NEWTON

city, seat of Jasper county, central Iowa, U.S. It lies 30 miles (48 km) east of Des Moines. It was settled in 1846 as the county seat and was named for John Newton, Revolutionary War soldier. The railroad arrived in the 1860s and the community developed as a lumber-milling and agricultural trading centre. In 1898 the washing machine industry began there with the manufacture of ratchet-slat washers. Newton was where Frederick L. Maytag invented a hand power washing machine (1907) and his motor-driven washer (1911), which revolutionized the industry. The manufacture of automatic laundry appliances is now the economic mainstay, and the Jasper County Historical Museum exhibits the progress of the laundry industry. The city's other products include farm and road-building machinery, advertising specialties, and dairy foods (notably blue cheese). Inc. 1857. Pop. (1992 est.) 14,786. city, seat (1872) of Harvey county, central Kansas, U.S. Founded in 1871 and named for Newton, Mass., it was a railhead for the Chisholm Trail cattle drives from 1871 to 1873. In the 1870s Russian Mennonite settlers began raising Turkey Red hard winter wheat brought from their homeland, and this variety became Kansas' principal agricultural product. Newton is now a trading and shipping centre for the surrounding wheat-growing area. There are railroad maintenance shops, food-processing and grain-milling plants, and factories making mobile homes. Bethel College (1887) in North Newton is the oldest Mennonite college in the nation; the Kauffman Museum on its campus features collections of antique automobiles and pioneer relics. Inc. 1872. Pop. (1992 est.) 16,613. city, Middlesex county, eastern Massachusetts, U.S. It lies along the Charles River just west of Boston and comprises several villages, including Auburndale, Newton Centre, Newton Upper Falls, Newtonville, Nonantum, Waban, and the northern part of Chestnut Hill (shared with Brookline). Settled in 1630, it was part of Cambridge until separately incorporated as New Towne in 1688; it adopted its present name in 1691. Newton developed early milling and forge industries at the upper and lower falls of the Charles River. Suburban growth was stimulated by completion of the Boston and Worcester Railroad in 1834 and the building of the Charles River Railroad in the mid-19th century. Most employment is now provided by services (including higher education and health care) and trade. The city is noted for its educational institutions, being the home of Andover Newton Theological School (1807) and Lasell College (1851) and two junior colleges, Mount Ida College (1899) and Aquinas College at Newton (1961). Chestnut Hill is the site of Boston College (1863). The Jackson Homestead (1809) houses a museum and the offices of the Newton Historical Society. Recreational sites include the Charles River Reservation and the Webster Conservation Area. Inc. city, 1873. Pop. (1990) 82,585; (1996 est.) 80,238.