The
Luzerne County Historical Society maintains the storehouse for the collective memory of Luzerne County and its environs. It records and interprets the history, traditions, events, people, and cultures that have directed and molded life within the region.
18th century in the region before the arrival of European settlers and competing land claims at the time depicted in an 1858 painting by
Alonzo Chappel ,
Lackawanna,
Susquehanna, and
Wyoming were still part of Luzerne County Long an area occupied by indigenous peoples, by the 1700s the
Wyoming Valley was inhabited by several Native American tribes including the
Susquehannock, who spoke an
Iroquoian language, and the
Delaware (Lenape), who spoke an
Algonquian language. In the mid-18th century,
Connecticut settlers of primarily English ancestry ventured into the valley. These were the first recorded
Europeans in the region. Some came as
missionaries to the Native American peoples, while others came to farm the fertile land near the
Susquehanna River. Ultimately, the violence of the
French and Indian War (the North American front of the
Seven Years' War between Great Britain and France) drove these Connecticut settlers away. The
British colonies of
Pennsylvania and Connecticut both claimed the Wyoming Valley as their own.
King Charles II of England had granted the land to the Connecticut Colony in 1662, but also to
William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania, in 1681. In 1769,
Yankee settlers from Connecticut returned to the valley and founded the town of
Wilkes-Barre. However, they were not alone. Pennsylvanian settlers (Pennamites) were also in the region. Armed bands of Pennamites harassed the Connecticut settlers in what is known as the
Pennamite-Yankee Wars. While the land dispute continued, a much larger conflict began. In 1775, the
Thirteen Colonies began a war of independence against
Great Britain. Residents of both Pennsylvania and Connecticut were largely loyal to the
Patriot cause, which supported the
American Revolution and independence. On June 30, 1778,
Loyalist forces, under the command of Major
John Butler, arrived in the Wyoming Valley to attack the rebel American settlements. On July 1, Fort Wintermoot at the north end of the valley surrendered without a shot being fired. The next morning the smaller Fort Jenkins surrendered. Both forts were later burned to the ground. The
Patriot militia assembled at
Forty Fort. On July 3, a column of roughly 360 men, including a company of soldiers from the
Continental Army, marched from the fort under the command of Lieutenant Colonel
Zebulon Butler and Colonel Nathan Denison.
Butler's Rangers, with the assistance of about 500 Native American allies, mostly
Seneca, ambushed the approaching Americans. In the end, 302 American soldiers were killed during the
Battle of Wyoming. Today, in the Borough of
Wyoming, a
monument marks the gravesite of the victims from the battle. The next day, Colonel Denison surrendered Forty Fort along with several other posts. Widespread looting and burning of buildings occurred throughout the Wyoming Valley subsequent to this capitulation, but non-combatants were not harmed.
Post-Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War ended three years later (in 1783) with the signing of the
Treaty of Paris. Great Britain finally recognized the
sovereignty of the United States of America. The land dispute between Pennsylvania and Connecticut continued after the war. Connecticut established its own county (by the name of
Westmoreland) in the Wyoming Valley. However, Pennsylvania insisted that they owned the land. The
Congress of the Confederation was asked to resolve the matter. With the Trenton Decree, on December 30, 1782, the confederation government officially decided that the region belonged to Pennsylvania; the Wyoming Valley became part of
Northumberland County. Pennsylvania ruled that the Connecticut settlers, also known as the Yankees, were not citizens of the Commonwealth. They could not vote and were ordered to give up their property claims. In May 1784, armed men from Pennsylvania force-marched the Connecticut settlers away from the valley. By November, the Yankees returned with a greater force. They captured and destroyed
Fort Dickinson in Wilkes-Barre. With that victory, a new state (which was separate from both Connecticut and Pennsylvania) was proposed. The new state was to be named
Westmoreland. To ensure that they didn't lose the land, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania worked out a compromise with the Connecticut (Yankee) settlers. The Yankee settlers would be allowed to become citizens of Pennsylvania and their property claims would be restored (as existing prior to the Decree of Trenton). As part of the compromise, Pennsylvania would establish a new county in
Northeastern Pennsylvania. The Yankees agreed to the terms. On September 25, 1786, the
Pennsylvania General Assembly passed a resolution that created Luzerne County. It was formed from a section of Northumberland County and named after
Chevalier de la Luzerne, a
French soldier and diplomat to the American rebels and new government of the independent USA during the late 18th century. Wilkes-Barre was designated as the
seat of government for the new territory. This resolution ended the idea of creating a new state. When it was founded, Luzerne County occupied a large portion of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The future counties of
Bradford,
Lackawanna,
Susquehanna, and
Wyoming were all part of the original Luzerne County. The population of the new county grew rapidly with new migrants. In 1790, fewer than 2,000 people resided within the Wyoming Valley. By 1800, the number of residents increased to nearly 13,000.
