York County, Pennsylvania

York County is a county in Pennsylvania, United States, in the south-central part of the state along the Maryland border. It had a population of 456,438 at the 2020 census and covers 911 square miles (2,360 km2), of which 904 square miles are land and 6.5 square miles are water, centred near 39°55′N 76°43′W.

York is the county seat, and its postal code is 17401. The county holds 36 boroughs, one city and 35 townships, with York, Hanover and Red Lion its largest boroughs. York County sits in the Eastern time zone and is part of both the York–Hanover metropolitan area and the wider Harrisburg–York–Lebanon combined statistical area.

Towns & Villages in York County

York County’s 456,000-plus residents live in 36 self-governing boroughs, the city of York, and hundreds of unincorporated villages and hamlets scattered across its 35 townships. Boroughs run their own local government independent of any township; unincorporated places (marked Unincorp. below) are governed as part of the township that surrounds them. Population and ZIP figures are given where confirmed; a dash means the figure could not be verified for this update.

A handful of names on the old list were dropped as duplicate spellings of the same place: the second listing of Andersontown, Chestnut Hill, Fair Acres and Grandview Heights, plus “Clear Springs” as a variant of Clear Spring. Several housing-development names (Amleyn Gardens, Arlington Park, Barwood, Beverly Hills, Bellview Acres, Brigadoon, Brook Hill South, Campbell Estates, Carol Heights, Coldsborough Manor, Colonial Woods and Colonial Woods South, Country Club Estates and Country Club West, Coyne Lock, Crestlyn Court, Crestview Terrace, Crestwood East, Cross Mill, Dallas Acres, Denton Terrace, East York, Fairway, Farquhar Estates, Fireside Park and Fireside Terrace, Gwendale, Harvest Hills, Herman Heights, Highrock, Hill-n-Dale, Hillcroft, Holly Heights, Hollywood Heights, Holtz, Holtzswam, Hyson Hill, Idywyld, Kalreda Woods, Keeney, Kendale East, Keys, La Bott, Leafydale Terrace, Leiphart Mill, Lightners Tract, Locust Spring, Longview Heights, Lucky, Mackey Ford, Marborough West, McClellan Heights, McDonald Heights, Memphord Estates, Moulstown, North View Hills, Panorama Hills, Penn Oaks, Pennville, Randolph Park, Redland Village, Reimold, Richelieu, Robin Heights, Rockey, Roler, Rosemount, Seitzville, Seven Acres, Shrewsbury Station, Skyline Heights, South Ridge Estates, South View Acres, South Wood Hills, Southwood Hills, Strathcona Hills, Stonewood Farms, Stonybrook Heights, Sunset Terrace, Susquehanna Heights, Sylvan Hills, Sylvania Heights, Tri-Hill, Westfield Terrace, Wilshire Hills, Willis Park and Yorktown Homes were also carried over as legitimate mid-20th-century subdivision names but are omitted from this table as they are informal neighborhood labels rather than separately mapped places; they are not incorporated municipalities or U.S. Census-designated places.

Townships

ZIP Codes

• 17401–17408 — York (also serves North York, West York, Spry, Shiloh)
• 17331 — Hanover
• 17356 — Red Lion (also serves Menges Mills)
• 17349 — New Freedom
• 17361 — Shrewsbury (also serves Shrewsbury Township)
• 17313 — Dallastown (also serves Yoe)
• 17362 — Spring Grove
• 17368 — Wrightsville
• 17363 — Stewartstown
• 17327 — Glen Rock
• 17347 — Mount Wolf
• 17019 — Dillsburg
• 17342 — Loganville
• 17366 — Windsor (also serves Winterstown)
• 17370 — York Haven
• 17352 — New Salem (also serves New Park)
• 17314 — Delta
• 17315 — Dover
• 17317 — East Prospect
• 17321 — Fawn Grove
• 17322 — Felton
• 17323 — Franklintown
• 17319 — Goldsboro (also serves Jefferson)
• 17339 — Lewisberry
• 17360 — Seven Valleys
• 17302 — Airville
• 17329 — Brodbecks (also serves Glenville)
• 17309 — Brogue
• 17312 — Craley
• 17318 — Emigsville
• 17364 — Thomasville
• 17403 — Spry
• 17404 — North York, West York and Shiloh (shared with York)
• 17402 — Yorkana
• 17406 — Hallam
• 17407 — Jacobus
• 17365 — Wellsville

Smaller unincorporated places without their own post office — among them Accomac, Airville-area hamlets, and most of the rural crossroads communities listed in the towns table above — use the ZIP code of the nearest borough post office.

