The History of Williams Township

Williams Township History Overview

For over 10,000 years, the Lenape Indians roamed the hills, valleys and dense forests of our township, hunting and gathering and fishing on the Delaware and Lehigh Rivers, until European settlers arrived to displace them. Homesteading by German and a few Scotch-Irish and English settlers began in earnest after Thomas and John Penn acquired title from the Indians to the lands surrounding the Forks of the Delaware & Lehigh Rivers in the notorious Walking Purchase of 1737.

Williams Township was initially established as part of Bucks County in 1750 but became part of Northampton County when that county was established in 1752.  The original northern border of the township extended all the way to the Lehigh River, but 3 areas later separated from the township: South Easton in 1840, Glendon Borough in 1867, and Williamsport in 1898.  The population of the township steadily grew (50 in 1730, 90 in 1740, 150 in 1750, 726 in 1790 and 846 in 1800), as hardworking families cleared the dense forest to establish productive farms.  The township had several water-powered grist mills to support those farms. The landscape of the township is still dotted with the old stone walls the farmers made while clearing their fields, and many of the homes and barns built in the late 1700s and 1800s are still standing and in use today.

In addition to farming, Williams Township played an important role in the infancy of the American Industrial Revolution.  Bordering Durham Township, the home of the American “iron industry” in the 1700s, Williams Township provided much of the iron ore, timber and lime that fueled that operation.  The building and operation of the Delaware and Lehigh Canals along the borders of the township helped fuel the industrial revolution by making it easier to transport coal, ore, lime and other goods to the mills and end markets from 1832 to 1932.  The industrial village of Uhlersville sprang up in the township around Lock 22/23 on the Delaware Canal.  Williams Township labor, timber, Iron ore and lime also fueled the Glendon and other area Iron Works in the 1800s.  As the township’s natural resources were depleted, and the railroad displaced the canals, those industries vanished from our area with nary a trace, as they were dismantled and sold for scrap.

Today, Williams Township remains a rural area of scenic beauty that is home to an estimated 6,500 people.  We still have productive farms and preserved lands and park lands – like the Delaware Canal State Park, Fry’s Run Park, Wy Hit Tuk Park, Stouts Valley Park on the Melchor Tract, the Hexenkopf Preserve, and the Mariton Wildlife Sanctuary – for our enjoyment and reflection on the rich history and beauty of our area.