Elk County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 30,990. Its county seat is Ridgway. The county was created on April 18, 1843, from parts of Jefferson, Clearfield, and McKean Counties. Elk County is named for the now-extinct eastern elk that historically inhabited the region. The county is part of the North Central Pennsylvania region of the state.