19th century in
Plymouth, built in 1869, was destroyed by fire 30 years later, in 1899. on September 10, 1897 The county gained prominence in the 19th century as an active
anthracite coal mining region. In 1791,
German immigrant Philip Ginder stumbled across anthracite (or "hard coal") near
Summit Hill. This resulted in the creation of the
Lehigh Coal Mine Company. The company had a slow start because of the difficulty in igniting anthracite coal and the inability to transfer it to urban markets. In 1807, Brothers Abijah and John Smith were the first to successfully transport anthracite down the Susquehanna River on an
ark. In 1808, Judge
Jesse Fell of Wilkes-Barre discovered a solution to ignite anthracite with the usage of an iron grate; it allowed for the coal to light and burn easier. This invention increased the popularity of anthracite as a fuel source. This led to the expansion of the coal industry in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Throughout the 1800s,
canals and railroads were constructed to aid in the mining and transportation of coal. Thirty years later, on April 4, 1842,
Wyoming County, the region in and around present-day
Tunkhannock, was also formed from a section of Luzerne County. The County of Luzerne witnessed a population boom as a result of the growing coal mining industry.
Carbondale, with a population of nearly 5,000 residents, was
incorporated as a city on March 15, 1851.
Scranton, with a population of nearly 35,000, was incorporated as a city on April 23, 1866. And Wilkes-Barre, with a population of just over 10,000, was incorporated as a city in 1871. By 1875, anthracite coal from Luzerne County alone represented half the anthracite produced in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Even through Luzerne County lost a vital region (the coal mining cities of Scranton and Carbondale), its boroughs and townships continued to grow.
Hazleton (in 1891) and
Pittston (in 1894) were both incorporated as cities due to their expanding populations. Thousands of
European immigrants poured into Luzerne County due to the booming coal industry. The growing population quickly attracted the attention of factory owners in New York City and
Philadelphia. Dozens of factories throughout Luzerne County were established to take advantage of the ever-increasing pool of available labor. With an increasing population and the build-up of industry in the region, tragedies became more frequent in the second half of the 19th century. Sixteen people were killed – largely in factories – when a devastating
F3 tornado struck Wilkes-Barre on
August 19, 1890. It was the deadliest tornado in the county's history. The region's first significant mining disaster occurred on September 6, 1869, when a massive fire at the
Avondale Colliery in
Plymouth Township killed 110 people. Another consequential mining accident occurred on June 28, 1896, when the Newton Coal Company's
Twin Shaft Mine in Pittston City caved-in and killed 58 miners. Towards the end of the 19th century, labor unrest and union activity intensified in the region. Miners protested poor working conditions and unfair pay. This revved up tensions throughout the county. One of the most notable and deadly confrontations occurred on September 10, 1897 (near Hazleton). Luzerne County Sheriff James Martin formed a
posse and fired on a group of unarmed striking miners in what is now known as the
Lattimer massacre. Roughly nineteen people were killed and dozens more were wounded. Luzerne is infamous for being the last county whose sheriff legally formed a posse to restore order in a time of
civil unrest. File:The Valley of Wyoming MET DT4598.jpg|
Wyoming Valley in the 1860s File:Birds eye view of Wilkes-Barre, Pa. (2675064226).jpg|
Wilkes-Barre in 1872 File:Hazleton (2674307151).jpg|
Hazleton in 1884 File:Pittston-1.jpg|
Pittston in 1892
20th century coal mine in 1906 s in
Pittston in January 1911 in
Wilkes-Barre as depicted in a drawing from between 1930 and 1945 At the beginning of the 20th century, Luzerne County was in the midst of an economic boom. Industry, which included manufacturing and coal mining, drew thousands of immigrants (mostly from Europe) to the region. However, there were several drawbacks to the industrial boom. Labor unrest, mining accidents, and
child labor were just a few problems facing the county. Labor disputes led to miners striking in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The
Great Strike of 1902 gained national attention when it threatened to shut down the winter fuel supply for major U.S. cities. At that time, residences were typically heated with anthracite (or "hard coal"). The
United Mine Workers of America protested for higher wages, shorter workdays, and the
recognition of their union. President
Theodore Roosevelt became involved and set up a fact-finding commission that suspended the strike. The strike never resumed, as the miners received a ten percent wage increase and reduced workdays (from ten to nine hours). It was the first
labor dispute in which the
U.S. federal government intervened as a neutral
arbitrator. Despite the better working conditions, industrial accidents were still commonplace. On December 6, 1915, an
