Carbon County, Pennsylvania facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Carbon County
U.S. county
Clockwise from top left: Beltzville State Park, Beltzville Lake, Bowmanstown, and Packerton
Flag Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
Founded	March 13, 1843 (Divided from Northampton County)
Named for	Coal deposits
Seat	Jim Thorpe
Largest borough	Palmerton
Area
• Total	387 sq mi (1,000 km2)
• Land	381 sq mi (990 km2)
• Water	5.9 sq mi (15 km2)  2%%
Population
• Estimate  (2020)	64,749
• Density	170/sq mi (70/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	7th
Pennsylvania Historical Marker
Designated:	June 13, 1982

Carbon County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 64,749. The county is part of the Northeast Pennsylvania region of the state.

The county borders Lehigh and Northampton counties in the state's Lehigh Valley region to its south, Monroe County to its east, Luzerne County to its north, and Schuylkill County to its west. The county is approximately 33 miles (53 km) northwest of Allentown, the state's third-largest city, and 117 miles (188 km) west of New York City, the nation's largest city.

The county seat is Jim Thorpe, which was founded in 1818 as Mauch Chunk. The Lehigh River, a 109-mile-long (175 km) tributary of the Delaware River, flows through Carbon County.

History

Moravian settlement

In 1745, the first colonial settlement in Carbon County was established by a Moravian mission in Gnadenhutten, in present-day Lehighton. By 1752, increased hostility between colonialists and Native Americans put Gnadenhutten at risk for attack; in 1755, the community was attacked by Native Americans.

In the late 1780s, the county's settlement at Lehigh Gap failed, and colonizers did not return for a decade, in the late 1780s.

Coal

In 1791, a homesteader, Phillip Ginter, hunting on Sharp Mountain along Pisgah Mountain discovered a black tone coal outcropping, and conveyed a chunk of it to Weissport.

Industrialization

Corporate headquarters of Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company in Mauch Chunk, now Jim Thorpe; the company, which was founded in 1822 and dissolved in 1985, spearheaded the American Industrial Revolution, was founded in 1822 and dissolved in 1986.

Lehigh Coal Mine Company (LCMC) operations had managed to open up the mouth area of the Nesquehoning Creek by 1800. This area became known as Lausanne, or Lausanne Landing, after the inn and tavern built there called Landing Tavern. An Amerindian trail crossed the stream near the confluence with Jean's Run and the camp grounds of their boat builders, climbing northwestwards along a traverse to the next water gap west, eroded into the southern flank of Broad Mountain in the Lehigh Valley. It connected across a barrier ridge whose waters originated in the saddle-pass where Hazleton was built. The trail became the Lehigh and Susquehanna Turnpike in 1804. PA Route 93 follows this route with the exception of where modern road building capabilities allowed improved positioning. This road cut 90–100 miles (140–160 km) off a trip from Philadelphia to the Wyoming Valley and the northern sections of the Coal Region.

Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company

In 1827, Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company, based in present-day Jim Thorpe, launched the Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway, the nation's second operating railroad. The Beaver Meadow Railroad and Coal Company, also located in Carbon County, was the first railway to operate steam locomotives as traction engines and prime movers in the United States. The Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway connected mines west of Beaver Meadows and Weatherly to the Lehigh Canal opposite Lehighton.

County's founding

A state historical marker in Jim Thorpe

Carbon County was created on March 13, 1843, from parts of Northampton and Monroe counties and was named for the extensive deposits of anthracite coal in the region, where it was first discovered in 1791. Early attempts were made to exploit the deposits by Lehigh Coal Mine Company (1792), whose expeditions broke trail and pioneered river bank sites using mule powered technology to log, saw, and build arks to carry bags of coal to Philadelphia with only scant success.

Molly Maguires

In the 19th century, Carbon County was the location of trials and executions of the Molly Maguires, an Irish secret society that had been accused of terrorizing the region.

Geography

The Lehigh River flowing through Riverview Park in Palmerton in March 2010

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 387 square miles (1,000 km²), of which 381 square miles (990 km²) is land and 5.9 square miles (15 km²) (1.5%) is water. Blue Mountain forms the southern boundary of Carbon County. The northeast area of the county is located in the Pocono Mountains and the northwest area includes portions of Broad and Spring mountains.

The county is drained by the Lehigh River except for a small area in western Packer Township and the borough of Lansford that are drained by the Still Creek and Panther Creek, respectively, into the Little Schuylkill River and the Schuylkill River, and the Audenried area in the northwest corner that drains into the Susquehanna River via the Catawissa Creek. The Lehigh River cuts a gorge between Jim Thorpe and White Haven, which hosts the Lehigh Gorge State Park.

