Creating the Erie County Department of Health in 1955 was relatively simple. Convincing the city of Erie to join was much more difficult.
City leaders dragged their heels for 13 years, citing a variety of reasons: the existence of a city health bureau and ensuring the future pensions of its workers, concerns that a countywide department wouldn’t prioritize Erie’s health issues, and determining which health-related services would remain under the city’s jurisdiction.
“It could be a serious situation if the city health bureau’s services and regulatory powers were curtailed,” said Arthur Gardner, then a member of Erie City Council’s public safety committee, according to an April, 5, 1962 story in the Erie Morning News. “There must be a lot of administrative digging before this committee can come up with any recommendations.”
It would take nearly six more years of digging, as Erie didn’t officially join the county Health Department until 1968.
Nearly 70 years since it was created, the Erie County Department of Health remains unique. None of the state’s other 10 county or municipal health departments are located in northwestern Pennsylvania.