underground mine fire started in the Red Ash Coal Mine near the communities of
Laurel Run and
Georgetown. Hundreds of residents living near the mine fire were later relocated. The fire continued to burn well into the 21st century. On June 5, 1919, another major mining accident occurred nearby. An explosion killed 92 miners at the
Baltimore Colliery in Wilkes-Barre. Regardless of the industrial setbacks, the region continued to grow economically. In 1906, construction began on a new
county courthouse in Wilkes-Barre. Twenty years later (in 1926),
Nanticoke, with a population of just over 22,000, was incorporated as a city. It was the last city established in the county. By
1930, the county's population peaked at 445,109. It was obvious that industry was the driving force behind the expanding population. From the 1930s to the 1980s, Pittston City emerged as a national center for
clothing manufacturing. Thousands of workers, mainly women, labored in many factories throughout the
Greater Pittston area. Most were members of the
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU). It advocated for higher wages, improvements in workplace health and safety, and employee rights. The ILGWU was active in civic and political life throughout Pennsylvania. Railroad accidents were common throughout the United States in the 1800s and 1900s. On July 3, 1920, eighteen people were killed and thirty more were injured when three trains collided on the
Lackawanna and Wyoming Valley Railroad, known as the Laurel Line, in the village of Sebastopol in Jenkins Township. In 1934, the right arm of
Hughestown resident Harry Tompkins was crushed by an
Erie Railroad train. This resulted in the
U.S. Supreme Court case
Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins, which laid the foundation for a large part of modern American
civil procedure. As the United States entered the age of mass air transportation, Scranton and Wilkes-Barre, the two largest cities in
Northeast Pennsylvania, recognized the need for a large-scale airport. Despite the
Great Depression and hard times affecting the local coal mining industry, a windfall multimillion-dollar opportunity to plan and build a regional airport was presented to the counties of Luzerne and Lackawanna through the federal government's
Public Works Administration. It became apparent that a modern airport would be needed for the economic survival of the region. The site in and around
Pittston Township was first surveyed in 1939 by the county commissioners of both counties. In 1941, John B. McDade, president of the Heidelberg Coal Company and father of
Congressman Joseph M. McDade, donated 122 acres on which part of the airport now sits. Most of the land was previously owned by various coal companies. By 1945, the two counties entered into a legal agreement to co-sponsor and operate the airport. Between 1945 and 1947, construction of the
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport took place in and around Pittston Township. Today, the airport is known as the "Gateway to Northeastern Pennsylvania and the
Pocono Mountains." It is the fifth busiest airport in Pennsylvania. By the mid-20th century, anthracite production was declining at a steady rate. Consumers were gradually switching from coal to other forms of energy (e.g., oil, natural gas, and electricity). The
Knox Mine Disaster was the final blow to the industry. On January 22, 1959, the Susquehanna River broke through the River Slope Mine in
Port Griffith,
Jenkins Township; it claimed the lives of twelve people. In the following months, two of the area's largest coal companies announced a full withdrawal from the anthracite business. Thousands of jobs were lost and the mining industry never recovered in Luzerne County. The Wyoming Valley witnessed historical flooding from the Susquehanna River in the past. In June 1972,
Hurricane Agnes devastated much of the
Eastern Seaboard (including Pennsylvania). The Susquehanna River rose to 40.9 feet and breached the levees of several communities in the Wyoming Valley. In Wilkes-Barre, hundreds were trapped in their homes; nearly nine feet of water inundated Public Square. At the historic cemetery in
Forty Fort, 2,000 caskets were washed away, leaving body parts on porches, roofs, and in basements. In Luzerne County alone, 25,000 homes and businesses were either damaged or destroyed. Losses in the county totaled $1 billion. Luzerne County's economy was hit hard with the collapse of the mining industry and the devastating Agnes flood. To make matters worse, factories throughout the county were shutting down. They could not compete with lower labor costs elsewhere. By the end of the 20th century, Luzerne County was in the midst of a
recession. Following the Agnes flood (from the 1980s to 2000), two notable tragedies occurred in Luzerne County. The first took place on September 25, 1982, when
George Banks killed thirteen people in a shooting
rampage in Wilkes-Barre and Jenkins Township. The second incident took place on May 21, 2000, when a plane crash in
Bear Creek Township (near the intersection of Bear Creek Boulevard – PA Route 115 – and the Northeast Extension of the
Pennsylvania Turnpike) killed the pilot as well as all nineteen passengers.
