Created from part of Northampton County, Wayne County sits in the northeastern corner of Pennsylvania,100 miles west of New York City and 150 north of Philadelphia. Named for Revolutionary War General Anthony Wayne, it was meticulously laid out, beginning at the “west end of George Michael’s farm, on the River Delaware, in Middle Smithfield Township, and from thence a straight line to the mouth of Trout Creek, on the Lehigh…” In 1798 the planners designated Milford as the county seat, but despite their great attention to detail, they apparently forgot that nobody really lived in Milford. Eventually, however, people did live in Milford, which became the county seat of Pike County.
Ultimately, the Wayne County seat would reside in the Borough of Honesdale, PA. The discovery of anthracite coal in the early 1800’s became the backbone of industry in Wayne County. The Delaware and Hudson Canal Company was Wayne County’s biggest industrial citizen; the company supplied coal from Wayne County to New York via the Canal. The D&H Canal Company needed to find a way to transport coal from Carbondale to Honesdale, to get it to the Delaware River.
In 1826, the Gravity Railroad was born. A series of inclined planes, connected by stretches of level rail, stretched along the sides of the mountains. These took the coal in railroad cars from Carbondale, elevation 1200 feet, to Rix’s Gap, elevation 1900 feet, and back down to Honesdale, elevation 975 feet. Gravity would aid in the task. It was hoped that the English-made Stourbridge Lion, the first Steam locomotive introduced in America, would also be a boon to the railroad. Unfortunately, after the Lion took its first 6-mile round trip from Honesdale to Seelyville, it was discovered that its weight–7.5 tons– was nearly twice recommended weight for the Gravity RR. The Stourbridge Lion was retired before it even got going. The Gravity Railroad was in operation until 1899; during its lifetime it carried passengers as well as coal. Today Wayne County derives revenue from industries like tourism, lumber mills and farms. It is also home to such diverse enterprises as the Waymart Wind Farm and The Himalayan Institute.