History of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital of the Commonwealth (United States)|Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, a U.S. state|state of the United States of America. As of the United States Census, 2000| 2000 census, the city had a population of 48,950. The Harrisburg area population was 643,820, making it the fourth most populous Harrisburg metropolitan area|metropolitan area in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania|Pittsburgh, and Allentown, Pennsylvania|Allentown. Harrisburg is the county seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania|Dauphin County{{GR|6}} and lies on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, 105 miles (169 km) west-northwest of Philadelphia.
Harrisburg has played a critical role in American history during the Frontier|Westward Migration, the American Civil War, and the Industrial Revolution. During part of the 19th century, the building of the Pennsylvania Main Line of Public Works|Pennsylvania Canal and later the Pennsylvania Railroad, allowed Harrisburg to become one of the most industrialized cities in the Northeastern United States.
Contrasted with its 1981 status as the second most distressed city in the nation, Harrisburg has undergone a dramatic economic change, with nearly USD|$3 billion in new investment now realized.{{cite web| url=http://www.harrisburgpa.gov/econProfile/| year=2006| title=City of Harrisburg Economic Profile: Overview| first=| last=| publisher=harrisburgpa.gov/| accessdate = 2007-01-06}} The United States Navy|US Navy ship USS Harrisburg|USS Harrisburg, which served from 1918-19 at the end of First World War|World War I, is named in honor of the city.
The Pennsylvania Farm Show, the largest indoor agriculture exposition in the United States, was first held in Harrisburg in 1917 and has been held there every January since then. Harrisburg also hosts the annual "Auto Show," a large static display of new as well as classic cars, which is renowned nation-wide. Harrisburg is also known for the infamous Three Mile Island incident, which occurred in nearby Middletown, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania|Middletown.
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