21st century 's abandoned
Huber coal breaker in May 2008 from
Tropical Storm Lee flooding in September 2011 Many factories and coal mines were long since closed by the turn of the 21st century. Like most regions in the
Rust Belt, Luzerne County witnessed
population loss and
urban decay over many decades beginning in the mid-20th century. Luzerne County in particular had reached the apex of its population around 1930. However, despite continuing population loss in recent years, the economy has grown moderately;
warehousing has replaced manufacturing as the main industry. In the late 2000s, several scandals related to public corruption,
cronyism, patronage hiring, and
wasteful spending affected the county. The
"kids for cash" scandal unfolded in 2008 over judicial
kickbacks at the Luzerne County
Court of Common Pleas in Wilkes-Barre. Two judges, Judge
Mark Ciavarella and President Judge
Michael Conahan, were convicted of accepting money from Robert Mericle, builder of two private, for-profit youth centers for the detention of juveniles, in return for contracting with the facilities and imposing harsh
adjudications on juveniles brought before their courts to increase the number of residents in the centers. In the following years, additional county officials faced criminal charges (e.g., a clerk of courts, a deputy chief clerk, a director of human resources). County Commissioner
Greg Skrepenak resigned in 2009; he was ultimately sentenced to prison for
accepting money from a developer who received government-backed financing. In May 2009, voters approved the creation of a government study commission. The commission proposed and wrote a
home rule charter for Luzerne County. On November 2, 2010, the voters of Luzerne County held a
referendum on the question of home rule. A total of 51,413 (55.25%) voted in favor of home rule, while another 41,639 (44.75%) voted against the move. The home rule charter would eliminate the positions of the three county commissioners; they would be replaced by an eleven-member
county council (who will appoint and work alongside a county manager). This referendum "starts a new chapter in Luzerne County history," remarked James Haggerty, the chairman of the commission that wrote and proposed the charter. The first election for the new government was scheduled for 2011 – which ended up becoming an eventful year for Luzerne County. From March to June of that year, the Borough of
Duryea received national attention for its role in the landmark Supreme Court case
Borough of Duryea v. Guarnieri, in which the court stated that "a government employer's allegedly retaliatory actions against an employee do not give rise to liability under the Petition Clause unless the employee's petition relates to a matter of public concern." The second major event occurred in September 2011, when Luzerne County witnessed historical flooding from
Tropical Storm Lee. The Susquehanna River reached a record high of in Wilkes-Barre. The river topped the level in flooding caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972. However, unlike 1972, the levee system in Wilkes-Barre and several other communities held. Those municipalities without a levee system witnessed severe flooding. The
first general election for
Luzerne County Council was held on November 8, making it the third and final consequential event of 2011. In the end, six
Democrats, four
Republicans, and one
independent politician were elected. The home rule charter took effect on January 2, 2012. The Luzerne County
Board of Commissioners was abolished and replaced with the new form of government (
council–manager government). The last three commissioners were Chairwoman
Maryanne Petrilla,
Stephen A. Urban, and Thomas Cooney. The first eleven council members were sworn in that same day. According to the charter, the
council chair is "recognized as
head of the county government for ceremonial purposes." The first council chair was Jim Bobeck. During the first council meeting, Tom Pribula was appointed
interim county manager. Several weeks later, the council officially appointed the first permanent manager (Robert Lawton). During the
2019 county council election, Republicans secured a majority on the county's governing board for the first time since 1989. ==Geography==