 The name "Mahanoy" is believed to be a variation of the Native American word 'Maghonioy', or "the salt deposits".Mahanoy City, originally a part of Mahanoy township, was settled in 1859 and incorporated as a borough by decree of the Court of Quarter Sessions of Schuylkill County on December 16, 1863.It was served by branches of the Lehigh Valley and the Philadelphia & Reading railways.