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Berks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 373,638. Its county seat is Reading6.

History

Reading developed during the 1740s and the northern inhabitants of Lancaster County sent several petitions requesting that a separate county be established. With the help of Conrad Weiser, the county was formed on March 11, 1752 from parts of Chester County, Lancaster County, and Philadelphia County and named after William Penn's family home of Berkshire, England. Berks County began much larger than it is today. The northwestern parts of the county went to the founding of Northumberland County in 1772 and Schuylkill County in 1811, when it reached its current size.

Law and Government

Pennsylvania State Senate

Pennsylvania House Of Representatives

United States House Of Representatives

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,242 km² (866 mi²). 2,224 km² (859 mi²) of it is land and 18 km² (7 mi²) of it (0.78%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 373,638 people, 141,570 households, and 98,532 families residing in the county. The population density was 168/km² (435/mi²). There were 150,222 housing units at an average density of 68/km² (175/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 88.18% White, 3.69% Black or African American, 0.16% Native American, 1.01% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 5.44% from other races, and 1.50% from two or more races. 9.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Historically there was a large Pennsylvania Dutch population and it is known as a part of Pennsylvania Dutch Country.

There were 141,570 households out of which 31.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.50% were married couples living together, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.40% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.05.

In the county, the population was spread out with 24.60% under the age of 18, 8.80% from 18 to 24, 28.90% from 25 to 44, 22.60% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.70 males.

Municipalities

Cities

Boroughs

Townships

Census-designated places

Education

Colleges and universities

Public School Districts

Community, Junior and Technical Colleges

References

External links

Berks County, Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania counties

Бъркс | Berks County | Condado de Berks

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Berks County, Pennsylvania".

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