UNION

county, northeastern New Jersey, U.S., bounded by the Passaic River to the west, Newark Bay and Arthur Kill to the east, the Rahway River to the southeast, and Green Brook to the southwest. The land rises from coastal lowlands in the east to a piedmont region in the west and is drained by the Elizabeth River. Oak and hickory are the major forest species. The county is connected by bridge to Staten Island, N.Y. In the mid-17th century English settlers purchased land in the region from the Delaware Indians. The county was the site of several military engagements during the American Revolution. The industrial port city of Elizabeth, the county seat, was one of the oldest and most important colonial settlements in New Jersey. The arrival of the Singer Manufacturing Company in Elizabeth in 1873 spurred industrial growth in the county. Union is the seat of Kean College of New Jersey (founded 1855). Other communities include Plainfield, Linden, Westfield, Rahway, Cranford, and Summit. The county maintains an extensive system of parks and recreational areas. The county was created in 1857. The principal components of the economy are manufacturing (drugs and metal products), services (health and business), and transportation (trucking and warehousing). Area 103 square miles (268 square km). Pop. (1990) 493,819; (1996 est.) 497,281. county, central Pennsylvania, U.S., bounded by the West Branch Susquehanna River to the east and Penns Creek Mountain to the south. The mountainous ridge-and-valley terrain includes Buffalo, Paddy, and Nittany mountains and is drained by Penns, Buffalo, and White Deer creeks. Parklands include Bald Eagle State Forest and Shikellamy, Sand Bridge, and R.B. Winter state parks. The county was created in 1813. In 1855 Lewisburg replaced New Berlin as the county seat. Bucknell University was founded as the University of Lewisburg in 1846. The economy is based on services (health care and education) and manufacturing (lumber and wood products). Area 317 square miles (820 square km). Pop. (1990) 36,176; (1996 est.) 40,826. county, northeastern New Mexico, U.S., bordered on the north by Colorado and on the east by Oklahoma and Texas. It lies in the Great Plains. The eastern landscape is marked by black-capped mesas and the twin Rabbit Ear Mountains, ancient volcanic vents that became a landmark on the southern fork of the Santa Fe Trail. In the west are two volcanos, Sierra Grande and Capulin Mountain. Dry lakes and arroyos scar Union county, but there are a few small lakes and ponds. Rare creeks and the Cimarron River flow across the county to the east. Areas of interest include Capulin Volcano National Monument, the Santa Fe National Historic Trail, Kiowa National Grasslands, and Clayton Lake State Park. Plains Indians roamed the region for centuries. In 1717 a Spanish force of 500 defeated a large band of Comanches at Rabbit Ear Mountains. Union county was established in 1893 after it became a cattle ranching region. Union county is a prosperous agricultural area and is among the state's leading cattle producers. Clayton is the county seat, and Des Moines is another large town. Area 3,830 square miles (9,920 square km). Pop. (1990) 4,124. county, northern South Carolina, U.S. It is bordered by the Pacolet River to the north, the Broad River to the east, and the Enoree River to the south. The southern half of it is within Sumter National Forest, including Rose Hill Plantation State Park, home of William H. Gist, the state's secession governor. The county lies in a hilly piedmont region that is mostly covered in forests of upland hardwoods and pine. Union county was Cherokee Indian territory when European settlers began to farm tobacco and wheat there in the latter half of the 18th century. It was established as a county in 1785 and named for an interdenominational church in the area. After the American Civil War the region became a hotbed of racial animosity, climaxing in January 1871 with an attack by 500 Ku Klux Klansmen on the county jail and the lynching of eight black prisoners. Cotton was important to the economy until, as was the case in most of the state's cotton-growing counties, economic factors, erosion, and boll weevil infestations caused cotton's decline. Though Union county remains a rural region, the economy is based on textile manufacturing. The city of Union is the county seat. Area 514 square miles (1,332 square km). Pop. (1990) 30,337; (1998 est.) 30,495. township (town), Union county, northeastern New Jersey, U.S., on the Elizabeth River, 5 miles (8 km) northwest of the town of Elizabeth, New Jersey. Settled in 1749 as Connecticut Farms, Union was originally a part of Elizabeth but was incorporated as a separate community in 1808. It once included what is now Roselle Park (separated in 1901), Kenilworth (1907), part of the Elmora section of Elizabeth (1908), and Hillside (Lyons Farms, 1913). A residential and industrial town, Union has a variety of light and heavy industries; products include steel, metal products, and paint. Liberty Hall, or Ursino (1772), was once the home of William Livingston, first governor of New Jersey. Kean University (originally Newark Normal School, founded 1855) moved to Union in 1958. Pop. (1990) 50,024; (1996 est.) 50,404. city, seat of Union county, northern South Carolina, U.S. It lies in hilly piedmont country near the Broad River, 68 miles (109 km) northwest of Columbia. Union was first settled in 1791 as Unionville around Union Church (1765), which was used by various denominations. During the American Civil War, when Columbia was burned, Dawkins House (one of several antebellum homes remaining in Union) became the provisional statehouse. Economic development has been based on the manufacture of textiles, lumbering, and agriculture. A campus of the University of South Carolina (1965) is in the city. Immediately south is the Enoree Division of Sumter National Forest, embracing Rose Hill Plantation State Park, the former estate of South Carolina Governor William H. Gist. Inc. 1837. Pop. (1990) 9,840; (1998 est.) 9,501.