| Capital: | Harrisburg |
| Date and rank of Statehood | December 12, 1787 & Second of Thirteen to ratify constitution |
| Nickname: | Keystone State |
| Motto | Virtue, Liberty, and Independence |
| Population (1998 Census Estimate): | 12,001,451 |
| 10 largest cities (1998 Census Estimate): |
Philadelphia, 1,436,287
Pittsburgh, 340,520 Erie, 102,640 Allentown, 100,757 Reading, 74,762 Scranton, 74,683 Lancaster, 52,951 Bethlehem, 51,053 Harrisburg, 49,502 Altoona, 49,226 |
| Largest county (1998 Census Estimate): |
Philadelphia -- 1,436,287 |
| Number of Counties: | 67 |
| Length: | 180 miles North to South |
| Width: | 310 miles East to West |
| Area: | 46,058.2 sq mi (119,290.7 sq km) |
| Highest point: | Mt Davis, Somerset County, 3,213 feet (980 meters) |
| Lowest point: | Delaware River, Sea Level |
| State Forests : | 2,100,000 acres |
| State Parks: | 116 parks with 283,000 acres |
| Land: | Coastal plains are found in the northwest and southeast. Mountain ranges extend diagonally across the state. |
| Louisa May Alcott, novelist; John Barrymore, actor; Donald Barthelme, author; Stephen Vincent Benet, poet and story writer; Daniel Boone, frontiersman; Ed Bradley, TV anchorman; James Buchanan, President; Alexander Calder, sculptor; Mary Cassatt, painter; Henry Steele Commager, historian; Bill Cosby, actor; Jimmy & Tommy Dorsey, band leaders; W.C. Fields, comedian; Stephen Foster, composer; Robert Fulton, inventor; Alexander Haig, ex-Secretary of State; H.J. Heinz, executive; Milton Hershey, Chocolate executive; Lee Iacocca, auto executive; Reggie Jackson, baseball player; Gene Kelly, dancer and actor; Grace Kelly, Princess of Monaco; Gelsey Kirkland, ballerina; S.S. Kresge, merchant; Mario Lanza, actor and singer; |
George C. Marshall, 5-star general; George McClellan, general; Margaret Mead, anthropologist; Andrew Mellon, financier; Tom Mix, actor; Arnold Palmer, golfer; Robert E. Peary, explorer; Betsy Ross, flagmaker; B.F. Skinner, psychologist; John Sloan, painter; Wil Smith, actor; Jean Stapleton, actress; Gertrude Stein, author; James Stewart, actor; Sharon Stone, actress; John Updike, novelist; Honus Wagner, baseball player; Fred Waring, band leader; Ethel Waters, singer and actress; August Wilson, poet, writer, and playwright; Duchess of Windsor (Wallis Warfield); Andrew Wyeth, painter |