Wilkes-Barre, << WIHLKS `bar` ee or WIHLKS `bar` uh >> (pop. 44,328), is a manufacturing and service center in northeastern Pennsylvania. It lies in the Wyoming Valley on the east bank of the Susquehanna River. Wilkes-Barre and Scranton form a metropolitan area with a population of 567,559. The city is the home of King’s College and Wilkes University. Wilkes-Barre’s most important industries include printing and publishing; data processing operations; warehousing; and the manufacture of clothing, electronic equipment, fabricated steel, glass products, and graphic arts supplies.
Connecticut colonists made the first settlement on the site of Wilkes-Barre in 1769. The settlement was twice destroyed by fire and rebuilt. Wilkes-Barre became a city in 1871. In 1972, a tropical storm struck the Wyoming Valley, including Wilkes-Barre, and caused about $1 billion in damages. The city has a mayor-council form of government and is the seat of Luzerne County.
