Allentown (Pennsylvania)

Lehigh County

42-02000

Allentown ( Pennsylvania Dutch: Allenschteddel ) is a city located in Lehigh County in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Allentown is to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, the third largest city in Pennsylvania. Allentown is located on the Lehigh River and is the county seat of Lehigh County.

Billy Joel's song " Allentown ", which appeared on his 1982 album "The Nylon Curtain", is from Allentown and the neighboring city of Bethlehem, both industrial cities in decline.

History

The city was founded in 1762 under the name " Northampton Town " by William Allen. Notwithstanding its formal name of the place was, however, known after its founder as " Allen 's Town " from the beginning. The original plan of the founder, that there should arise at the Lehigh River, a commercial center, failed because of the usually low water level of the river. This disadvantage could be partially offset by the construction of the Lehigh Canal later.

From September 1777 the Liberty Bell was in today's Allentown temporarily stored, as it was feared that the British might melt this in the wake of the American War of Independence. She was taken in June 1778 back to Philadelphia.

The site, which officially received its present name in 1838, experienced in the 1850s and 1860s, a huge boom of the iron industry. Was produced especially for the fast-growing rail network in the United States. This market suffered considerably under the later founder crash of 1873 ( Panic of 1873). The iron industry in Allentown fell into turmoil, which resulted in more and more factories were closed and from which they never recovered.

Economy

In addition to the company Mack Trucks and Air Products & Chemicals also the power company PPL is headquartered in Allentown.

Sons and daughters of the town

Air table

County (United States) Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Federal Information Processing Standards Bethlehem (Pennsylvania)
49514
de