Lackawanna County occupies a narrow urban and river corridor in northeastern Pennsylvania, with Scranton at the center and a chain of boroughs extending northeast toward Carbondale. Dunmore, Throop, Olyphant, Blakely, Archbald, Jessup, and Dickson City fill much of the same valley, while Taylor, Old Forge, and Moosic extend the built-up area southwest. I-81, I-84, I-380, I-476, U.S. 6, and several state routes connect the valley with the surrounding mountains. The four original A3 high-resolution JPG maps are available in the download box below.
The county becomes easier to understand when the low Lackawanna River valley is separated from the high ground around it. Lackawanna Lake lies north of Scranton, Lake Scranton occupies the eastern uplands, and several reservoirs sit in the southern hills. The supplied elevation map ranges from about 164 to 704 meters, with a mean near 446 meters, so the central urban lowland and the eastern mountain terrain stand out clearly.
Table of Contents
Scranton and Carbondale anchor a long urban corridor along the Lackawanna River
Scranton is the best starting point on the general reference map. I-81 passes through the central urban area, while I-84 and I-380 split toward the southeast and I-476 reaches the southwestern side. Dunmore sits immediately east of Scranton, with Throop, Olyphant, Blakely, Archbald, and Carbondale extending northeast through the same broad valley.
Taylor, Old Forge, and Moosic occupy the southwestern continuation of the urban corridor. Dickson City and Jessup sit in the middle of the developed belt, while PA 347 and PA 247 connect neighboring hill communities. The county’s urban footprint is therefore long and narrow rather than spread across a broad plain.
Carbondale provides the strongest northeastern reference, close to U.S. 6 and PA 107. Dalton and the northwestern side are reached by routes such as PA 438, PA 632, and PA 407. Farther southeast, Moscow and the I-84–I-380 corridor cross much higher terrain than the Scranton–Carbondale valley.
Scranton ranks first, followed by Dunmore, Carbondale, and Old Forge
The ranked community graphic highlights Scranton, Dunmore, Carbondale, Old Forge, Archbald, and Blakely. The printed values are Scranton 76,033, Dunmore 14,181, and Carbondale 8,789. Old Forge follows at 8,573, Archbald at 7,404, and Blakely at 6,662. These figures are the ranking values used on the supplied map and should not be treated as current official population estimates.
Scranton dominates the southern half of the ranked map, with Dunmore immediately beside it. Carbondale lies near the northeastern end of the county, while Archbald and Blakely fill the intervening valley. Old Forge sits southwest of Scranton and represents the lower end of the same urban belt.
Several additional communities appear on the general map but not in the ranked six, including Dickson City, Olyphant, Throop, Jessup, Moosic, and Taylor. Reading the two maps together gives a better picture of the continuous valley settlement pattern.
The Lackawanna River defines the central valley while lakes and reservoirs occupy the surrounding hills
The Lackawanna River is the key water feature on the terrain-and-water map. It follows the same general northeast-southwest direction as the county’s main urban corridor, passing through or near the chain of communities from Carbondale toward Scranton and the southwestern county.
Lackawanna Lake is the largest named inland lake on the northwestern side. South Branch Tunkhannock Creek reaches the same area, and Baylors Lake lies farther north. Pennsylvania DCNR describes Lackawanna State Park as a 1,445-acre park about ten miles north of Scranton, centered on the 198-acre Lackawanna Lake.
Lake Scranton provides another strong landmark in the eastern uplands. Griffin Reservoir lies west of the main urban corridor, while Nesbitt Reservoir and Watres Reservoir appear in the southern hills. Roaring Brook River, Roaring Brook, and Spring Brook descend from higher eastern and southeastern terrain toward lower valleys.
Crystal Lake and several smaller water bodies occupy the northeastern uplands. The dense network of short tributaries shows how quickly water descends from the surrounding hills into the main valley. This map is intended for geographic reference rather than flood-zone determination, navigation, depth measurement, reservoir operations, or water-quality decisions.
Elevation ranges from about 164 to 704 meters
The supplied elevation map reports an actual range of roughly 164 to 704 meters and a mean near 446 meters. The lowest green terrain forms a long corridor from the Scranton area northeast toward Carbondale and southwest toward Old Forge and Moosic. Broad areas of higher yellow and brown terrain rise on both sides.
The eastern side climbs especially quickly from Scranton and Dunmore toward Lake Scranton and the I-84–I-380 mountain corridor. The southeastern county around Moscow and the Monroe County side contains extensive high ground, making it very different from the central urban valley.
Carbondale remains within the low valley band, but steep hills rise close to the city on both sides. The northwestern area around Dalton and Lackawanna Lake is also hilly, though less uniformly high than the far eastern ridge country. The county therefore resembles a low urban trough enclosed by uplands.
This elevation surface is intended for county-wide comparison rather than survey-grade measurement. Parcel, construction, drainage, bridge, or engineering work requires authoritative source elevation data or professional surveying.
Lackawanna County was created in 1878 as Pennsylvania’s final county
Lackawanna County’s official history states that the county was created on August 13, 1878 from the northern portion of Luzerne County. It became Pennsylvania’s 67th and final county, with Scranton serving as the county seat.
By the time the county was formed, the Scranton and Lackawanna Valley area had already grown rapidly through coal, iron, and railroad activity. Pennsylvania’s Anthracite Heritage Museum interprets the people, industries, and communities of the northeastern anthracite coal fields.
