Kingston, Pennsylvania

Drawing of a Susquehannock (1624)

In the early 1660s, King Charles II owed Admiral Sir William Penn a large sum of money. To settle this debt, he granted Penn’s son, William, a territory in North America, which later became known as Pennsylvania. However, Connecticut also claimed a portion of this land.

Count Zinzendorf was one of the first people to take an interest in the Wyoming Valley. In 1742, he came to the region to convert the Native Americans to Christianity. At the time, the valley was inhabited by several Native American tribes (including the Susquehannock and the Delaware).

His reports led a group of Connecticut settlers to form the Connecticut Susquehanna Company. This company bought the land from the natives. In 1768, they met in Hartford, Connecticut, and decided to survey and divide the territory into five townships (each one was five square miles). The plan was to sell and divide each township among forty settlers. The first forty pioneers took possession of Kingston Township.

By the late 1760s, both Connecticut and Pennsylvania settlers fought over this territory. The conflict was eventually settled in the 1780s. The disputed land was granted to Pennsylvania. The location of modern-day Kingston became part of Northumberland County. However, Connecticut settlers remained determined to create a new state in northeastern Pennsylvania. Timothy Pickering was sent to the region to politically examine the situation. This led to the Pennsylvania Assembly passing a resolution which created Luzerne County. This ended the idea of creating a new state. Luzerne County was created from part of Northumberland County. Under Pickering’s leadership and direction, county elections were held, the courts were established, and a government was formed.[5]

The Battle of Wyoming

During the Revolutionary War, British forces arrived in the Wyoming Valley on June 30, 1778. The next day — July 1 — Colonel Butler sent a surrender demand to the militia at Fort Wintermute (Wintermoot). Terms were arranged that the defenders, after surrendering the fort with all their arms, would be released on the condition that they would not again bear arms during the war. The American militia at Fort Wintermute surrendered that same day. Several miles away, Fort Jenkins (a Patriot stockade in present-day West Pittston) also capitulated. It was later burned to the ground.[6]

On July 3, the British spotted the American militia near Forty Fort. Butler wanted to lure the Americans away from their fortifications. He ordered for Fort Wintermute to be set ablaze. The Patriots, believing it signified a British retreat, advanced rapidly. British soldiers, with the assistance of about 700 Native Americans, ambushed the oncoming American militia. In the end, nearly 300 Wyoming Valley settlers were killed in what would be known as the Wyoming Massacre. Today, in the Borough of Wyoming, a monument marks the gravesite of the victims from the battle.[7]

The next morning, July 4, Colonel Nathan Denison agreed to surrender Forty Fort and two other posts, along with what remained of his militia. Butler paroled them on their promise to take no part in further hostilities. Non-combatants were spared and only a few inhabitants were molested after the forts capitulated.[8][9][10][11] The war ended in 1783 when America finally gained its independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain.

The community has a rich history in American education. It is said that the first public school in Pennsylvania was erected in Kingston (in the 1770s).[12] The borough is also home to the Upper School of Wyoming Seminary, a prestigious college preparatory school founded in 1844. During the first year, it enrolled 31 students (17 boys and 14 girls). Today, Wyoming Seminary's historic campus hosts roughly 450 students.

Kingston witnessed a population boom after the construction and operation of the Lackawanna and Bloomsburg Railroad. It was incorporated as a borough on November 23, 1857. The borough is named after Kingston, Rhode Island.[5] The first election for the community was held on December 15, 1857. Ruben Jones was elected burgess and justice of the peace. Some of the first council members elected included Bestor Payne, Marshall G. Whitney, Reuben Marcy, Thomas Pringle, and Richard Hutching.[12]

In 1923, the Kingston Armory was built. On September 11, 1950, 33 guardsmen from the 109th Field Artillery Regiment were killed in a train accident near Coshocton, Ohio. In the following days, the dead were moved to the Kingston Armory, where the remains were relinquished to the grief-stricken families.[13]

Coal mining was a chief industry in and around Kingston prior to the Knox Mine Disaster. The 1959 tragedy essentially shut down the mining industry in and around the borough.[14] In June 1972, Kingston was devastated by the flooding of Hurricane Agnes. The hurricane wreaked havoc on Kingston and neighboring Wilkes-Barre, causing a state of emergency. The natural disaster earned national attention and a visit from President Richard Nixon, who recruited Wyoming Seminary graduate Frank Carlucci (Nixon's head of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare) as a point man to oversee flood recovery efforts. After the flood, Kingston adopted a home rule charter. It became effective in January 1976.

