Easton, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia : E : EA : EAS : Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The population was 26,263 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Northampton County[Geographic references#6GR6].
Easton, along with Allentown and Bethlehem, comprise the three primary cities of Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley area, which is the state's third most populous metropolitan area. Easton is the most eastern city of the Lehigh Valley, bordering on the Delaware River that divides Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Easton is located almost exactly half way between Philadelphia and New York City. It is 60 miles (100 km) north of Philadelphia and 70 miles (110 km) west of New York City.
The greater Easton area consists of the city itself, three townships (Forks, Palmer, and Williams) and three boroughs (Glendon, West Easton, and Wilson).
Education
Easton is the home of one four-year college, Lafayette College, which is one of the older colleges in the United States (founded in 1826).
The greater Easton area is served by two public school districts:
- The Easton Area School District serves the residents of the city itself, along with Forks and Palmer Townships and two smaller non-contiguous communities: the borough of Riegelsville, Pennsylvania to the south and the village of Martins Creek, Pennsylvania to the north. It has six elementary schools (Cheston, Forks, March, Palmer, Paxinosa, and Tracy) for grades K-4, Easton Area Middle School for grades 5-6, Shawnee Middle School (in Forks Township) for grades 7-8, and Easton High School (in Palmer Township) for grades 9-12. Total student enrollment is about 9000 students in all grades.
- The Wilson Area School District serves the boroughs of Wilson, Glendon, and West Easton, along with the residents of Williams Township. It has three elementary schools (Avona, Wilson, and Williams) for grades K-5, Philip F. Lauer Middle School for grades 6-8, and Wilson Area High School for grades 9-12. Total student enrollment is about 2000 students in all grades.
Industry
Easton is the home of two large global corporations. It is the headquarters of Binney & Smith, the manufacturer of Crayola crayons, and Dixie Cup Corporation, the manufacturer of dixie cups and other consumer products.
History
Easton is situated at the confluence of the Delaware and Lehigh rivers, a popular area long before it was settled by Europeans. The Native Americans knew this place as "Lechauwitank", or "The Place at the Forks". Thomas Penn was so inspired by the beauty of the place that he set aside a 1000 acre (4km²) tract of land here for a town. Easton, founded in 1752, was so named at the request of Penn: he had recently married Juliana Fermor, the daughter of Lord Pomfret whose estate was called Easton-Neston, in Northamptonshire, England. As the new county of Northampton was being formed at this time, Easton was selected as its county seat, at least partially because it was as far as possible from the Moravians who were settled further up the Lehigh River at Bethlehem.
Several Indian treaties were signed in Easton during the French and Indian War, contributing to the English conquest of the Ohio River Valley.
Declaration of Independence reading
Easton was also an important military center during the American Revolutionary War. In 1776, Easton was one of the first three places the Declaration of Independence was publicly read (along with Philadelphia and Trenton). It is claimed that the Easton flag was flown during that reading, making it one of the first "Stars and Stripes" to fly over the colonies. This flag, which is known to date to the War of 1812, currently serves as Easton's municipal flag.
Industrial history
Easton was a major commercial center during the canal and railroad periods of the 1800's, when it was a transportation hub for the steel industry. Three canals (the Delaware, the Lehigh, and the Morris canals) served to connect the coal regions of the north, the iron works to the west, and the commercial port of Philadelphia to the south. Later, Easton was served by five railroads, and only lost its prominence in transportation with the rise of the automobile.
Like the Pennsylvania Dutch region to the southwest, Easton has a strong German heritage. The Pennsylvania Argus, a German-language newspaper, was published in Easton until 1917. As part of their heritage, the Germans put up one of the continent's earliest Christmas trees in Easton; Daniel Foley's book (page 72) states that "Another diary reference unearthed recently makes mention of a tree set-up at Easton, Pennsylvania, in 1816." There is a plaque in Scott Park (along the Delaware) commemorating this event, and it also mentions the 1816 date.
Refuge from prohibition
During prohibition, Easton earned a reputation for nightlife in an age when the rest of the nation was dry, and Easton was referred to colloquially as "The Little Apple." Easton was a speakeasy town where liquor flowed freely, brothels were common, and the local police were known to turn a blind eye. Following the end of many Friday Night fights in New York City's Madison Square Garden during this era, crowds were known to chant "Going to Easton" before boarding trains en masse for the short 78 mile trek to this Pennsylvania/New Jersey border town, where nightlife flourished.
Ironically, Easton was also once known as the "City of Churches". At one time, it had the largest church-to-population ratio in the nation.
Geography
Easton is located at (40.688248, -75.216458)[Geographic references#1GR1].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.0 km² (4.7 mi²). 11.0 km² (4.3 mi²) of it is land and 1.0 km² (0.4 mi²) of it (8.39%) is water. including Bushkill Creek and the Lehigh and Delaware rivers.
Downtown Easton lies at the confluence of the Lehigh and Delaware rivers, and is a low-lying area surrounded by hills to the north, west, and south. North of downtown is College Hill, the home of Lafayette College. South Easton, divided by the Lehigh River from the rest of the city, was a separate borough until 1898; it was settled initially by canal workers, and was later the home of several silk mills.
Demographics
As of the census[Geographic references#2GR2] of 2000, there were 26,263 people, 9,544 households, and 5,735 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,380.3/km² (6,168.4/mi²). There were 10,545 housing units at an average density of 955.7/km² (2,476.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.48% White, 12.71% African American, 0.24% Native American, 1.66% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 3.67% from other races, and 3.13% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.79% of the population.
There were 9,544 households out of which 30.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.7% were married couples living together, 16.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.9% were non-families. 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.3% under the age of 18, 16.3% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 97.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $33,162, and the median income for a family was $38,704. Males had a median income of $32,356 versus $23,609 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,949. About 12.3% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.3% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.
Notable Easton residents
- Chuck Amato - college football coach, North Carolina State University.
- James McKeen Cattell - first United States psychology professor.
- Larry Holmes - boxing's former world heavyweight champion (who fought under the nickname "The Easton Assassin").
- Frank Reed Horton - founder of Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity.
- Daniel Dae Kim - actor, ABC's Lost.
- Robert B. Meyner - former Governor of New Jersey.
- Sally Jessy Raphaël - television talk show host.
- Harry Clay Trexler - industrialist and businessman.
- Bob Weiss - former professional basketball coach, Seattle SuperSonics.
External links
References
- Daniel J. Foley. "The Christmas Tree". Chilton Co., Book Division: Philadelphia 1960.
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