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Pennsylvania · Western Pennsylvania · #721
Mercer County, Pennsylvania
On the Ohio border in western Pennsylvania's lake country, Mercer County holds Sharon and Hermitage - the twin cities of a former steel corridor on the Shenango River that produced more specialty steel per capita than almost anywhere in America - and Grove City College, one of the most financially independent and ideologically distinctive small colleges in the country.
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Office: Mercer County Department of Public Safety / Emergency Management Agency – 205 South Erie Street, Mercer, PA 16137 | (724) 662-6100
Services: Established in 1978 to coordinate preparedness, relief, and recovery activities for emergencies and disasters countywide; the 911 center dispatches for 16 police departments (including PA State Police), 25 fire departments, and 5 ambulance companies across the county’s 48 municipalities; maintains an Emergency Operations Center with radio communications and weather monitoring equipment
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-79 and US-19/62 serve Mercer, the county seat, in western Pennsylvania near the Ohio border
Transit: Mercer County Community Transit provides local service – confirm current routes directly.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: No countywide building department – permits are issued at the MUNICIPAL level
Notes: Confirm the correct jurisdiction for your specific municipality (e.g., Mercer Borough, contact the Borough Administrative Office).
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
County VSO: Mercer County Veterans Affairs Office – Mercer, PA
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Mercer Area Library – Mercer, PA
Services: Serves a legal service area of roughly 10,500 residents; holds nearly 74,000 total items including print, ebooks, audio, and video, with over half the collection now digital; hosts roughly 150 programs per year, from toddler story time to adult job-search workshops; provides free internet and wifi
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Mercer County is genuinely home to WENDELL AUGUST FORGE, widely recognized as America’s oldest and largest hand-wrought metal forge still in continuous operation; the company was originally founded in 1923 by Wendell McMinn August, a former coal miner, in Brockway, Pennsylvania, and moved to Grove City in Mercer County roughly a decade later; the relocation came about after August’s forge helped renovate the Grove City National Bank building in 1931 – bank president Edwin J. Fithian was so impressed with the craftsmanship that, in the midst of the Great Depression, he personally convinced August to relocate his family and business to Grove City, helping fund construction of a larger facility that opened in 1932; Wendell August was a pioneer of the repoussé metalworking process (hammering designs into metal from the reverse side to create a raised relief), and the forge went on to complete major architectural commissions across the region – hand-crafted gates, fences, tables, and teller-window grilles for banks from Pittsburgh to Cleveland to Philadelphia, decorative work for the American Scantic Line passenger ships, and lighting fixtures for the Stouffer Restaurant chain; when architectural commissions slowed during and after World War II, the forge increasingly turned to smaller giftware items – bowls, trays, ornaments, and commemorative pieces – which by 1949 had become a signature “novelty line” that helped sustain the business through leaner years; though Wendell August considered retiring in the late 1940s amid declining health, he chose to stay on and guide the company through growing competition, expanding the product line into jewelry and additional metals like bronze and pewter over the following decades; the forge’s giftware has since been given to presidents, heads of state, and titans of industry, and more recently the company has partnered with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Cavaliers, and musicians including Stevie Nicks and Billy Joel on commemorative pieces; after the original Grove City headquarters was destroyed by fire in 2010, a new facility (the “Grove City Works”) opened in 2013, and in 2024 the forge relocated its production operations to nearby Slippery Rock while keeping its flagship retail store and history center at the Grove City Premium Outlets, timed in part to its release of a special collection honoring America’s 250th anniversary in 2026; free tours of the forge remain a popular regional attraction
Notes: Wendell August Forge’s genuine, extensively documented, century-long history as America’s oldest surviving hand-wrought metal forge – including its Depression-era rescue by a local Grove City banker – is a rich and distinctive piece of Pennsylvania craft and industrial heritage.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Mercer County GIS – accessible via mercercountypa.gov
Parcel Search: Mercer County Assessment Office
Addressing/911: Coordinated through Mercer County Department of Public Safety
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Humane Society of Mercer County – PO Box 1046, Hermitage, PA 16148 | (724) 981-5445 | Fax: (724) 981-0252
Services: A nonprofit organization receiving NO local, county, or state funding, operating entirely on donations; rescues animals from neglect, abandonment, cruelty, and injury; employs two humane agents who answer animal cruelty reports 24/7/365 and can issue citations, with cases escalating to court and, in serious instances, jail time for offenders; also provides spay/neuter assistance, emergency veterinary support, and food assistance for the separate Mercer County Animal Shelter, while transporting animals to East Coast rescue partners
Notes: A Facebook page titled “Mercer County Animal Shelter” that appears in search results is actually located in Mercer County, WEST VIRGINIA (Princeton, WV) – an entirely different county in a different state; do not confuse this with Mercer County, Pennsylvania resources.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Environmental Complaints: PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) – dep.pa.gov
Notes: Contact your specific municipality directly for current refuse collection and recycling program details.
