Pennsylvania State...
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Pennsylvania Counties
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Northampton County, Pennsylvania
Northampton County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat: Easton
Year Organized: 1752
Square Miles: 374 |
Court House: 669 Washington Street
County Courthouse
Easton, PA 18042-7411
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Etymology - Origin of County Name
named for Northamptonshire, England, where Thomas Penn's
father-in-law, the Earl of Pomfret, lived.
Demographics:
County QuickFacts:
Census Bureau Quick Facts
History
Created on March 11, 1752 from parts
of Bucks County and named for Northamptonshire, England, where Thomas Penn's
father-in-law, the Earl of Pomfret, lived. Easton, the county seat was named for
the Earl's estate. It was incorporated as a borough on September 23, 1789 and
became a city on November 2, 1886. The county adopted a home rule charter in
April 1976.
Pennsylvania's Walking Purchase from the Delaware Indians in 1737 included all
the present area of this county. Moravians settled in 1740 at Nazareth and in
1741 at Bethlehem. Fries' Rebellion against a federal tax on windows occurred
here. Until 1800 Northampton was the entire northeastern section of
Pennsylvania. In 1812 the creation of Lehigh County divided the Lehigh Valley,
and Northampton continued to yield land until the formation of Carbon County in
1843. German farmers from Bucks County and Perkiomen Valley, as well as
Scots-Irish from New Castle, were the first settler groups. The opening of the
Lehigh Canal in 1829 triggered industrial growth. Major iron works functioned at
Easton, Glendon, and South Bethlehem before 1860. Bethlehem Iron Works became
Bethlehem Steel, the second largest United States' steel producer. By 1890 there
were also flour mills, textile factories, slate quarries, and zinc mines.
Depression was seriously felt from 1930 to 1941. Bethlehem Steel recognized the
United Steelworkers in 1939, but there was a bitter strike in 1941. Lasting
industrial decline began in 1955, reaching beyond the steel industry. The cement
mills and the Dixie Cup Company have closed. Farms cover 36 percent of the
county and Northampton is a significant grain and peaches producer.
Neighboring Counties:
Cities and Towns:
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- Allen |
township |
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- Bangor |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Bath |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Bethlehem |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- East Allen |
township |
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- East Bangor |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Easton
(County Seat) |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Forks |
township |
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- Fountain Hill |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Freemansburg |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Glendon |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Hellertown |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Lehigh |
township |
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- Lower Mount Bethel |
township |
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- Lower Nazareth |
township |
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- Lower Saucon |
township |
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- Moore |
township |
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- Nazareth |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- North Catasauqua |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Northampton |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Palmer |
township |
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- Pen Argyl |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Portland |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Roseto |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Stockertown |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Tatamy |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Upper Mount Bethel |
township |
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- Upper Nazareth |
township |
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- Walnutport |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- West Easton |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Wilson |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
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- Wind Gap |
borough |
Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
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County Resource Guide
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The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic
features of our country!"
But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.
Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally,
act locally." |
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Penn Foster High School
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