Settlers began to make their homes in the Somerset County region at the end of the French and Indian War, when a vast new section of provincial land was opened for legal settlement. Purchased from the Indians in 1768, the region was called the New Purchase or the Purchase of 1768. Somerset County was subsequenty created in 1795 from the western part of the already existing Bedford County. In 1804, the town of Somerset,located on the turnpike road from Bedford to Pittsburgh, was named its county seat. Agriculture was the dominant industry: the region supported cattle and sheep, and from the vast tracts of forested land came vast amounts of maple sugar. The Somerset and Cumberland Railroad opened in 1871, and big lumber and coal industries developed. Large scale mining operations began in 1872, and, as the lumber industry waned, coal production peaked. In 1920 Somerset mines produced 10.5 million tons of coal.

This production was accompanied by labor strife, and there were violent coal strikes in 1903, 1906, and 1922. The 1936 flood eliminated the old wooden miners’ houses, and coal production gradually diminished. The development of the modern Pennsylvania Turnpike in the 1940’s brought tourists and revived the county’s economy. The highest elevation found in Pennsylvania is located in Somerset County at Mt. Davis, which is 3,213 feet above sea level. Somerset County is one of the snowiest inhabited locations in the United States, with parts of the county averaging 200+ inches of snow each winter, making it a prime ski area. Somerset County gained worldwide attention with the tragic 9-11 crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Shanksville. Less than a year later, Somerset County again made news when tragedy was averted and nine coal miners were improbably and dramatically rescued from the Quecreek Mine.