Bradford

Formed February 21, 1810 (43^rd county)

Bradford County (59,969), Towanda (2,798), Sayre (5,463) 

The domed Neo-Classical Renaissance Revival structure was erected in 1896.  The courthouse is in a square surrounded by Main, Park, River, and Court streets.  United States Highway 6 is Main Street in this part of the town.  Israel Lehman & Theodore Schmitt provided the building designs.  Towanda was the first county seat until 1894-1916 when Troy had the county seat before it returned to Towanda.  The county was formed on February 21, 1810 from parts of Lycoming and Luzerne as the 43^rd county.  Bradford County is named for United States Attorney General William Bradford.  The county seat name is Native American for “burial ground.” 

Bradford County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Two Common Pleas Court Judges and Two Magistrate Court Judges serve Bradford County.  The county is on the northeast border with New York.  Harrisburg, Pennsylvania is southwest and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is southeast of the county.  The Susquehanna River flows through the county.  The county center is 8.5 miles Northwest of Towanda nearer Ulster.  The county is surrounded clockwise by New York and Susquehanna, Wyoming, Sullivan, Lycoming, and Tioga counties. 

The area of the county is 1161 square miles.  It is 2 out of 67 in the state.  It ranks 41 out of 67 in population in the state.  It has a density of 51.7 persons per square mile making it 54 out of 67 in the state.  Bradford County has 30.2% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 6 passes through the county from east to west from Wyoming County to Tioga County.  United States Highway 220 goes north to south from New York to Sullivan County.  The county is an overall rectangle.  Towanda is slightly east of center in the county.  Sayre is on the northern border of the county.  Towanda is the county seat and Sayre is the largest city.  Towanda is 4.7% of the county population while Sayre is 9.1% of the county population.  The county seat is pronounced TO-WAN-DA.  The largest city is pronounced SAER.  This county is in the Sayre Micropolitan Statistical Area.