Millerstown - a brief history Millerstown Borough is located on the eastern bank of the Juniata River, scenically set in the rolling hills of Perry County. Once a thriving town during Canal Days, Millerstown now serves as a quiet residential community, rich in historical lore. Millerstown lies thirty-three miles west of the State Capital, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and is the oldest town in Perry County. It is located on a tract of ground originally warranted to James Gallagher on September 23, 1766, however, there is evidence that a small town named "Smithfield" was started by Gallagher before this time. This plot of ground was later sold to David Miller on September 1, 1780, and in 1790 a patent was issued for the "laying out of the town," thus making Miller's Town the first town to be plotted for sale in the territory at that time comprising Perry County. The canal site was the Main Street of town at this time. In 1811, David Miller sold the tract to Jacob Miller and Abraham Addams. Abraham Addams later married the daughter of Jacob Miller and their daughter, Ann Eliza Addams married Jacob Beaver and became the mother of James A. Beaver, a governor of Pennsylvania. Millerstown Borough was incorporated February 12, 1849, and the first meeting of the Town Council was held April 14, 1849. Abraham Addams was the first chief burgess, and John M. Cauffman, Christian Beck, James R. Gilmer, and Jacob Emerick, were members of the first Borough Council. Thomas P. Cochran was the first clerk to Council with a salary of $2.50 a year. Millerstown has had more "old stone houses" than any other town in the county, and many of them are still standing today as a beautiful monument to the quality of construction during those early years. The stone "hotel" building on the west side of the square was built by John Wood in 1800. During the digging of the canal, there were 17 hotels in town. Millerstown had sixty houses in 1825, and eighty in 1832. The first storekeepers were Thomas Cochran and Edward Purcell. One of the earliest residents was Anthony Brandt, a blacksmith and an innkeeper. Modern Times Millerstowns' population today is made up of many diversified personalities ever mindful of the past history of their 'hometown'. Millerstown is located along the Juniata River in northern Perry County, at the junctions of U.S. 22/322 and PA. Rt. 17. It has a land area of .86 square miles, with a 2000 census population of 649. The town features a large number of historic buildings, some of which date back to the 1700's. Keystone Marker The Keystone Marker Trust is dedicated to the preservation, restoration, and re-creation of Pennsylvania's iconic Keystone Marker signs. These signs were produced in the 1920s by the Pennsylvania Department of Highways. Thousands were placed all across the state for many purposes, and several hundred remain today, most of them explaining the origins of town names. View the only 'known' Millerstown marker from that era here ...

Millerstown and its Colorful, yet Controversial, Past by Nathan Lesh

Notable People in Millerstown History

Cochran Anspach House

Historic Town Places

Historical Tidbits

Perry County Facts

Surrounding Townships

History of Millerstown Businesses and Buildings Continued: by Nathan Lesh