Jacksonville CDP (Centre County), PA

Jacksonville is an unincorporated census-designated place and the principal hamlet of Marion Township in Centre County, Pennsylvania. It sits in the Little Nittany Valley about ten miles northeast of Bellefonte, with Howard Gap in Bald Eagle Mountain rising to the northwest. Pennsylvania Route 26 passes through the gap toward Howard, while Interstate 80 runs along the valley just southeast of the community. Those roads give Jacksonville a clear place on the map even though it does not have a separate borough government.

The setting is classic Centre County valley country: a compact settlement backed by ridges, farm roads, and the routes that connect the small towns to Bellefonte and State College. Jacksonville is part of the Bellefonte Area School District, and the Marion Township government handles the larger civic frame around it. The local scoop is that Jacksonville is easy to confuse with other Pennsylvania places carrying the same name, so “Centre County” and “Marion Township” do the useful work here. Find Howard Gap, follow Route 26 down into the Little Nittany Valley, and the Jacksonville label makes sense as a small hamlet with a surprisingly busy regional road map.