Perry

Formed March 22, 1820 (51^st county)

Perry County (45,837), New Bloomfield (1,219), Marysville (2,655)

The 1827 red brick Greek Revival building stands out in this small community.  The courthouse is on Carlisle Street at Main Street.  Pennsylvania State Highway 274 is Main Street in this part of the town.  Jacob Bishop is the facility designer.  The structure was remodeled in 1868 and enlarged in 1892.  The county was organized on March 22, 1820 from Cumberland County as the 51^st county.  Landisburg was the first county seat until 1824 when New Bloomfield took over.  It is named for War of 1812 Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry.  New Bloomfield is named for one of the estates of William Penn.  Perry County is the birthplace of 1 Pennsylvania governor, James A. Beaver. 

Perry County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Three Common Pleas Court Judges and Two Magistrate Court Judges serve Perry and Juniata counties.  The county center is 6.7 miles Southwest of New Bloomfield nearer Elliottsburg.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Juniata, Northumberland, Dauphin, Cumberland, Franklin, and Huntingdon counties. 

The area of the county is 556 square miles.  It is 42 out of 67 in the state.  It ranks 47 out of 67 in population in the state.  It has a density of 82.4 persons per square mile making it 43 out of 67 in the state.  Perry County has 19.7% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highways 11/15 cross the county from north to south from Juniata County to Cumberland County.  United States Highways 22/322 come from Dauphin County, east, and go to Juniata County, west.  Perry County is shaped like a reaching hand extending a finger and thumb.  New Bloomfield is located in the eastern third of the county.  Marysville is southeast border of the county.  New Bloomfield is the county seat and Marysville is the largest city.  New Bloomfield is 2.7% of the county population while Marysville is 5.8% of the county population.  This county is in the Harrisburg-Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area.