Pennsylvania Physiography

The heavier brown lines, representing Pennsylvania's "physiographic provinces" (see the definition below), and the lighter brown lines representing subdivisions of those provinces, known as "sections," are shown with Pennsylvania's counties. Click on any point in Pennsylvania to see its physiographic section outlined and its province and section identified.

Data Explanations

Definition:

The physiography of an area is the appearance and characteristics of its physical landscape. The Physiographic Provinces of Pennsylvania are the six mostly larger areas with consistent general characteristics. The Provinces can be subdivided again at a larger (more zoomed-in) scale, to distinguish more subtle variations, known as Physiographic Sections. The Provinces are characterized in the table below using one measurement: elevation.

Comparative Data:

Provinces	Lowest Elevation	Location of the Lowest Elevation	Highest Elevation	Location of the Highest Elevation
Central Lowland	571 feet	Lake Erie shoreline, in Erie County	approx. 1,450 feet	Near New York border, east of North East, in Erie County
Appalachian Plateaus	665 feet	Ohio River shoreline at the Ohio border, in Beaver County	3,213 feet	Mount Davis, in Somerset County
Ridge and Valley	146 feet	Delaware River shoreline just south of Easton, in Northampton County	2,757 feet	Northeast of Hydnman, in Bedford County
New England	119 feet	Delaware River shoreline just south of Riegelsville, in Bucks County	1,235 feet	Topton Mountain, south of Topton, in Berks County
Piedmont	8 feet	Delaware River shoreline between Yardley and Morrisville, in Bucks County	1,415 feet	Stone Head, just west of Dillsburg, in York County
Atlantic Coastal Plain	0 feet	Delaware River shoreline, in Delaware, Philadelphia and southern Bucks Counties	200 feet	Broad St. and Olney Ave., in Philadelphia

Data Explanations

Definition:

Comparative Data:

Credits