Climate

Carbon County has a humid continental climate (Dfa/Dfb) and is mostly in hardiness zone 6b except for the NE part of the county and higher NW areas where it is 6a. Average monthly temperatures at Jake Arner Memorial Airport range from 27.8 °F in January to 72.5 °F in July, while at the Pocono interchange of the Turnpike they range from 22.9 °F in January to 68.3 °F in July.

Adjacent counties

• Luzerne County (north)
• Monroe County (east)
• Northampton County (southeast)
• Lehigh County (south)
• Schuylkill County (southwest)

Transportation

Major highways

I-476/Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension southbound in Carbon County

Buses

Carbon Transit fixed-route bus service consists of Route 701 (Coaldale-Palmerton) and Route 702 (Nesquehoning-Palmerton), both connecting to the LANta Route 325 bus in Palmerton. Carbon Transit also operates CT Flex service in Jim Thorpe, Penn Forest Township, and Kidder Township. Also, Hazleton Public Transit (HPT) bus route 30 serves northwestern Carbon County via Beaver Meadows and Junedale to Weatherly. Audenried is served by HPT route 20 (Hazleton-McAdoo/Kelayres).

Fullington Trailways provides intercity service to Carbon County with stops in Lehighton and Jim Thorpe. Martz Trailways has a stop in Kidder Township near the Pocono interchange of Interstate 476 for service between Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Allentown, Quakertown, and Philadelphia. This is an Amtrak Thruway route, connecting to Amtrak trains at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia. Martz also operates casino bus routes to Atlantic City from the stop.

Airports

Jake Arner Memorial Airport in Lehighton provides general aviation. The nearest commercial passenger service is at Lehigh Valley International Airport or Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport.

Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 58,802 people, 23,701 households, and 16,424 families residing in the county. The population density was 154 people per square mile (59 people/km²). There were 30,492 housing units at an average density of 80 units per square mile (31/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.82% White, 0.60% Black or African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 0.76% from two or more races. 1.46% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 29.4% were of German, 10.1% Irish, 9.2% Italian, 7.9% American, 6.6% Slovak, 6.0% Polish and 5.8% Ukrainian ancestry.

There were 23,701 households, out of which 28.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.80% were married couples living together, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.70% were non-families. 26.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.20% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 28.30% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 18.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 94.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.30 males.

2020 census

Education

Community, junior and technical colleges

Lehigh Carbon Community College in Schnecksville in May 2014

• Lehigh Carbon Community College – Carbon Campus, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania

Public school districts

• Hazleton Area School District (also in Luzerne County and Schuylkill County)
• Jim Thorpe Area School District
• Lehighton Area School District
• Palmerton Area School District
• Panther Valley School District (also in Schuylkill County)
• Weatherly Area School District

Career technical school

Carbon Career and Technical Institute, public school located in Jim Thorpe

Intermediate Unit

The public and private K-12 schools in Carbon County are served by Carbon-Lehigh Intermediate Unit 21.

Recreation

Lehigh Gorge State Park in Carbon County in October 2006

Mauch Chunk Lake is a county-run park that offers swimming, camping, hiking and cross country skiing in the winter. There are three Pennsylvania state parks in Carbon County:

• Beltzville State Park
• Hickory Run State Park
• Lehigh Gorge State Park stretches along the Lehigh River in Luzerne County and into Carbon County.

Municipalities

Map of Carbon County

Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, in the case of Bloomsburg, a town. The following boroughs and townships are located in Carbon County:

Boroughs

Townships

Census-designated places

Census-designated places are geographical areas designated by the U.S. Census Bureau for the purposes of compiling demographic data. They are not actual jurisdictions under Pennsylvania law. Other unincorporated communities, such as villages, may be listed here as well.

• Albrightsville
• Holiday Pocono
• Indian Mountain Lake
• Towamensing Trails
• Tresckow
• Weissport East

Former communities

• Big Creek Valley
• East Mauch Chunk, now an eastern part of Jim Thorpe
• East Penn Township, Pennsylvania, the far eastern part of today's Jim Thorpe at the other end of Bear Mountain (Lehigh Valley)
• Lausanne Landing, the original settlement above the Lehigh Gap at the mouth of the Nesquehoning Creek; terminus of the Lehigh & Susquehanna Turnpike founded in 1804

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Carbon County.

† county seat

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Carbon (Pensilvania) para niños