Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
Pennsylvania County
Wyoming County, Pennsylvania
The Nicholson Bridge and Wyoming Valley's revolutionary war massacre - from the Nicholson Bridge (the Tunkhannock Viaduct - completed 1915, once the largest concrete structure in the world at 2,375 feet long and 240 feet high, carrying the Erie Lackawanna Railroad across the Tunkhannock Creek valley in a feat of engineering that remains one of Pennsylvania's most impressive structures) to the Wyoming Valley Massacre of 1778 (a British-allied Loyalist and Iroquois raid that killed 360 Continental soldiers and settlers in the Wyoming Valley along the Susquehanna - one of the most significant frontier atrocities of the American Revolution, commemorated at Wyoming Valley just south of the county) and Marcellus shale's recent transformation of the county economy.
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Wyoming County Emergency Management Agency – 3880 SR 6, Tunkhannock, PA 18657 | (570) 836-2828 / (570) 836-3191 | Email: [email protected]
Services: Planning, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery coordination for all-hazard emergencies; educates the public and coordinates recovery efforts; accepts storm damage reports online via ArcGIS Survey123
Related: Wyoming County Courthouse – 1 Courthouse Square, Tunkhannock, PA 18657, (570) 836-3200, Hours: Mon–Fri 8:30 AM–4 PM.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-6 and PA-29 serve Tunkhannock, the county seat, along the Susquehanna River in northeastern Pennsylvania
Transit: Limited; primarily auto-dependent – confirm current regional options directly with the county.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: No countywide building department – permits are issued at the MUNICIPAL level
Services: Bureau Veritas (Tunkhannock office) – handles building permits and inspections for several townships
Notes: Confirm the correct jurisdiction for your specific municipality.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
County VSO: Wyoming County Veterans Affairs Office – Tunkhannock, PA
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Tunkhannock Public Library – “The Place for Everyone” – 220 West Tioga Street, Tunkhannock, PA 18657 | (570) 836-1677 | Hours: Mon–Fri 10 AM–6 PM, Sat 10 AM–2 PM/5 PM (sources vary) (closed Sun)
Services: Serving Wyoming County since 1890, now housed in a modern 12,500-square-foot facility with over 30,000 items in its collection; offers eight public computers, free wifi, versatile meeting/event spaces, and Cooper’s Corner Bookstore selling donated books to support library services
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Wyoming County is genuinely home to the TUNKHANNOCK VIADUCT (also known as the Nicholson Bridge), an extraordinary feat of early 20th-century engineering that soars up to 240 feet above the small borough of Nicholson and its namesake Tunkhannock Creek; built between 1912 and 1915 by the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad (DL&W) as the centerpiece of its “Nicholson Cutoff” project, the massive open-spandrel concrete deck arch bridge was designed to shorten the DL&W’s main line between Scranton and Binghamton by roughly 20 miles while nearly doubling the maximum allowable train speed over the route, replacing a slower original line that wound directly through Nicholson’s town center along steep grades; the bridge was designed by chief engineer William Hull Botsford, who tragically died in the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912, shortly after his plans for the viaduct had been approved; over 500 men worked around the clock, from May 1912 to November 1915, to complete the structure, using more than 1,140 tons of steel and 167,000 cubic yards of concrete, at a total cost of roughly $1.4 million (equivalent to well over $34 million today) – at least four workers lost their lives during construction; the finished viaduct measures 2,375 feet long, up to 240 feet above the creek bed, and 300 feet above bedrock, with its massive supporting piers sunk all the way down to solid rock so that nearly half the structure’s total bulk lies underground; when it opened on November 6, 1915, the Tunkhannock Viaduct was the largest poured-concrete structure of any kind on Earth, a title it would hold for decades – it would take fifty more years before a larger concrete bridge was built anywhere in the United States; the American Society of Civil Engineers designated it a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1975, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977; remarkably, the viaduct remains in continuous active service to this day, carrying regular freight traffic for the Norfolk Southern Railway (formerly Canadian Pacific), making it a genuine working piece of American railroad history that has now stood for well over a century; the local community celebrates the bridge’s legacy each year with “Nicholson Bridge Day”
Notes: The Tunkhannock Viaduct’s genuine, world-record-holding status as the largest concrete structure on Earth at the time of its 1915 completion – and its continued daily use carrying freight trains today – is one of the most visually spectacular pieces of American engineering heritage found anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Wyoming County GIS – accessible via wyomingcountypa.gov
Parcel Search: Wyoming County Assessment Office
Addressing/911: Coordinated through Wyoming County Emergency Management Agency
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Humane Society of Wyoming County – 9 E Tioga St, Tunkhannock, PA 18657
Services: Serves Wyoming County residents with animal welfare and adoption services
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
Wyoming County is genuinely home to the Tunkhannock Viaduct, which was the largest concrete structure in the world upon its 1915 completion and remains in active daily rail service today. 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 Wyoming County
Wyoming County is northeastern Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna River valley county – a North Branch Susquehanna community whose extraordinary railroad viaduct, Revolutionary War heritage, and Marcellus shale development define three distinct chapters of its history.
Tunkhannock (the county seat, population ~1,700) on the North Branch Susquehanna is a pleasant river valley community – the Tunkhannock Viaduct visible from the town provides one of Pennsylvania’s most striking infrastructure backdrops.
The Tunkhannock Viaduct (Nicholson Bridge) – completed 1915 by the Lackawanna Railroad – used more concrete in its construction than the Panama Canal and was the largest concrete structure in the world at its completion. The 2,375-foot-long, 240-foot-high viaduct carries trains across the Tunkhannock Creek valley in a graceful series of arches still in active railroad use.
Marcellus shale development in the 2000s-2010s brought drilling activity and royalty income to Wyoming County landowners, significantly altering the county’s quiet agricultural economy.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Wyoming County Assessment Office at 1 Courthouse Square, Tunkhannock, PA 18657, phone 570-996-2233. Appeal to Board of Assessment Appeals.
Courts & Legal
Wyoming County Register of Wills at 1 Courthouse Square, Tunkhannock, PA 18657, phone 570-996-2237, handles probate.
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Wyoming County Register of Wills, Tunkhannock (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Wyoming 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, Wyoming County Wyoming County Courthouse, One Courthouse Square, Tunkhannock, PA 18657 (570) 996-2237 Wyoming County is in northeastern Pennsylvania, seated in Tunkhannock.
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 Wyoming 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 Wyoming 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
1 Courthouse Sq, Tunkhannock, PA 18657
(570) 996-2272
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
1 Courthouse Sq, Tunkhannock, PA 18657
(570) 996-2210
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
BOARD OF ELECTIONS
1 Courthouse Sq, Tunkhannock, PA 18657
(570) 996-2280
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Human Services
79 Sunnyside Ave, Tunkhannock, PA 18657
(570) 836-3200
Assistance Office (DHS)
275 Venture St, Tunkhannock, PA 18657
(570) 836-1690
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Wyoming County Public Health / PA Department of Health regional office – Tunkhannock, PA
Services: Immunizations, WIC, environmental health, vital records
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Tunkhannock
Population: 27,000
Established: 1842
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Wyoming County residents.
