LANCASTER TODAY
The County
Lancaster County, with an area of 946 square miles (2.1 % of the state’s total area), showed a population of 470,658 in the 2000 census, an increase of nearly 48,000 from the 1990 census. Based on population it has been classified by the state since 1962 as a third class county (out of nine classes).
With an increasing population has come the need for careful land management, and the county and most municipalities have development plans in place to try to balance the need for new facilities with the need to preserve the county’s history and its beauty. Two volunteer organizations with those goals are the Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County, a nonprofit organization working to preserve the county’s architectural heritage, and the Lancaster County Conservancy, a nonprofit land preservation organization which has preserved more than 1,400 acres of unique wild land such as the Ferncliff Wildflower and Wildlife Reserve in Drumore Township and the Tucquan Glen Nature Preserve in Martic Township.
The county’s tradition of economic stability has continued, with agriculture, industry, and tourism all contributing to the overall strength of the economy.
Agriculture
One of the most fertile agricultural areas in the land, Lancaster County produces more agricultural products and yields more food than any other non-irrigated county in the nation. Factors that account for this high ranking include some of the richest soils in the nation, relatively little slope, moderate climate, and evenly distributed rainfall. The Swiss-Germans who originally settled in the county had great farming ability, and their successors have continued in that fine tradition.
In its 1998-99 Statistical Summary, the state Department of Agriculture ranked Lancaster County first in number of farms, egg and milk production, broilers and other chickens raised, cattle and calves, milking cows, and hogs and pigs. In crop production, the county was first in corn, barley, alfalfa and other hays. The value of agricultural commodities in 1998 was nearly $923 million.
The county currently houses 5,910 farms occupying nearly 418,500 acres. Almost 30,000 acres of farmland were lost to development in the 10 years from 1980 to 1990, but that rate has slowed considerably thanks to preservation efforts. The Agricultural Preservation Board, established in 1980 by the county commissioners, has developed and administers a voluntary deed-restriction program. By December of 2000, the Board and the Lancaster Farmland Trust, a private nonprofit organization working in the county, had jointly pre-served more than 425 farms covering some 40,000 acres. Such efforts are keeping agriculture a vital part of the county’s economy.
Business and Industry
One of the leading industrial areas of the state, Lancaster County is considered a prime location for manufacturing, away from congested areas, yet close to the major East Coast markets. Industry is highly diversified, which helps to maintain the economic stability.
In 1999, there were 10,423 businesses in the county, manufacturing, among other things, floor coverings, printed and published goods, electron tubes, farm machinery, food and kindred products, castings, steel fabrications, tobacco products, and pharmaceuticals. More than a dozen retirement communities have been developed in the county in recent years, making the retirement business a major industry here. The three top employers are Lancaster General Hospital, R.R. Donnelley & Sons, and Armstrong World Industries. The number of working people in Lancaster County in 2000 was 235,300.
The unemployment rate in the county has remained consistently lower than the state and national averages. In Sept-ember of 2000, for instance, the unemployment rate rate was 2.3 percent, the lowest in the state, where the rate was 4 percent (the national rate standing at 3.8 percent). This meant that people between jobs constituted most of the jobless in the county, and employers were competing actively to hire and keep workers.
Tourism
Because of the area’s historic sites, the city’s architectural charm, the county’s rolling, well-kept farmlands, and the large Amish community, Lancaster has become more and more attractive to tourists. In 1998, some 4.5 million visitors generated an estimated $1.2 billion in revenues, including monies spent at the county’s outlet stores.
Sites which draw the most visitors are: the Amish Farm and House, Amish Village, Ephrata Cloister, Dutch Wonderland, Historic Downtown Lancaster with its walking tours, Central Market and the Heritage Center, Kitchen Kettle Village, Landis Valley Museum, PA Renaissance Faire, Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, Renninger’s Antique and Collectors Market, Rockvale Square Outlets, Sight and Sound Millennium Theatre, and Tanger Outlet Center.
For further visitor information, contact the PA Dutch Convention and Visitors Bureau at 299-8901 or www.padutchcountry.com.