

Philadelphia hosted the First Continental Congress in Carpenters' Hall in 1774, and, beginning the following year, the Second Continental Congress in Independence Hall, which in 1776 unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence, a document that historian Joseph Ellis has described as "the most potent and consequential words in American history" and which formalized and escalated the American Revolutionary War. Its largest city, Philadelphia, was the gathering place of the nation's Founding Fathers and home to much of the thinking, activism, and writing that inspired the American Revolution. Pennsylvania played a vital and historic role in the American Revolution and the ultimately successful quest for independence from the British Empire. Pennsylvania was one of thirteen British colonies from which the nation was formed. Established as a haven for religious and political tolerance, the Province of Pennsylvania was known for its relatively peaceful relations with native tribes, innovative government system, and religious pluralism. Pennsylvania was founded in 1681 through a royal land grant to William Penn, son of the state's namesake a southeast portion of the state was once part of the colony of New Sweden. While it has only 140 miles (225 km) of waterfront along Lake Erie and the Delaware River, Pennsylvania has the most navigable rivers of any state in the nation, including the Allegheny, Delaware, Genesee, Ohio, Schuylkill, Susquehanna, and others. The Appalachian Mountains run through the center of the state the Allegheny and Pocono mountains span much of Northeastern Pennsylvania close to 60% of the state is forested. Pennsylvania's geography is highly diverse. The state's subsequent five most populous cities are: Allentown, Reading, Erie, Scranton, and Bethlehem. Another 2.37 million reside in Greater Pittsburgh in the southwest, centered in and around Pittsburgh, the state's second-largest and Western Pennsylvania's largest city. The southeastern Delaware Valley metropolitan area comprises and surrounds Philadelphia, the state's largest and nation's sixth-most populous city. The state is the 33rd-largest by area and ranks ninth among all states in population density. Pennsylvania is the fifth-most populous state in the nation with over 13 million residents as of 2020, its highest decennial count ever. Pennsylvania borders Delaware to its southeast, Maryland to its south, West Virginia to its southwest, Ohio to its west, Lake Erie and the Canadian province of Ontario to its northwest, New York state to its north, and the Delaware River and New Jersey to its east.

Pennsylvania ( / ˌ p ɛ n s ɪ l ˈ v eɪ n i ə/ ( listen) Pennsylvania German: Pennsilfaani), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States.
