Blair

Formed February 26, 1846 (59^th county)

Blair County (122,820), Hollidaysburg (5,644), Altoona (43,970)

The stone Gothic facility was built in 1877 and remodeled and enlarged in 1906.  This facility is on Allegheny Street at Wayne Street.  United States Highway 22 is two blocks south of the site.  David S. Gendall is the architect.  An Annex was added in 1998.  Blair County was formed on February 26, 1846 from parts of Huntingdon and Bedford counties as the 59^th county with Hollidaysburg as the only county seat.  It is named for settler John Blair.  The county seat is named for settlers Adam and William Holliday. 

Blair County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Five Common Pleas Court Judges and Six Magistrate Court Judges serve Blair County.  The county is in the western part of the state.  Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is west and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania is east of the county.  The county center is in Hollidaysburg 2 miles North of the city center.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Centre, Huntingdon, Bedford, Cambria, and Clearfield counties. 

The area of the county is 527 square miles.  It is 44 out of 67 in the state.  It ranks 28 out of 67 in population in the state.  It has a density of 233.1 persons per square mile making it 24 out of 67 in the state.  Blair County has 52.1% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 99 travels northeast to southwest through the county from Centre County to Bedford County.  United States Highway 22 crosses east to west from Huntingdon County to Cambria County.  United States Highway 220 parallels Interstate Highway 99 from Centre to Bedford counties.  The county resembles a bird squatting down and tilting northeast.  Hollidaysburg is in the southwest quarter of the county.  Altoona is in the western third of the county.  Hollidaysburg is the county seat and Altoona is the largest city.  Hollidaysburg is 4.6% of the county population while Altoona is 35.8% of the county population.  The largest city is pronounced AL-TOO-NA.  This county is in the Altoona Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Tunnelhill