1. A Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies; Also called: Keystone State.
2. One of the British colonies that formed the United States.
State in ne us; nicknamed Keystone State
Area 117,400 sq km/45,316 sq mi
Capital Harrisburg
Towns and cities Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Erie, Allentown, Scranton
Features Allegheny Mountains; Ohio, Susquehanna, and Delaware rivers; Allegheny national forest; the Poconos, a mountainous wilderness on the Delaware River; Poconos resort region; Pennsylvania Dutch country (the name comes from Deutsch, meaning German), settled in the 18th century by German immigrants escaping religious persecution, and the home of sects, including the Amish in Lancaster County; Hans Herr House (1719), former Mennonite meeting place, the best example of medieval German architecture in North America; Independence national historic park, Philadelphia; Valley Forge national historic park; Gettysburg national military park, site of the Civil War battle 1863; Eisenhower national historic site; University of Pennsylvania; Carnegie Mellon Institute; University of Pittsburgh; Andy Warhol museum, Pittsburgh; Bryn Mawr College (1880); Swarthmore College (1864); Curtis Institute of Music; Philadelphia Orchestra; Philadelphia Museum of Art; Hershey, the “Chocolate Town”, founded by Milton S Hershey 1903
, including Hersheypark and Hershey’s Chocolate World
Industries hay, cereals, mushrooms, cattle, poultry, dairy products, cement, coal, steel, petroleum products, pharmaceuticals, motor vehicles and equipment, electronic components, textiles
Population (1990) 11,881,600
Famous people Marian Anderson, Andrew Carnegie, Stephen Foster, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Fulton, Martha Graham, George C Marshall, Robert E Peary, Benjamin Rush, Gertrude Stein, John Updike, Andy Warhol
History disputed by Sweden, the Netherlands, and England early 17th century; granted to Quaker William Penn 1682 by English King Charles ii, after the 1664 capture of New Netherlands. The Declaration of Independence was proclaimed in Philadelphia, and many important Revolutionary War battles were fought here 1777–78. One of the original 13 states, Pennsylvania was a leader in both agriculture and industry. The Battle of Gettysburg 1863 was a turning point in the Civil War for the Union cause. Until 1920, Pennsylvania was dominant in oil, coal, iron, steel, and textile production, but it already was losing its industrial lead when the Great Depression struck; by 1933, 37% of the work force was unemployed. Some areas never fully recovered, and the state now looks to agriculture, service-related industries, trade, and tourism for economic growth.
There was a breakdown at the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor plant in Harrisburg 1979.