Welcome to Titusville!

Use this page as a resource to find out what’s happening in the Titusville area with
community events, economic engagement, housing, public art, marketing, and more!

Introduction

Located in the far east corner of Crawford County, Titusville, Pennsylvania is best known as “The Birthplace of the Oil Industry” thanks to Edwin Drake who drilled his well in 1859 and struck oil, launching the modern day industry. Titusville is a place of legacy.

Today, the history of the city lives on through iconic attractions like the Drake Well Museum, the site of Drake’s oil well, the Ida Tarbell House, childhood home of investigative journalist and writer, Ida Tarbell, and the Oil Creek and Titusville Railroad.

But Titusville is more than a rich history. It’s also a wonderful place to live today!

With 40 million Americans on the move and thinking differently about where to set up shop, it’s time to share that Titusville has more to offer beyond innovations in oil. With nearly 122 acres of recreational property, the treasured Queen City Trail, a historic downtown, and small-town charm, Titusville is the place to visit and call home.

Background

In early 2019 the city of Titusville was awarded the opportunity for placemaking services through Rural Rocks, a program sponsored by the Northwestern Rural Electric Cooperative Association. 

After one community visit and stakeholder meeting the world soon fell into a global pandemic. Despite immense challenges presented to the typical placemaking process, Atlas Community Studios was able to continue virtually, working alongside a Steering Committee of invested community leaders including Titusville Renaissance, Inc., a volunteer 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to enhancement of the greater Titusville community. 

With public and stakeholder input, and research and guidance from the Steering Committee, the Atlas team identified key opportunities for catalytic change as Titusville looks to the future. The Placemaking venture now has five teams that are helping launch Titusville into its amazing future. They are:

  • Technology Team
  • Marketing & Branding Team
  • Public Art Team
  • Housing Team
  • Economic Engagement Team

If you are interested in being a member of any of these teams, please contact Titusville Renaissance, Inc.!

What is Placemaking?

Placemaking is a people-centered approach to building strong, vibrant communities. Our holistic approach helps communities identify the long term vision and lay out a realistic, step-by-step “roadmap” to achieve these goals through catalytic project opportunities.

The goal of this process is to identify high-impact opportunity areas, complementing existing and past projects, that address current challenges, and leverage existing assets for continued growth. We plan to accomplish these goals through our five teams.

Placemaking Overarching Goals

  • Economic and social development
  • Increase population and/or tourism
  • Improve overall quality of life

Steering Committee

Special thanks to Titusville Renaissance for their application to the program and leadership in organizing through the placemaking process. We would also like to thank the Titusville Placemaking Steering Committee for the dedication and support through this process in an especially challenging year: Leah Carter, Sara Jones, Emily Altomare, Sarah Miller, Neil Fratus, Denny Peden, Ross Ruot, Reann Rauch, Bob Joyce, Zach Norwood, Luke Ruot, and Nancy Funk.