Geography of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Harrisburg is located in South Central Pennsylvania at 40°16′11′′N 76°52′32′′W, within a two-hour drive of the metropolitan areas of Baltimore, Washington, and Philadelphia, and a three-hour drive of New York City and Pittsburgh. The city has a total area of 11.4 square miles, of which 8.1 square miles are land and 3.3 square miles (29.11%) are water, according to the United States Census Bureau. Paxton Creek, which empties into the Susquehanna River at Harrisburg, as well as Wildwood Lake and Italian Lake parks, are bodies of water. In terms of geographical area, Harrisburg (proper) is the third smallest capital city in the United States.

The Blue Mountain ridge of the Appalachians is situated directly to the north of Harrisburg. The Cumberland Valley extends into northern Maryland directly west of Harrisburg and the Susquehanna River. The lush Lebanon Valley is located to the east. Harrisburg is located on the historic Pennsylvania Dutch Country's northern border.

The city serves as the county seat for Dauphin County. Northumberland County to the north, Schuylkill County to the northeast, Lebanon County to the east, Lancaster County to the south, York County to the southwest, Cumberland County to the west, and Perry County to the northwest are the neighboring counties.

Population of Harrisburg, PA

At the 2020 census, there were 50,099 people living in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

There were 20,561 households, of which 28.5% had children under the age of 13, 23.4% were married couples living together, 24.1% had a female householder without a husband present, and 46.9% were non-families. 39.3% of all households were comprised of individuals, and 10.4% of those individuals were aged 65 or older and residing alone. The average size of a household was 2.32 and the average size of a family was 3.15.

In the city, 28.2% were under the age of 18, 9.2% were between the ages of 13 and 24, 31.0% were between the ages of 25 and 44, 20.8% were between the ages of 45 and 64, and 10.9% were 65 years of age or older. The average age was 33 years old. There were 88.7 males for every 100 females. There were 84.8 males for every 100 females aged 13 and up.