Big company, small town: Crayola, Easton, Pennsylvania

Actually, the old Binney & Smith plant was not in Easton city proper but in Palmer Township (even more rural) on the banks of the Bushkill Creek just outside of town. Those of us whose parents worked there or who lived in Forks and Palmer Twnshps and fished for trout below the dam and under the bridge in front of the old plant as kids remember it very well.

I take exception to your comments about the history of Crayola without your having mentioned Peekskill, NY.

Please read some facts below. We who live in Peekskill are proud of the fact that Crayons as we all know them, started in this country, here in our City.

Crayola Crayon History
From Mary Bellis,
Your Guide to Inventors.

Edward Binney and Harold Smith co-invented Crayola crayons.
Crayola brand crayons (compare prices) were the first kids crayons ever made, invented by cousins, Edwin Binney and C. Harold Smith. The brand's first box of eight Crayola crayons made its debut in 1903. The crayons were sold for a nickel and the colors were black, brown, blue, red, purple, orange, yellow, and green. The word Crayola was created by Alice Stead Binney (wife of Edwin Binney) who took the French words for chalk (craie) and oily (oleaginous) and combined them.
Today, there over one hundred different types of crayons being made by Crayola including crayons that: sparkle with glitter, glow in the dark, smell like flowers, change colors, and wash off walls and other surfaces and materials.


According to Crayola's "History of Crayons"
Europe was the birthplace of the “modern” crayon, a man-made cylinder that resembled contemporary sticks.
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The first such crayons are purported to have consisted of a mixture of charcoal and oil. Later, powdered pigments of various hues replaced the charcoal. It was subsequently discovered that substituting wax for the oil in the mixture made the resulting sticks sturdier and easier to handle.

The Birth of Crayola Crayons
In 1864, Joseph W. Binney founded the Peekskill Chemical Company in Peekskill, N.Y. This company was responsible for products in the black and red color range, such as lampblack, charcoal and a paint containing red iron oxide which was often used to coat the barns dotting America's rural landscape.
Peekskill Chemical was also instrumental in creating an improved and black colored automobile tire by adding carbon black that was found to increase the tire tread life by four or five times.

Around 1885, Joseph's son, Edwin Binney, and nephew, C. Harold Smith, formed the partnership of Binney & Smith. The cousins expanded the company's product line to include shoe polish and printing ink. In 1900, the company purchased a stone mill in Easton, PA, and began producing slate pencils for schools. This started Binney's and Smith's research into nontoxic and colorful drawing mediums for kids. They had already invented a new wax crayon used to mark crates and barrels, however, it was loaded with carbon black and too toxic for children. They were confident that the pigment and wax mixing techniques they had developed could be adapted for a variety of safe colors.

In 1903, a new brand of crayons with superior working qualities was introduced - Crayola Crayons.

I can't say that I know anything about the town of Easton. However, my ex-husband lived there for a short while and I took my daughter, neice and nephews to visit. The Crayola factory was a wonderful experience for the kids....they loved it. There are plenty of arts and crafts and games and toys for them to play with. They learned how crayons were made and they each got a free sample. They made things out of clay and shells and just had a blast. As an adult I loved the town. There is not much to do there but it was very quaint and lovely. There was a closeness with all the folks in the neighborhood. I felt like I was in a very cozy, comfortable hometown where people watched out for their neighbors and friends. The little shops there were awesome and the owners were very friendly and ready with a smile. You could get some great deals in some of the older shops. There is a cute little diner we got to experience and everyone made us feel right at home and not like a tourist....and I only live on Long Island....it's not like I was coming from that far away. My overall experience with the kids was just great. I hope this helps someone that is thinking of taking a trip there. It was a very nice relaxing day. Something we could all use.

This is a Tri-city area, collectively known as the Lehigh Valley. I live in Allentown-farthest to the west-the middle is Bthlehem (the christmas city), and then Easton is (suprise!) farthest to the east (as far east as you can get before you enter NJ). Each city is unique and offeres different things to see and do. Allentown "city" isnt too amazing (there's the art museum if you are into that-i'm not), but the surrounding suburbs are great (Dorney Park is our main attraction, i'd say) and there are many things to do that are typical of PA (shopping, historical sites, and outdoor recreation in the many parks). Bethlehem has gone through some revitalization, and is quite a destination. There's lots of cool indie food and shops, as well as a decent arts scene, and historical sites. This town is famous for the steel industry (see the song "Allentown" by Billy Joel). Easton, as the article said, is going through revitalization. It has its own vibe-which I enjoy. I dont travel out there that often, but there are shops and a few cool things to see (I like the canal boat rides). I do plan to get out there more this summer, I hear there is some neat walking along the canal. There is a tourist cave out that way I want to see as well (Lost River Caverns). All three towns hold many fairs and festivals throughout the year. Allentown: Mayfair (mem day weekend), The great allentown fair (end of aug). Bethlehem: Musikfest (1st two weeks of aug), Celtic Classic (fall and indoors in winter). Easton has a Riverfest I believe it is called, but i dont remember the details. Whitehall is nearby as well, and is just jam packed with all your favorite stores (all along Mcarthur Rd-main feature being the Lehigh Valley Mall, with some good eats on grape st.). For more info on the area go to lehighvalleypa.org