Pennsylvania Fun Facts
Information About Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Geography,
and Pennsylvania Schools

Pennsylvania is abbreviated PA. The capital of Pennsylvania is Harrisburg and the largest city is Philadelphia. Residents of Pennsylvania are referred to as "Pennsylvanians."

The unofficial nickname of Pennsylvania is "The Keystone State." The state song is " Pennsylvania." The state motto is "Virtue, Liberty and Independence."

Pennsylvania's state bird is the Ruffed Grouse. The state flower is the Mountain Laurel and the state tree is the Eastern Hemlock.

Pennsylvania is named in honor of Adm. Sir William Penn, father of William Penn. It means "Penn's Woodland."

Pennsylvania is ranked sixth in population and received its statehood December 12, 1787.

New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia and Ohio are bordering states of Ohio. The Delaware River, Ohio River and Lake Erie are major bodies of water associated with Pennsylvania.

Steel, farming (corn, oats, soybeans, and mushrooms), mining (iron, Portland cement, lime, and stone), electronics equipment, cars and pharmaceuticals are all major industries within Pennsylvania.

There were 1,804,256 K12 students in the Pennsylvania public schools in 1996. Out of those students 147,895 were first grade students. There were also 106,432 K12 public school teachers in the Pennsylvania public schools system. There were a total of 3,178 Pennsylvania public schools in 1996. (Source: IES National Center for Education Statistics)