Erie is a city in Erie County, Pennsylvania, on the coast of Lake
Erie. Erie is named after the adjacent lake, which is named after
the Erie tribe of Native Americans who lived along its southern shore
before European contact. Erie was also called the “Gem City” because
of the sparkling lake.
Erie was first settled by the French, who built Fort Presque Isle
in 1753, as part of their effort to garrison New France against the
encroaching English. Presque Isle means "almost an island" in
French. The fort was surrendered to the British, along with the rest
of New France, at the end of the Seven Years' War in 1763. The city
of Erie was founded in 1795.
As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 103,717.
It is the fourth most populated city in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia,
Pittsburgh and Allentown. Recently, due to large revitalization projects
and other factors, Erie is expected to have gained people by 2010.
Erie has become a popular home because of the beautiful beaches,
revitalized downtown, and a suburban feel, even though Erie's population
is over 100,000.
As of 2004, the city's largest single employer is the locomotive
builder GE Infrastructure-Rail, formerly known as GE Transportation
Systems, located in neighboring Lawrence Park Township to the east.
Smaller, high-precision companies are growing in size and scope.
For example, the Lord Corporation, which specializes in shock- and
vibration-damping products, has a plant in Erie. The plastics industry
is also a significant employer, although most of these companies
are small to medium-sized. Over 10% of the nation's plastics are
manufactured or finished in Erie-based plastics plants. These plants
are supported by many locally-owned CNC machine tool job shops.