Geography

York County sits in the Piedmont section of south-central Pennsylvania, split by the Susquehanna River along its eastern edge, which also forms the boundary with Lancaster County. The Codorus Creek and Conewago Creek drain the county’s rolling farmland and low ridges toward the Susquehanna, and a stretch of the Mason-Dixon Line along the county’s southern edge marks the Maryland border. Terrain rises gently toward South Mountain in the northwest and toward the low hills of the Piedmont plateau in the south, with most of the county given over to dairy and grain farms, orchards, and small woodlots.

York County borders Cumberland County to the northwest, Dauphin County to the north, Lancaster County across the Susquehanna to the east, Adams County to the west, and the Maryland counties of Harford, Baltimore and Carroll to the south.

Demographics

York County had 456,438 residents at the 2020 census, making it one of Pennsylvania’s most populous counties. York, the county seat and only city, is the largest community with about 44,800 residents, followed by Hanover borough at roughly 15,884. The county’s median household income runs below the Pennsylvania median of $73,824, reflecting a mix of manufacturing, agricultural and service-sector wages across its boroughs and rural townships. With 904 square miles of land, the county’s overall population density is roughly 505 people per square mile, though density varies sharply between the York-Hanover urban corridor and the farming townships in the county’s southern and eastern reaches.

Economy & Local Life

York County built its economy on manufacturing, and that legacy still shapes the county today: Harley-Davidson has operated a motorcycle assembly plant in the county since the 1970s, and York was historically home to major employers in furniture-making, snack foods and industrial machinery. Agriculture remains significant in the county’s western and southern townships, with dairy, poultry and produce farms supplying regional markets. WellSpan Health, headquartered in York, is one of the county’s largest employers, alongside the York City School District and York County government itself. The York Fair, held each September at the York Expo Center, is among the oldest agricultural fairs in the United States, tracing its roots to 1765.

History

York County was formed on August 19, 1749, from part of Lancaster County, and takes its name from either the Duke of York or the city and county of York, England. The county seat, York, served as the capital of the United States from September 30, 1777, to June 27, 1778, while the Continental Congress met there after fleeing British-occupied Philadelphia; the Articles of Confederation were adopted in York during that period. During the Revolutionary War, the county was also the site of Camp Security, a prisoner-of-war camp holding captured British and Hessian soldiers. The county’s Pennsylvania Dutch heritage, brought by early German and Swiss settlers, remains visible in local place names and rural building traditions.

Getting There

Interstate 83 runs north-south through the heart of the county, connecting York to Harrisburg to the north and Baltimore, Maryland to the south. U.S. Routes 30 and 15, along with the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76) crossing the county’s northern edge, provide the other main highway links.

• Harrisburg — 25 miles north
• Lancaster — 25 miles east
• Baltimore, Maryland — 50 miles south
• Gettysburg — 30 miles west

The nearest commercial airport is Harrisburg International Airport (MDT), roughly 30 miles to the north; Baltimore/Washington International (BWI) is also within reasonable driving distance to the south.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is York County?
York County is in south-central Pennsylvania, along the Maryland border, between the Susquehanna River and South Mountain.

What is the population of York County?
York County had a population of 456,438 at the 2020 census.

How big is York County?
York County covers 911 square miles (2,360 km2), of which 904 square miles are land.

What is the county seat of York County?
York is the county seat.

How many towns are in York County?
York County has 36 boroughs and one city, plus hundreds of unincorporated villages spread across its 35 townships.

What ZIP codes are in York County?
York County’s ZIP codes range from 17019 (Dillsburg) in the north to 17361 (Shrewsbury) in the south, with York itself using 17401 through 17408.

What was York’s role in the American Revolution?
York served as the temporary capital of the United States in 1777–78, and the Articles of Confederation were adopted there by the Continental Congress.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Pennsylvania.