Shamokin ( Saponi Algonquian Shumounk " place of the horn ") is a city in Northumberland County , Pennsylvania , at the western edge of the Coal Region . (The original Saponi village of Shamokin was located near the current site of Sunbury , the seat of Northumberland County.) Shamokin was incorporated as a borough on November 9 , 1864 , and as a city on February 21 , 1949 . In addition to anthracite coal-mining, it also had silk and knitting mills, stocking and shirt factories, wagon shops, ironworks, and brickyards. In 1900 , the population reached 18,202 people; in 1910 , there were 19,588 people here; in 1920 , 21,204 people lived here, and in 1940 , 18,810 people lived in Shamokin. The population was 8,009 at the 2000 census. The city of Shamokin is bordered by its sister community, Coal Township, Pennsylvania , and by the world's longest culm bank.