Clay is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Clay Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located along U.S. Route 322 between Brickerville and Ephrata. As of the 2010 census the population was 1,559.[3]

Clay, Pennsylvania
Census-designated place
Clay Show map of Pennsylvania Clay Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 40°13′6″N 76°15′9″W
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Lancaster
Township	Clay
Area [1]
• Total	2.25 sq mi (5.82 km2)
• Land	2.24 sq mi (5.79 km2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2)
Elevation	359 ft (109 m)
Population  (2020)[2]
• Total	1,869
• Density	835.87/sq mi (322.73/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code	17522 (Ephrata)
Area code	717
FIPS code	42-13952
GNIS feature ID	1171942

Geography

Clay is in northern Lancaster County, in the southern part of Clay Township. Clay is bordered by Hopeland to the west and northwest. US 322 leads northwest 12 miles (19 km) to Quentin and southeast 5 miles (8 km) to Ephrata. It is 14 miles (23 km) north of Lancaster, the county seat.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Clay CDP has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.8 km²), of which 0.01 square miles (0.03 km²), or 0.49%, are water.[4] Middle Creek, which forms the border between Clay Township and Elizabeth Township, runs through the west side of the community, flowing southeast towards Cocalico Creek, a tributary of the Conestoga River and part of the Susquehanna River watershed.

Demographics

References