ALLEGANY

county, western Maryland, U.S. It consists of an irregular neck of land between Pennsylvania to the north and West Virginia to the south (the North Branch Potomac River constituting the border with West Virginia). The county rests on part of the Allegheny Plateau and includes Rocky Gap State Park, Green Ridge State Forest, and the scenic gorge of Cumberland Narrows (1,000 feet [300 metres] deep). The county was created in 1789. Its name is derived from the Delaware Indian word oolikhanna, meaning good river or beautiful stream. Cumberland, the county seat, became a transportation hub after it was made the eastern terminus of the Cumberland (National) Road (completed 1837), a station along the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad line (1842), and the western terminus of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (completed 1850). Principal industries are manufacturing and bituminous coal mining. Area 425 square miles (1,102 square km). Pop. (1990) 74,946; (1996 est.) 73,037. county, southwestern New York state, U.S., bordered to the south by Pennsylvania and comprising a region of moderate relief. The principal waterways are the Genesee River and Rushford and Cuba lakes. Public lands include the Oil Spring Indian Reservation and state wildlife management areas at Hanging Bog, Rattlesnake Hill, and Keaney Swamp. The main forest types are maple, birch, and beech, with stands of oak and hickory. Indians who inhabited the region were Iroquoian-speaking Seneca and Susquehanna tribes. The principal communities are Wellsville, Alfred, Cuba, and Belmont, which is the county seat. The county is the home of Alfred University (founded 1836) and Houghton College (1883). The county was created in 1806 and named for the Allegany Indians. The economy relies on services and manufacturing. Area 1,030 square miles (2,668 square km). Pop. (1990) 50,470; (1996 est.) 51,282.