The Mountain Town That Renamed Itself After an Olympic Legend
5 Reasons to Visit® · United States
The Mountain Town That Renamed Itself After an Olympic Legend
A perfectly preserved Victorian railroad town wedged into a mountain gorge, which struck a deal in 1954 to rename itself after one of the greatest athletes who ever lived.
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Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, has one of the most unusual names and origin stories of any town in America. Tucked into a steep, wooded gorge where the Lehigh River cuts through the mountains of the eastern Poconos, this Victorian railroad town was originally two boroughs called Mauch Chunk and East Mauch Chunk. In 1954, in a remarkable civic bargain, the struggling communities merged and renamed themselves after the legendary Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe — whose widow agreed to have him buried there — in hopes of drawing tourists. The gamble worked, and today the town that took an Olympian's name is one of the most enchanting destinations in the Northeast.
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Its beauty is almost theatrical. So dramatic is the setting — steep mountainsides, a rushing river, and a densely built Victorian townscape climbing the slopes — that Jim Thorpe earned the nickname the "Switzerland of America" back in its nineteenth-century heyday, when it was a wealthy resort and coal-and-railroad boomtown. That wealth built an extraordinary collection of preserved Victorian architecture: ornate mansions, a grand old train station, historic churches, and the opulent Asa Packer Mansion, all clustered in a walkable, impossibly picturesque downtown.
The downtown has become a genuine destination. The steep streets of the historic district are lined with independent boutiques, art galleries, cafes, restaurants, and inns, and the town hosts a lively calendar of festivals and events throughout the year. Excursion trains still run from the historic station up through the gorge, a living link to the railroad heritage that built the place. For a small mountain town, the concentration of charm, history, and independent business is remarkable.
A Gilded Age town so scenic they call it the Switzerland of America — named, by referendum, after an Olympian.
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What truly powers Jim Thorpe's modern appeal, though, is the outdoors. The surrounding Lehigh Gorge State Park and Poconos offer world-class outdoor recreation right at the town's edge: whitewater rafting on the Lehigh River, one of the most popular rail-trail biking routes in the Northeast running through the gorge, hiking, and mountain scenery in every direction. It has become a premier adventure-tourism base, drawing rafters, cyclists, and leaf-peepers, especially during a spectacular mountain autumn.
That combination is increasingly drawing people to stay, not just visit. As remote work has untethered people from cities and as the Poconos have grown in popularity, Jim Thorpe's blend of jaw-dropping scenery, a walkable historic downtown, outdoor recreation, and relative affordability compared with the New York and Philadelphia metros — both within a couple of hours' drive — has attracted remote workers, second-home buyers, and those seeking a mountain-town life with genuine character — much as scenic river towns like Beacon, New York have —.
Jim Thorpe is a small town, honest about the limits of a tourism-driven mountain economy and the pressures popularity brings. But its appeal is singular and undeniable. A perfectly preserved Victorian townscape, one of the most dramatic settings in the East, world-class outdoor adventure, and a name unlike anywhere else have made Jim Thorpe one of the most enchanting small towns in America. For the visitor it makes an unforgettable mountain weekend. For the growing number who settle in, it makes the case for a life in a storybook town in the Poconos — which is exactly why they keep coming.
Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania: FAQ
Is Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania worth visiting?
Yes. Jim Thorpe is a beautifully preserved Victorian railroad town in a dramatic mountain gorge — the 'Switzerland of America' — with a walkable historic downtown of boutiques, galleries, and inns, the opulent Asa Packer Mansion, excursion trains, and world-class outdoor recreation in Lehigh Gorge State Park. It makes an unforgettable mountain weekend in the Poconos.
Why is the town called Jim Thorpe?
In 1954, the struggling Pennsylvania boroughs of Mauch Chunk and East Mauch Chunk merged and renamed themselves Jim Thorpe after the legendary Olympic athlete, whose widow agreed to have him buried in the town, in an effort to attract tourism. The gamble succeeded, and the town has become a popular destination.
Why are people moving to Jim Thorpe, PA?
Jim Thorpe draws remote workers, second-home buyers, and those seeking a mountain-town life with its dramatic scenery, walkable Victorian downtown, and world-class outdoor recreation, at a lower cost than the New York and Philadelphia metros, both within a couple of hours' drive. The Poconos' growing popularity has fueled interest.
What is Jim Thorpe known for?
Jim Thorpe is known for renaming itself after the Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe in 1954, for its dramatic mountain-gorge setting nicknamed the 'Switzerland of America,' its preserved Victorian architecture and Asa Packer Mansion, its excursion trains, and outdoor adventure like whitewater rafting and rail-trail biking in Lehigh Gorge State Park.
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