54th A wide selection of shops well as a week-long and restaurants of many carnival, a Farmer’s and Higher Education 6 county formed in Pennsylvania, and received genres can be found in the Crafter’s Day, a car cruise, Clarion University 7 its name from the Clarion Clarion Area. Downtown tractor show, art show, and K-12 Education 7 River that runs through it. Clarion is virtually picture more. perfect on Main Street, Pre-Schools 8 The town of Clarion was Take some time to peruse where you’ll find old created specifically with the the pages of this brochure, Campgrounds 8 fashioned charm purpose of serving as the where you will find more everywhere you look. The Emergency Services 9 county seat. By 1841 the information on the above merchants are friendly, borough of Clarion boasted topics as well as a Religion 10 helpful, and always happy a population of almost 750 reference guide on the Numbers 12 to have you stop in and just residents. Today, there are many communities in the take some time to look Toll-Free Hotlines 12 almost 5,000 residents in county, a phone reference around. Exit 62 off of I-80 the borough, with almost guide, as well as other Medical Care 13 has many options for 40,000 residents throughout information. Staying Fit 13 Clarion County. shopping and dining for all ages with a wide selection Cook Forest 14 The community of Clarion of merchandise offered by County Map 15 enjoys a small town major retailers and lifestyle, but is also easily East Brady 16 independently owned shops accessible to the two alike. Emlenton 17 largest cities in western There are over 80 churches Knox 18 Pennsylvania as it is located just under 100 miles of various denominations in New Bethlehem 19 northeast of Pittsburgh and the area, giving residents Rimersburg 20 just over 100 miles countless worship southeast of Erie. opportunities that enable Sligo 21 participants the chance to To Do - Clarion 22 The area has been a known serve and enrich their lives. producer of natural gas, oil, Religious leaders make To Do - Foxburg 24 lumber, and coal. themselves available to To Do -Cooksburg 25 PAGE 2 WELCOME TO CLARION COUNTY A Rich Beginning For Clarion seeming to indicate a warlike bat- in 1839 and was the 54th county tle between two tribes. in Pennsylvania. The southern boundary of the county is made At the time the first settlers made up of the Allegheny River as well their way into our area in 1801, as Butler and Armstrong Coun- the region was a wilderness. Pio- ties. Jefferson County creates neer settlers were predominately the eastern border. Scotch-Irish and German, and Delaware Indian tribe came here from the older coun- Again, Clarion County received ties of the state. its name from the Clarion River Before the time of the first settlers that runs through it. Historically, to this area, the Seneca and Del- it is said that the river was known aware Indians used these lands as Stump Creek and Toby’s as hunting grounds for deer and Creek. While surveying for a elk. The land proved a neutral road, surveyors camping by the dividing ground between the two river noted how the rippling of the tribes. Although the Senecas water was made mellow by the claimed the land as theirs, their wall of timber that spanned both “long cabin” , located in what is sides of the river. One man said now Venango County, was too far it sounded like a distant clarion. away to claim more than a nomi- Lake Erie, Franklin & Clarion Railroad The river has been known as the nal possession of the area. Clarion River ever since. Therefore, from time to time they Transportation was of great im- would hold encampment on the portance to the development of The earliest means of livelihood, lands for the purposes of hunting Clarion County. Steamboats other than farming, was lumber- or warlike missions, and in their were used to reach the area dur- ing. With a population of nearly absence, the Delawares or even ing certain times of the year. The 15,000 in 1839, settlers who were the Shawanese hunters would construction of the first highway predominately Scotch-Irish, made take their place. in the area began in 1803, the their living through farming and road opened in 1805, and the first small sawmills. The large stand bridge over the Clarion River was of virgin timber in the area attract- constructed in 1821. A turnpike, ed the lumbermen, who often tied which ran from central Pennsyl- the lumber together and floated vania to Erie, passed through their lumber rafts from many Clarion County. After the Civil sawmills that existed here to mar- Seneca “long cabin” War, the Allegheny Railroad ket at Pittsburgh where it was reached into southern Clarion then sold. Small kegs of pine tar County. were also exported to Pittsburgh Many Indian relics have been by river barges. found in the area, indicating that it The first post office in the area was in fact a habitat for some opened in 1818 at a home locat- aboriginal tribe. Indian ed two miles east of Strattanville. graves ,consisting of piled stones A mail line existed much earlier, and containing items such as running from Meadville to Kittan- tomahawks and arrow heads, ning and passing through this were discovered in the area. On a area, but there was no actual local farm, flint hatchets and ar- postal service here. rowheads in large quantities over As mentioned on the previous a confined area were found, Lumber being floated down the river page, Clarion County was formed PAGE 3 WELCOME TO CLARION COUNTY A Rich Beginning For Clarion (cont.) Clarion County really made a name for itself after the “Oil Boom” in 1859. Colonel Edwin L. Drake struck oil while drilling in Titusville and Clarion County at one time was considered one of the region’s largest oil pro- ducers. Clarion had over fifty wells by 1876. Music store for demonstrations. This store was the only music In addition to an abundant oil store north of Pittsburgh to carry belt, the county also has exten- Edison’s line of products. sive gas fields, sand for glass making, good fire clay and bitu- In 1941, Roy Rogers and Trigger minous coal reserves. appeared at the Orpheum Thea- ter on Main Street (built in 1925 The original residents of Clarion and closed in 1998). Trigger ac- Helen “Highland” Furnace circa 1938 constructed the county court- cidentally kicked a hole in the house in 1840. After a devas- movie screen and it had to be After the lumber industry came tating fire, the courthouse was replaced. the iron industry. Clarion County rebuilt in 1859 with the addition became known as “The Iron of a lighted clock. Clarion County enjoys a rich his- County” due to the many iron tory—much more than could ev- furnaces here, more than any er fit on these pages. However, other county in the state. hopefully you can see a glimpse of what the area can offer you as The county’s population began you peruse this packet. to grow due to the rise of these industries, and increased even further as oil and later the coal and glassmaking industries be- gan to flourish. Prior to the Civil War, Clarion County had several iron furnaces. However, the Clarion County Jail circa 1873 business declined with the emer- gence of the steel industry after The first jail was a plain struc- the Civil War. Some ruins of the ture of square cut sandstone. old furnaces still stand today. After falling into disrepair, the jail was torn down and its stones used in the foundation of the courthouse that stands to this day. The jail was rebuilt in 1873, and in only one execution was carried out there for the crime of murder that occurred in Rimers- burg in 1909. In the early 1900’s, Thomas Edi- son would travel from time to Clarion County Courthouse - as it looks The original Clarion County Courthouse time to Clarion to the Poulain today PAGE 4 WELCOME TO CLARION COUNTY Natural Highlights majority of the remaining forest in forest areas, have contributed Clarion County is Pennsylvania significantly to the local economy. State Game lands. This truly is The county’s area is 607 square some of the best hunting and miles, its climate is temperate fishing in the state. with four distinct seasons, and The Clarion and Allegheny Rivers the average annual temperature provide many recreational and is fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit.

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