Editing Easton, Pennsylvania (section)

===18th century===
The land that includes present-day Easton was obtained from the Lenape in the [[Walking Purchase]] in 1737. A plaque commemorating the transaction appears in Easton's town square.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/177467/Easton |title=Easton (Pennsylvania, United States) |encyclopedia=Britannica Online Encyclopedia |access-date=2012-06-23}}</ref><ref>[https://explorepahistory.com/hmarker.php?markerId=1-A-216 "Walking Purchase Historical Marker"], Explore PA History</ref>

[[Thomas Penn]] set aside a {{convert|1000|acre|km2|0|adj=on}} tract of land at the confluence of the [[Lehigh River|Lehigh]] and [[Delaware River]]s for the town's establishment, and the city was formally founded in 1752. The same year, Easton was selected as the county seat of [[Northampton County, Pennsylvania|Northampton County]].<ref name="dates">{{cite web |url = http://www.phmc.state.pa.us/bah/dam/counties/pdfs/Northampton.pdf |title = Northampton County – 4th class |access-date = 2007-06-03 |publisher = [[Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Skillman |first1=David Bishop |title=The Biography of a College: Being the History of the First Century of the Life of Lafayette College |date=1932 |publisher=Lafayette College |location=Easton, Pennsylvania}}</ref>

During the [[French and Indian War]], the [[Treaty of Easton]] was signed in Easton by the [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] colonial government then governing the [[Province of Pennsylvania]] and the [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] tribes, including the [[Shawnee]] and Lenape, from what was then called [[Ohio Country]].

Easton and the broader [[Lehigh Valley]] region played an instrumental and supportive role during the [[American Revolution]], which commenced in 1775. In recognition of the strong pro-revolutionary sentiment in the city and region, Easton was one of only three designated locations, along with Philadelphia and [[Trenton, New Jersey]], where the [[United States Declaration of Independence|Declaration of Independence]] was read aloud in public for the first time on July 8, 1776, at noon, four days following its unanimous passage by the [[Second Continental Congress]] in Philadelphia.<ref>[https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=86216 "The Declaration of Independence in Easton"], The Historical Database]</ref> During the Declaration's reading in Easton, the [[Easton Flag|Easton flag]] was flown, making it one of the first non-colonial flags to fly in the [[Thirteen Colonies]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Easton Heritage Day| publisher=heritageday.org |url=http://www.heritageday.org}}</ref> The same flag was later used by a militia during the [[War of 1812]] and currently serves as Easton's municipal flag.

Easton maintained hospital used in the treatment of injured [[Continental Army]] soldiers during the war.<ref>John C. Fitzpatrick, ''The Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources, 1745–1799'', 39 vols. (Washington, D.C., 1931-1944), 6: 327–328.</ref> On June 18, 1779, [[John Sullivan (general)|General John Sullivan]] led 2,500 [[Continental Army]] soldiers from Easton to engage Indian allies of the [[British Army during the American Revolutionary War|British Army]] on the frontier.<ref>Axelrod, Alan, ''The Real History of the American Revolution'', 2007, p. 264</ref>