History

Plainfield Township is one of the northern tier townships in Northampton County. It is located east of the midpoint in the tier. The township extends from the crest of the Blue Mountain (Kittitanny Ridge) south a distance of about eight miles. The township’s width near the mountain is approximately four miles and the width decreases to the south.

The township is approximately three miles wide near the southern extremity. The southern slope of the Wind Gap in the Blue Mountain is located in the northwest portion of the township and partly in the borough of Wind Gap. Of the “dry” gaps in the Blue Mountain the most acceptable road grades can be constructed through the Wind Gap.

The only other mountain passes in this region with greater potential for satisfactory highway grades are the “water gaps” of the Lehigh River and the Delaware River. The water gaps are located approximately twenty-five miles apart with the Wind Gap located in a central position between the two.

Plainfield Township essentially surrounds the borough of Wind Gap in the northwest, as well as Pen Argyl Borough which is located toward the northeast corner of the township. To the east are the townships of Washington and Lower Mount Bethel; Stockertown Borough and Forks Township is to the west; and Monroe County bounds the township on the north. The township is located in the Slate Belt on the northern fringe of the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Metropolitan Area.