Īmong the earliest recorded inhabitants of the Susquehanna River valley were the Iroquoian-speaking Susquehannock, whose name was derived from the Lenape term for "Oyster River People". Historic Native American tribes in the area at the time of European encounter included the Shawnee, Susquehannock, Gawanese, Lenape (or Delaware), and Nanticoke peoples, who were from different language families and had distinct cultures. Indigenous peoples had occupied the areas along the waterways for thousands of years, and established varying cultures. Many other counties were in turn formed from these six. As settlement increased, six other counties were subsequently formed from territory directly taken, in all or in part, from Lancaster County: Berks (1752), Cumberland (1750), Dauphin (1785), Lebanon (1813), Northumberland (1772), and York (1749). It was named after the city of Lancaster in the county of Lancashire in England, the native home of John Wright, an early settler. Lancaster County was part of Chester County, Pennsylvania, until May 10, 1729, when it was organized as the colony's fourth county. Although Matthias Kreider was said to have been in the area as early as 1691, there is no evidence that any Europeans settled in Lancaster County before 1710. John Kennerly received the first recorded deed from Penn in 1691. The area that became Lancaster County was part of William Penn's 1681 charter.
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