The first Europeans in Fayette County were European explorers who had used an ancient American Indian trail that bisected the county on their journey across the Appalachian Mountains. Control of the area remained in dispute throughout the mid-1700’s—both France and Britain wanted this important supply route, and both ignored the indigenous people living there. During the American Revolution, a border dispute resulted in both Pennsylvania and Virginia claiming the territory. Finally, in 1783, the new Federal Government decided in favor of Pennsylvania, and created Fayette County—named for the Marquis De Lafayette –out of part of the much larger Westmoreland County. Its county seat was, and remains, in Uniontown.
In 1793, the residents of Fayette County joined other regions in the Whiskey Rebellion. President George Washington sent federal militias in, and the rebellion ended in 1794. Throughout the 19th century, Fayette County grew as the coal industry grew. The population, at first mainly German and Scottish farmers, became more diverse as industry grew in western Pennsylvania. Southern and Eastern Europeans emigrated to the region to participate in the new coal economy. African Americans, in the Great Migration north, settled in Pittsburgh and the surrounding counties. But despite the diversity, wealth and political power remained, for the most part, concentrated in the hands of the English and Scottish families who had been in the region for generations.
By World War II, unionization and good industrial jobs had helped Fayette’s citizens to achieve a level of prosperity. But with the waning of the coal industry, and the restructuring of western Pennsylvania’s steel industry in the latter half of the 20th century, came population decline and a turn to a service economy.
The county is home to pristine woodlands and parks. Ohiopyle State Park, the gateway to the Laurel Highlands, encompasses approximately 20,500 acres of natural beauty. The Youghiogheny [River Gorge is the centerpiece of Ohiopyle. It provides some of the best whitewater boating in the eastern United States, as well as spectacular scenery. Laurel Caverns, extending over a 3-mile area under the mountains, is Pennsylvania’s largest cave system, attracting thousands of visitors each year.