Dauphin County (/ˈdɔːfɪn/; Pennsylvania Dutch: Daffin Kaundi) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 286,401.^[2] The county seat is Harrisburg,^[3] Pennsylvania's state capital and ninth-most populous city. The county was created on March 4, 1785, from part of Lancaster County and was named after Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France,^[4] the first son of King Louis XVI.

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Dauphin County
County
Dauphin County Courthouse in Harrisburg
Flag Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 40°25′N 76°47′W
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
Founded	March 4, 1785
Named for	Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France
Seat	Harrisburg
Largest township	Lower Paxton Township
Area
• Total	558 sq mi (1,450 km2)
• Land	525 sq mi (1,360 km2)
• Water	33 sq mi (90 km2)  5.9%
Population
• Estimate  (2023)	289,234
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	10th
Website	www.dauphincounty.gov
Pennsylvania Historical Marker
Designated	December 9, 1982[1]

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Dauphin County is included in the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Located within the county is Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station, site of the 1979 nuclear core meltdown. The nuclear power plant closed in 2019.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 558 square miles (1,450 km²), of which 525 square miles (1,360 km²) is land and 33 square miles (85 km²) (5.9%) is water.^[5] The county is bound to its western border by the Susquehanna River (with the exception of a small peninsula next to Duncannon). The area code is 717 with an overlay of 223.

This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: Newer information is available from the 2020 Census report. (September 2021)

As of the 2010 census, the county was 72.7% White, 18.0% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 3.2% Asian, and 3.1% were two or more races. 7.0% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry.

As of the census^[16] of 2000, there were 251,798 people, 102,670 households, and 66,119 families residing in the county. The population density was 479 inhabitants per square mile (185/km²). There were 111,133 housing units at an average density of 212 units per square mile (82/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 77.11% White, 16.91% Black or African American, 0.16% Native American, 1.96% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.97% from other races, and 1.85% from two or more races. 4.13% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 29.2% were of German, 7.5% Irish, 7.3% American and 7.2% Italian ancestry. 91.8% spoke English and 3.9% Spanish as their first language.

According to 2005 estimates, 73.9% of the county's population was non-Hispanic whites. 17.8% of the population was African-Americans. 2.5% were Asians. Latinos now were 5.0% of the population.^[17]

In 2000 there were 102,670 households, out of which 29.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.60% were married couples living together, 12.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.60% were non-families. 30.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.30% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 30.10% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 14.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.80 males.

A study by Echelon Insights found Dauphin County to be the most typical county in America, with its 2016 presidential vote, median income, higher education rate, and religiosity all very close to the national averages.^[18]

The United States Office of Management and Budget^[21] has designated Dauphin County as the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). As of the 2010 U.S. Census^[22] the metropolitan area ranked 5th most populous in the State of Pennsylvania and the 96th most populous in the United States with a population of 549,475. Dauphin County is also a part of the larger Harrisburg–York–Lebanon combined statistical area (CSA), which combines the populations of Dauphin County as well as Adams, Cumberland, Lebanon, Perry and York Counties in Pennsylvania. The combined statistical area ranked the 5th most populous in Pennsylvania and 43rd most populous in the nation with a population of 1,219,422.

Dauphin County was historically a Republican stronghold, like most of south-central Pennsylvania. It was long one of the more conservative urban counties in the nation, having only supported a Democrat for president twice from 1880 to 2004. However, there has been a decided shift toward the Democrats in national and statewide elections in recent years. This culminated when the Democrats overtook the Republicans in countywide registration during the summer of 2008.

Bob Casey Jr. carried the county in the 2006 Senate election when he unseated Rick Santorum. According to the Dauphin County Board of Elections, in 2008 Barack Obama became the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Dauphin County since 1964, receiving 9.0% more of the vote than John McCain.^[24] It was also only the third time Dauphin County had supported a Democrat for president since 1936. Obama won Dauphin with a slightly reduced majority in 2012, while Hillary Clinton won it with a narrow plurality in 2016. It is now the only blue county in the traditionally powerfully Republican Susquehanna Valley.

In 2023, with the election of newcomer Justin Douglas to join George Hartwick, III, the Democrats took the majority of the County Commissioners for the first time in nearly 100 years. That same year, Democrat Bridget Whitley was elected Clerk of Courts as the first Democratic row officer, while the remaining row offices remained Republican. Three of the state house seats are held by Democrats. Republicans control two state house seats as well as both of the state senate seats and the congressional seat. Most local elected officials are also Republican, by a margin of 3 to 1. This is because most of the Democratic gains have been in already heavily Democratic Harrisburg, which has had a Democratic mayor since 1982 and has been represented in the state house by a Democrat since 1975. In contrast, the suburbs and rural areas have continued to lean Republican.

The largest employers in Dauphin County in 2019 were:^[31]

• Commonwealth Government
• Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
• The Hershey Company
• Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Co.
• UPMC Pinnacle Hospitals
• Federal Government
• Pennsylvania State University
• PHEAA – Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency
• United Parcel Service Inc
• TYCO Electronics Corp.

There are two Pennsylvania state parks in Dauphin County.

• Boyd Big Tree Preserve Conservation Area
• Joseph E. Ibberson Conservation Area

Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, in at most two cases, towns. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Dauphin County:

• Milton S. Hershey (1857–1945), founder of The Hershey Company and the town of Hershey
• H.B. Reese (1879–1956), inventor of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
• Samuel B. Garver (1839–1911), an Illinois state representative, businessman, and farmer, was born in Dauphin County.
• Nicholas H. Heck (1882–1953), a geophysicist, seismologist, oceanographer, hydrographic surveyor, and United States Coast and Geodetic Survey officer, was born in Dauphin County in Heckton Mills, near Heckton.
• Newt Gingrich (1943–), former speaker of the United States House of Representatives, was born in Harrisburg and lived in Hummelstown.
• Michelle Wolf (1985–), comedian, was born and lived in Dauphin County.
• Christian Pulisic (1998–), soccer player who plays for Chelsea F.C. of England's Premier League and the United States men's national team was born in Hershey.
• Micah Parsons (1999–), American football linebacker.

• Hummelstown brownstone
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania