CLEARFIELD

clearfield, a borough and the county-seat of clearfield county, pennsylvania, u.s.a., on the w. branch of the susquehanna river, in the w. central part of the state. pop. (1890) 2248; (1900) 5081 (310 foreign-born); (1910) 6851. it is served by the new york central & hudson river, the pennsylvania, and the buffalo, rochester & pittsburg railways. the borough is about 1105 ft. above sea-level, in a rather limited space between the hills, which command picturesque views of the narrow valley. the river runs through the borough. coal and fireclay abound in the vicinity, and these, with leather, iron, timber and the products of the fertile soil, are the bases of its leading industries. before the arrival of the whites the place had been cleared of timber (whence its name), and in 1805 it was chosen as a site for the county-seat of the newly erected county and laid out as a town; in 1840 it was incorporated as a borough.