Kingston in the early 20th century

Kingston High School

Former Presbyterian Church in Kingston

The Bell Tower, Wyoming Seminary

Kingston has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfa/Dfb) with four distinct seasons. Winters are cold with a January average of 25.8 °F (−3.4 °C).[16] The surrounding mountains have an influence on the climate (including both precipitation and temperatures), leading to wide variations within a short distance.[17] On average, temperatures below 0 °F (−17.8 °C) are infrequent, occurring 3 days per year, and there are 36 days where the maximum temperature remains below 32 °F (0.0 °C).[17] The average annual snowfall is 46.2 inches (117 cm) during the winter (in which severe snowstorms are rare).[17] However, when snowstorms do occur, they can disrupt normal routines for several days.[17]

Summers are warm with a July average of 71.4 °F (21.9 °C).[16] In an average summer, temperatures exceeding 90 °F (32.2 °C) occur on 9 days and can occasionally exceed 100 °F (37.8 °C).[18] Spring and fall are unpredictable with temperatures ranging from cold to warm (although they are usually mild). On average, Kingston receives 38.2 inches (970 mm) of precipitation each year, which is relatively evenly distributed throughout the year (though the summer months receive more precipitation).[18] Extreme temperatures range from −21 °F (−29.4 °C) on January 21, 1994, to 103 °F (39.4 °C) on July 9, 1936.[18] Kingston averages 2,303 hours of sunshine per year, ranging from a low of 96 hours in December (or 33% of possible sunshine) to 286 hours in July (or 62% of possible sunshine).[19]

Kingston straddles the hardiness zone boundary between 6a and 6b, meaning that the average annual absolute minimum temperature is approximately -5 °F.[20]

59.27% of the people in Kingston, Pennsylvania, are religious – meaning they affiliate with a religion. 43.77% are Catholic; 0.28% are LDS; 2.33% are another Christian faith; 0.78% are Jewish; 0.00% are an eastern faith; and 0.51% practice Islam.[26]

The current mayor is Paul Roberts; he assumed office in 2018. His predecessor was James J. Haggerty (who served from 1998–2018).[27] The current administrator is Paul Keating (who served since 1997).[28]

Members of the borough council:

• Council President Robert Thompson, Jr. (Republican, 1998–present)
• Council Vice President Robert Jacobs (Republican, 2015–present)
• Roberta Rowlands (Republican, 1999–present)
• Nancy Cooper (Republican, 2000–present)
• Jack Schumacher (Republican, 2000–present)
• Anthony Dicton (Republican, 2014–present)
• Margaret Neville (Democrat, 2017–present)[29]

• State Representative Aaron Kaufer, 120th legislative district (Republican, 2015–present)
• State Senator Lisa Baker, 20th Senatorial district (Republican, 2007–present)
• U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright, 8th Congressional district (Democrat, 2013–present)

The Kingston Police Department consists of 19 sworn members. It is the third largest department in Luzerne County. The police provide full-time protection for its citizens, visitors, businesses, and public property. The department is made up of a Special Victims Unit (SVU), K-9 unit, Patrol Division, Criminal Investigation Division, and a Special Investigations Division (SID).[30] The current chief of police is Richard Kotchik.[30]

The Kingston Fire Department provides full-time emergency firefighting and fire protection services for the borough. Today's department operates from its headquarters at 600 Wyoming Avenue in Kingston. It consists of 23 career and around 30 volunteer firefighters. The current fire chief is Frank Guido.[31]

• Graham Academy
• Jenny Lynn Ferraro Academy
• Pringle Street Elementary School
• Wyoming Seminary Upper School
• Wyoming Valley Montessori School
• Wyoming Valley West Middle School
• Third Avenue Elementary School
• Chester Street Elementary School
• Schuyler Avenue Elementary School

• Hoyt Library

• First Hospital

The 2013 film The English Teacher is set in Kingston, though it was not filmed there. The film features several references to the Wyoming Valley region, including a mention of Wilkes University.

In 2003, the rock band Title Fight was formed in Kingston.

In addition to Fleck Hall on the campus of Wyoming Seminary, the Kingston Armory and Market Street Bridge are also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[32]

Wyoming Seminary

Wyoming Seminary's Carpenter Hall

Kingston Armory

Market Street Bridge