# Wellsboro, Pennsylvania

Wellsboro is a borough and county seat of Tioga County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough was founded by Benjamin Wistar Morris. It is located 52 miles (84 km) northwest of Williamsport. The population was 3,472 at the 2020 census.
Early in the 20th century, Wellsboro was the shipping point and trade center for a large area. It had fruit evaporators, flour and woolen mills, a milk-condensing plant, marble works, saw mills, foundry and machine shops, and manufactories of cut glass, chemicals, rugs, bolts, cigars, carriages, and furniture. In 1900, 2,945 people lived here; in 1910, 3,183 lived here. It is also home to the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania. It is a local tourist destination known for its iconic gas lamps that are spaced through the grass median of Main Street.

## History

Wellsboro was settled in 1806 and incorporated in 1830 and was named in honor of Mary Wells, wife of one of the original settlers, Benjamin Wistar Morris. The town was the home of George W. Sears (1821–1890), a sportswriter for Field & Stream magazine in the 1880s and an early environmentalist. His stories, appearing under the pen name "Nessmuk", popularised self-guided canoe camping tours of the Adirondack lakes in open lightweight solo canoes and what is today called ultralight camping. Wellsboro was also the site of one of the first factories where light bulbs were mass-produced, using machines whose design remains essentially unchanged from the early 20th century when the Corning company established the plant in the town.
The Robinson House, Jesse Robinson House, Wellsboro Armory, and Wellsboro Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

## Geography

Wellsboro is located at 41°44′48″N 77°18′7″W﻿ / ﻿41.74667°N 77.30194°W﻿ / 41.74667; -77.30194 (41.746794, -77.301881).
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 4.9 square miles (13 km$^2$), of which 4.9 square miles (13 km$^2$) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km$^2$) (0.61%) is water.

### Climate

Wellsboro has a humid continental climate (Dfa) with warm to hot summers and cold winters. Winter generally lasts from December through March, although snow has been recorded in every month except July and August. Temperatures of 100°F or more are rare, and have only been recorded in July, August, and September. The all-time record low is -30°F. Snowfall averages 60.6" per year and precipitation averages 42.27" per year.
Climate data for Wellsboro, Pennsylvania (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1926–present) :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 68 (20) | 70 (21) | 81 (27) | 89 (32) | 94 (34) | 99 (37) | 104 (40) | 100 (38) | 103 (39) | 91 (33) | 76 (24) | 66 (19) | 104 (40) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 30.1 (−1.1) | 33.0 (0.6) | 41.6 (5.3) | 55.2 (12.9) | 67.0 (19.4) | 74.6 (23.7) | 78.9 (26.1) | 77.4 (25.2) | 70.4 (21.3) | 58.5 (14.7) | 45.7 (7.6) | 34.8 (1.6) | 55.6 (13.1) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 22.1 (−5.5) | 23.8 (−4.6) | 31.7 (−0.2) | 43.9 (6.6) | 55.2 (12.9) | 63.5 (17.5) | 67.8 (19.9) | 66.1 (18.9) | 59.0 (15.0) | 47.9 (8.8) | 37.2 (2.9) | 27.9 (−2.3) | 45.5 (7.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 14.1 (−9.9) | 14.6 (−9.7) | 21.8 (−5.7) | 32.7 (0.4) | 43.4 (6.3) | 52.4 (11.3) | 56.7 (13.7) | 54.7 (12.6) | 47.6 (8.7) | 37.3 (2.9) | 28.7 (−1.8) | 20.9 (−6.2) | 35.4 (1.9) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −25 (−32) | −30 (−34) | −18 (−28) | 5 (−15) | 19 (−7) | 29 (−2) | 36 (2) | 31 (−1) | 20 (−7) | 11 (−12) | −4 (−20) | −21 (−29) | −30 (−34) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 2.99 (76) | 2.48 (63) | 3.25 (83) | 3.56 (90) | 3.65 (93) | 4.29 (109) | 4.14 (105) | 3.67 (93) | 4.17 (106) | 3.64 (92) | 3.17 (81) | 3.26 (83) | 42.27 (1,074) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 13.2 (34) | 14.1 (36) | 12.5 (32) | 3.2 (8.1) | 0.1 (0.25) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.8 (2.0) | 4.0 (10) | 12.7 (32) | 60.6 (154) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 14.8 | 11.9 | 12.6 | 13.4 | 14.5 | 13.1 | 12.3 | 11.9 | 10.9 | 13.7 | 11.6 | 13.6 | 154.3 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 10.9 | 9.2 | 5.9 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 3.1 | 8.2 | 39.8 |
| Source: NOAA ||||||||||||||

## Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,328 people, 1,469 households, and 866 families residing in the borough. The population density was 681.0 inhabitants per square mile (262.9/km$^2$). There were 1,602 housing units at an average density of 327.8 per square mile (126.6/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.14% White, 0.39% African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.90% Asian, 0.18% from other races, and 0.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.57% of the population.
There were 1,469 households, out of which 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.0% were non-families. 36.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.83.
In the borough the population was spread out, with 20.9% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 24.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 80.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.3 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $30,169, and the median income for a family was $39,898. Males had a median income of $37,083 versus $20,492 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $18,096. About 9.5% of families and 14.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.8% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over.

## Media

WNDA 1490AM (1000 watts) and WNBT-FM (50,000 watts) are owned by Southern Belle LLC. The Wellsboro Gazette is a weekly print publication owned by Tioga Publishing Company which covers news in Wellsboro and surrounding towns. Mountain Home, published by Beagle Media, is a monthly regional magazine headquartered and published out of Wellsboro.
Wellsboro receives television programming from the Elmira-Corning media market.
Additionally, Wellsboro is the first market opened by online media/news company The Home Page Network (starting as Wellsboro Home Page).

## Notable people

* Morton Shelley Bailey, member of the Colorado Senate and Colorado Supreme Court
* Benjamin Franklin Bush, railroad executive
* Michael Capuzzo, journalist and non-fiction author
* Kathryn Crawford, film and theatre actress active in the 1920s and 1930s
* William O. Goodman, lumber tycoon
* Leonard Harrison, businessman in the lumber industry
* James Lowrey, lawyer and member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
* Louise Leonard McLaren, school founder
* Benjamin Wistar Morris, second bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Oregon
* Benjamin Wistar Morris, colonist
* Horace Billings Packer, congressman
* John Preston, dog handler and Pennsylvania State Police officer
* Ed Schieffelin, Indian scout and prospector
* George W. Sears, sportswriter and conservationist
* Warren Spencer, member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
* William A. Stone, 22nd governor of Pennsylvania
* Polonia brothers, filmmakers