Northampton was one of the 16 original townships in

Summit County, Ohio Summit County is an urban county located in the northeast region of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 540,428, making it the fourth-most populous county in Ohio. Its county seat and largest city is Akron. The c ...

. It was situated in the middle of Summit County, bordering

Akron Akron () is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the fifth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 190,469 at the 2020 census. The Akron metropolitan area, covering Summit and Portage counties, had ...

and

Cuyahoga Falls Cuyahoga Falls ( or ) is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States. The population was 51,114 at the 2020 census. The second-largest city in Summit County, it is located directly north of Akron and is a suburb in the Akron metropolitan area ...

. No incorporated areas were formed within the township, but

and

expanded into Northampton via annexation. In 1986, Northampton Township merged with Cuyahoga Falls, making the first time a township and city had merged in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. When created, it occupied survey Town 3, Range 11 in the

Western Reserve The Connecticut Western Reserve was a portion of land claimed by the Colony of Connecticut and later by the state of Connecticut in what is now mostly the northeastern region of Ohio. Warren, Ohio was the Historic Capital in Trumbull County. T ...

and covered an area of about . Its first settler, Simeon Prior, named the township for the

Hampshire County, Massachusetts Hampshire County is a historical and judicial county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 162,308. Its most populous municipality is Amherst (due to seasonal student population; the largest y ...

village of

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

Geography

Northampton was originally bounded by Portage Township to the south, Bath Township to the west, Boston Township to the north and Stow Township to the east. At the time of its merger with Cuyahoga Falls, it was bordered by Akron to the south, the city of Stow to the east, and Cuyahoga Falls to the southeast.

History

The

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

and

Mingo The Mingo people are an Iroquoian group of Native Americans, primarily Seneca and Cayuga, who migrated west from New York to the Ohio Country in the mid-18th century, and their descendants. Some Susquehannock survivors also joined them, a ...

tribes hunted in Northampton before Europeans arrived. The first white settler in Northampton was Simeon Prior, who moved there with his wife and ten children from

Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence, Massachusetts, Florence and ...

in 1802. Native Americans still lived in the township and remained there until 1812 when American forces began to assemble there for the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. Northampton provided a rendezvous point for militia during the war and the two or three{{Cite journal , last=Kuskin , first=William , date=2009-04-03 , title=Summit, Jennifer: Memory's Library: Medieval Books in Early Modern England , url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12109-009-9110-6 , journal=Publishing Research Quarterly , volume=25 , issue=2 , pages=135–136 , doi=10.1007/s12109-009-9110-6 , issn=1053-8801, url-access=subscription vessels of

Oliver Hazard Perry Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was a United States Navy officer from South Kingstown, Rhode Island. A prominent member of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace Alexander and Captain Christo ...

's fleet were built in the township and floated down the

Cuyahoga River The Cuyahoga River (see ) is a river located in Northeast Ohio that bisects the City of Cleveland and feeds into Lake Erie. As Cleveland emerged as a major manufacturing center, the river became heavily affected by industrial pollution, so mu ...

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...

. In 1986, Northampton merged with Cuyahoga Falls. Both Akron and Cuyahoga Falls had been annexing the southern part of the township. Also, a major portion of the township had been purchased by the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area (now the

Cuyahoga Valley National Park Cuyahoga Valley National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in Ohio that reclaims and preserves the industrial, commercial, and rural landscape along the Cuyahoga River between Akron, Ohio, ...

), reducing the tax base. The residents of Northampton chose to join with Cuyahoga Falls so that their future would be settled. The township became Ward 8 in Cuyahoga Falls and kept special zoning to preserve some of its rural nature. Annexation of parts of Northampton by Akron had left an irregular border between the two communities, including several islands inside Akron. Akron and Cuyahoga Falls tried to work out a land swap to smooth out the borders. They came up with a plan but it was never approved. The two cities have a joint fire station, though, that covers part of both communities.

Counties

Northampton Township's land has been in the following counties *1788 –

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

*1797 – Jefferson *1800 – Trumbull *1808 –

Portage Portage or portaging ( CA: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a '' ...

*1840 –

Summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for ...

Transportation

Northampton was served by Route 8, which originally went up Akron-Cleveland Road (now State Road). With Route 8 being moved to a divided highway to the east, the area is no longer served by any state highways.

Schools

The area of Northampton is mostly served by the Woodridge Local School District, with parts also served by the

Revere Local School District The Revere Local School District is a school district located in Northeast Ohio, northeastern Ohio, between the cities of Akron, Ohio, Akron and Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland, that was formed in the early 1950s after the communities of Bath Townsh ...

. It is also served by the Cuyahoga Valley Joint Vocational School District.

Hamlets

* Botzum (Niles) * East Steels Corners * French's Mill (Doyle, 1908) * Iron Bridge * McArthur's Corners (Doyle, 1908) * Northampton Center * Old Portage * West Steels Corners

References

* Geography of Summit County, Ohio Defunct townships in Ohio Populated places disestablished in 1986