The settlement pattern on the modern map still reflects that industrial geography. Dense communities occupy the low river corridor where transportation and industry developed, while the steeper uplands remain much less urbanized.
Lackawanna State Park gives the northwestern lake district a clear reference point
Pennsylvania DCNR describes Lackawanna State Park as a 1,445-acre park in northeastern Pennsylvania, about ten miles north of Scranton. Its centerpiece is the 198-acre Lackawanna Lake, surrounded by forest, trails, picnic areas, and recreation facilities.
On the general map, this area lies north of Dalton near PA 407 and PA 107. The water map makes the lake particularly easy to identify because it is the largest named water body in the northwestern county, separate from the main Lackawanna River corridor.
The park’s position is useful for understanding how quickly the county changes outside the urban valley. Scranton and its neighboring boroughs form a dense built-up strip, while the lake district contains broader forested hills and smaller roads.
Anthracite and iron history helps explain the shape of the Scranton urban corridor
The Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum in Scranton interprets the history of hard-coal mining, related industries, and immigrant communities across the anthracite region. The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission also preserves the Scranton Iron Furnaces, remnants of the Lackawanna Iron and Coal Company.
Mining, iron production, railroads, and industry favored the lower Lackawanna Valley rather than the surrounding ridge tops. The general and elevation maps show that same physical advantage: the valley provides the broadest continuous low route through the county.
Industry has changed, but the urban geography remains visible. Scranton, Dunmore, Dickson City, Olyphant, Blakely, Archbald, and Carbondale still form a nearly continuous sequence of communities along the same valley floor.
Moscow and the southeastern side occupy a very different mountain setting
Southeast of Scranton, the terrain rises rapidly toward Moscow and the I-84–I-380 corridor. PA 307, PA 502, PA 590, and PA 690 connect smaller communities across higher uplands where settlement is much more dispersed than in the central valley.
Roaring Brook River and Spring Brook cut through this high country, with Watres Reservoir and Nesbitt Reservoir providing additional landmarks. The streams descend through narrow valleys toward lower terrain, producing short but pronounced changes in relief.
This southeastern landscape demonstrates that Lackawanna County is more than the Scranton metropolitan corridor. The county also includes lake country to the northwest and broad mountain uplands to the east and south, each with a different road and settlement pattern.
Choose the map according to whether you need roads, water, or relief
The general reference map is the quickest choice for communities and highways. It places Scranton, Dunmore, Old Forge, Carbondale, Archbald, Blakely, Dickson City, I-81, I-84, I-380, I-476, U.S. 6, PA 307, PA 347, and PA 247 in one view. The ranked community map is cleaner when the goal is simply to compare the major population centers.
The terrain-and-water map is more useful for Lackawanna River, Lackawanna Lake, Lake Scranton, Griffin Reservoir, Roaring Brook River, Nesbitt Reservoir, and Watres Reservoir. The elevation map removes many labels and makes the low urban trough and high eastern mountains especially easy to compare.
For printed handouts, classroom use, regional reference notes, or presentation slides, the A3 high-resolution JPG files in the download archive will remain sharper than enlarged web previews. Pairing the general and elevation maps works well for understanding the Scranton urban corridor, while the water map explains how lakes, reservoirs, and steep tributaries fit around the main valley.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best place to start when locating areas in Lackawanna County?
Scranton is the easiest central reference because I-81, I-84, and I-380 meet nearby and the city sits in the main Lackawanna River valley. Carbondale and Archbald are northeast, Old Forge and Moosic are southwest, and the high mountain side begins quickly east of Dunmore.
Why do Scranton, Dunmore, Archbald, and Carbondale form such a long urban strip?
They occupy the same low Lackawanna River valley, which historically concentrated roads, railroads, mining, and industry. The elevation map shows this corridor as a long green lowland enclosed by much higher terrain on both sides.
Are the Scranton 76,033 and Dunmore 14,181 values current official population estimates?
Not necessarily. They are the ranking values printed on the supplied community graphic. Carbondale, Old Forge, Archbald, and Blakely should be treated the same way; current official figures should come from the latest U.S. Census Bureau releases.
Map File Information
The download ZIP contains four A3 high-resolution JPG files: the Lackawanna County general reference map, ranked community map, terrain-and-water map, and elevation map. The original files are larger than the web previews and are better suited to printing, classroom handouts, regional reference work, and presentation slides.
- Included Files: Use only the versions confirmed in the article and supplied images
- File Type: Use the confirmed download contents
- Intended Use: Printing, education, presentations, and map-based projects
Related Maps
Sources and References
- Lackawanna County official history: county formation in 1878 and the historical development of Scranton and the Lackawanna Valley.
- Pennsylvania DCNR – Lackawanna State Park: official information on Lackawanna Lake and the northwestern county landscape.
- Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum: official context on the anthracite industry and northeastern Pennsylvania communities.
- U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line Shapefiles: county boundaries and transportation geography.
- USGS National Hydrography: rivers, streams, lakes, and reservoir data.
- USGS 3D Elevation Program: elevation data and 3DEP documentation.
Green Map creates custom-edited map images using open geographic data sources such as geoBoundaries, Natural Earth, OpenStreetMap, and government open data. These maps are edited visual materials, not raw data files, and are provided for education, documents, presentations, and graphic reference.
