Allentown

Allentown is a city in eastern Pennsylvania, situated along the Lehigh River in the Lehigh Valley. Limestone bluffs rise above the water, framing parks, brick warehouses, and residential streets. The municipality functions as the seat of Lehigh County.

William Allen, a merchant and colonial chief justice, laid out the settlement as Northampton Town in 1762. Local patriots transported the Liberty Bell from Philadelphia in the 1770s, concealing it beneath the floorboards of Zion's Reformed Church during the Revolutionary War. Civic authorities adopted the name Allentown in 1838 to honor the founder. Canal and rail networks in the 19th century stimulated iron furnaces, silk mills, and wire factories. Machinery and vehicle manufacturing expanded during the 20th century, establishing the locality as a major industrial center.

PPL Corporation manages its electric utility headquarters from a downtown tower on Hamilton Street. Healthcare networks employ medical specialists throughout the valley, with Lehigh Valley Health Network directing patient care and clinical training from its hospital campuses. Mack Trucks, which moved here from Brooklyn early in the 20th century, built its heavy trucks in the city for decades. Packaging plants and freight warehouses operate in surrounding business parks along regional transport routes. Muhlenberg College provides degree programs in the arts, sciences, and theater on its west-end campus.

The Allentown Art Museum houses European Renaissance paintings, American textiles, and a historic library designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Inside Zion's Reformed Church, the Liberty Bell Museum displays artifacts recounting the wartime concealment of the bell. The PPL Center hosts Lehigh Valley Phantoms hockey games, ice exhibitions, and musical performances in the downtown district. West of the center, Cedar Creek Parkway features stone footbridges, ponds, and paths beside an old grist mill. Public rose gardens and bronze sculptures line the lawns throughout the summer.