Lower Saucon Township was chartered in 1743, when it was still a part of Bucks County. It was established in the rich farmland along the Saucon Creek. The name is of Native American origin, from "", meaning “at the mouth of the creek.” The township also included South Bethlehem until 1865 and Hellertown until 1872. German immigrants, convinced by Penn's favorable description of the New World, settled Lower Saucon Township in large numbers, beginning in the 1730s. Some of the surnames of the early German settlers were Boehm, Wagner, Appel, Riegel, Lerch, Laubach, Oberley, Heller, Shimer, and Lutz. These early settlers were hardworking, and their farms prospered. There were numerous mills built to provide sawed wood, flour, textiles, paper, and gunpowder. Other early industry included lime kilns and the extracting of zinc and iron ore.