HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE AND INHABITANTS
NCHGS Offers New Walking Tour of Easton’s Millionaire’s Row

While taking a walk down Easton’s North 3rd Street, one can almost envision horse drawn carriages and ladies and gentlemen strolling in their finest attire. Historian Richard Hope has researched the buildings and residents of this neighborhood and has narrated a walking tour, providing a glimpse into a time when N. 3rd Street was the place for the well-to-do to live.

According to Hope, Millionaire’s Row was “A downtown residential center for some of Easton’s wealthiest families in the 19th and early 20th Centuries.” The crown jewel is certainly the Simon Mansion. Built by architect William Michler and now the Third Street Alliance for Women and Children, this was the home of silk industrialist Herman Simon. The adjoining house was built for Simon’s step-daughter, Grace. The interior of the Simon mansion boasts the finest materials including marble, mahogany, stained glass, and more. This exquisite building is open for public tours on special dates, but through Hope’s walking tour you can access information even from your home.

An additional ten residences and the German Union Church, now First U.C.C., are included on the tour. Discover where George Washington visited, which home also served as a speakeasy, and which home was built by the owner of the nationally famous Rinek Rope Works.

The Northampton County Historical & Genealogical Society is pleased to offer this free tour as part of the “Guide by Cell” program sponsored by Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. This is the second tour narrated by Hope, a companion to his walking tour of historic Centre Square Easton. These tours can easily be accessed through your cell phone as you walk, or from the comfort of your home. Information on the tours and how to use the Guide by Cell tour is available at the Sigal Museum admission desk.

About the Northampton County Historical & Genealogical Society
The Northampton County Historical and Genealogical Society was established in 1906 and continues to serve Northampton County PA and researchers throughout the world, by preserving, showcasing, exhibiting, and interpreting its more than 60,000 collection items. The Society maintains four locations in Easton, PA – the Mixsell House Museum at 4th and Ferry Streets, the Jacob Nicholas House Museum at 5th & Ferry Streets, the 1753 Bachmann Publick House at 2nd & Northampton Streets, and the Sigal Museum at 342 Northampton Street. The Jane S. Moyer Library for Local & Genealogical Research is located at the Sigal Museum.
The four historical houses and museums of NCHGS give visitors the opportunity to discover and explore the people and lifestyles of our past. Tours, programs, and events bring the art, culture, and history of Northampton County to life.