NOTES
Mercer County is genuinely home to Wendell August Forge, America’s oldest and largest hand-wrought metal forge, continuously operating in the Grove City area since 1932. All contact information above was sourced from official county, city, library, and shelter pages as of this writing; phone numbers and hours should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit.
About Mercer County
Mercer County’s Sharon-Hermitage area was a specialty steel and manufacturing center whose workers produced quality steel products – particularly stainless and electrical grades – that the integrated steel giants of Pittsburgh and Youngstown did not. The area’s industrial character persists in the built environment and community culture even as the specific operations have changed through multiple ownership transitions. Sharon Regional Medical Center provides healthcare.
Grove City College, a private liberal arts institution that explicitly refuses all federal financial aid (including Pell Grants) to maintain independence from government regulation, is one of the most ideologically consistent small colleges in the country – its market-oriented economics programs, affordable tuition relative to its academic quality, and principled institutional independence have made it a distinctive presence in the higher education landscape.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Pennsylvania assesses property at 100% of estimated market value. Property owners may appeal to the Board of Assessment Revision. Pennsylvania’s senior tax freeze applies for qualifying homeowners 65 or older. Pennsylvania has an estate tax above $4 million; Pennsylvania has an inheritance tax – 4.5% on transfers to children, 12% to siblings, 15% to others.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
Mercer County Register of Wills: 105 Courthouse, Mercer, PA 16137 | (724) 662-3800. The Register of Wills handles estate administration and probate. Mercer County Recorder of Deeds records all property instruments.
Senior Services
Mercer County Area Agency on Aging
P.O. Box 549, Mercer, PA 16137
Phone: (724) 662-2971
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Mercer County Register of Wills, Mercer (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Mercer County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Register of Wills, Mercer County Mercer County Courthouse, 112 Courthouse, Mercer, PA 16137 (724) 662-3800 Mercer County is in western Pennsylvania, seated in Mercer.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Pennsylvania has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Probate runs through its own statute, the Probate, Estates and Fiduciaries (PEF) Code, Title 20 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes. Probate begins at the Register of Wills – an elected county official – in the county where the decedent lived. Routine, uncontested probate happens entirely at the Register of Wills; only disputes escalate to the Orphans’ Court Division of the Court of Common Pleas.
Small Estate Petition (20 Pa.C.S. § 3102) – available when the estate’s personal property (excluding real estate) totals $50,000 or less. This lets an interested party petition the Orphans’ Court directly for approval of a proposed distribution, skipping the need to formally open a full probate estate. Real property is never covered by this simplified process.
Formal Probate – required for estates exceeding $50,000 in personal property, or for any estate involving real property that needs to pass through probate. The Register of Wills validates the will (if any) and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
Step 2: filing for administration
The personal representative files with the Register of Wills in Mercer County, along with the original will if one exists.
The Register of Wills reviews and, if in order, issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative gathers assets, notifies heirs and known creditors, and begins settling the estate.
Pennsylvania has a one-year creditor period running from the date of death, not from any published notice.
A Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax Return (REV-1500) must be filed with the Register of Wills, regardless of estate size.
Once debts, taxes, and expenses are settled, remaining assets are distributed according to the will or Pennsylvania’s intestacy laws, and the estate is closed.
What it costs
Filing fees vary; check with Mercer County directly for current fees.
Pennsylvania has NO separate state estate tax, but its INHERITANCE TAX applies to virtually every estate: 0% to a surviving spouse (and to a parent inheriting from a child 21 or younger), 4.5% to children and other lineal descendants, 12% to siblings, and 15% to everyone else. No dollar exemption.
A 5% early-payment discount applies if paid within 3 months of death; the return and payment are otherwise due within 9 months.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
REGISTER OF WILLS
112 Courthouse Ln, Mercer, PA 16137
(724) 662-7542
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
112 Courthouse Ln, Mercer, PA 16137
(724) 662-7522
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
BOARD OF ELECTIONS
112 Courthouse Ln, Mercer, PA 16137
(724) 662-7542
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Human Services
8225 Sharon-Mercer Rd, Mercer, PA 16137
(724) 662-2952
Assistance Office (DHS)
8000 Sharon-Mercer Rd, Mercer, PA 16137
(724) 662-3800
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Mercer County Public Health / PA Department of Health regional office – Mercer, PA
Services: Immunizations, WIC, environmental health, vital records
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Mercer
Population: 111,000
Tier: 3
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Mercer County facilities via Amazon.
