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Northampton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It was formed in 1752 from parts of Bucks County. As of 2000, the population was 267,066. Its county seat is Easton6.

Northampton County is located in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, while the northern edge borders on the Poconos. The eastern section of the county directly borders New Jersey.

The county is one of the most industrially-oriented regions in the nation, producing anthracite coal, cement, and other industrial products. Bethlehem Steel Corporation, once of the world's largest manufacturers of steel, was located there, prior to its 2003 closing.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 977 km² (377 mi²). 968 km² (374 mi²) of it is land and 9 km² (4 mi²) of it (0.94%) is water.

Adjacent Counties

Government

Northampton is one of the six counties in Pennsylvania which has adopted a home rule charter. Instead of being run by a Board of Commissioners and several Row Officers, voters elect an Executive, a nine-person Council, a Controller, and a District Attorney. The Executive, Controller and District Attorney are elected by all voters in the County, as are five members of the Council. The other four Councilmen are elected by districts.

Elected Officials*

  • County Executive:
    • John Stoffa

  • County Council:
    • J. Michael Dowd
    • Michael F. Corriere
    • Ron Angle
    • Mary Ensslin
    • John Cusick
    • Wayne Grube
    • Ann McHale
    • Charles Dertinger
    • Diane Neiper

  • County Controller:
    • John Schimmel

  • District Attorney
    • John Morganelli

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 267,066 people, 101,541 households, and 71,078 families residing in the county. The population density was 276/km² (714/mi²). There were 106,710 housing units at an average density of 110/km² (286/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.23% White, 2.77% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 1.37% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 3.06% from other races, and 1.39% from two or more races. 6.69% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 101,541 households out of which 31.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.40% were married couples living together, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.00% were non-families. 24.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the county, the population was spread out with 23.30% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 28.30% from 25 to 44, 23.40% from 45 to 64, and 15.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 94.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.70 males.

Famous people from Northampton County

Municipalities

Cities

Boroughs

Townships

Census-designated Places

Education

Colleges & Universities

Public School Districts

  • Bangor Area School District
  • Bethlehem Area School District
  • Catasaqua Area School District
  • Easton Area School District (including Easton High School)
  • Nazareth Area School District
  • Northampton Area School District
  • Northern Lehigh School District
  • Pen Argyl Area School District
  • Saucon Valley School District
  • Wilson Area School District

High Schools

External links

Lehigh Valley | Northampton County, Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania counties

Northampton County (Pennsylvania) | Condado de Northampton (Pensilvânia)

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Northampton County, Pennsylvania".

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