Millerstown is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

in northern Perry County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, United States, located (via road) northwest of

Harrisburg Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...

and southwest of Selinsgrove. The population was 688 at the 2020 Census. The borough is part of the

–

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from ) is a city in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. Carlisle's early history is marked by the establishment of a settlement called Luguvalium to serve forts along Hadrian's Wall in Roman Britain. Due to its pro ...

Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Millerstown is located on a tract of land originally sold as "Smithfield" to James Gallagher on September 23, 1766; there is evidence, however, that he had lived in the area prior to his purchase. This plot of ground was later deeded to David Miller on September 1, 1780, who established a settlement and a ferry operation. Miller filed for a patent in 1790 with

Thomas Mifflin Thomas Mifflin (January 10, 1744January 20, 1800) was an American merchant, soldier, and politician from Pennsylvania, who is regarded as a Founding Father of the United States for his roles during and after the American Revolution. Mifflin sig ...

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. Miller's Town was later combined to form Millerstown. In 1800, the first tavern was constructed on Market Street, later known as the Alexander House, which would in more recent years become a VFW Post until its closure in 2017. Millerstown Borough was incorporated February 12, 1849, and the first meeting of the newly formed town council was held on April 14, 1849. Abraham Addams was the first chief burgess (mayor), 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 council clerk with a salary of $2.50 a year. Millerstown is home to many old stone houses, some dating back to the 18th century.

Geography

Millerstown is located at (40.550884, -77.154659), along the

Juniata River The Juniata River () is a tributary of the Susquehanna River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed August 8, 2011 in central Pennsylvania. The river is ...

in northern Perry County, at the junctions of U.S. Routes 22 and 322 and Pennsylvania Route 17. It is 33 miles northwest of the state capital,

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the borough has a total area of , of which is land and (6.52%) is water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 679 people, 275 households, and 196 families living in the borough. The population density was . There were 292 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 99.12%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.29%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.15% Asian, and 0.44% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.88% of the population. There were 275 households, out of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.4% were non-families. 24.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.95. In the borough the population was spread out, with 24.0% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 79.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.1 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $43,750, and the median income for a family was $53,173. Males had a median income of $37,159 versus $24,732 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the borough was $22,289. About 2.0% of families and 5.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 2.5% of those age 65 or over.

Public services

The borough and most surrounding townships are served by the Greenwood School District. Millerstown is served by the Millerstown Fire Department & Ambulance League.

Notable people

* James A. Beaver, 20th Governor of Pennsylvania, born in Millerstown * Cameron Mitchell, famous actor in the mid to late 1900s

References

External links

Millerstown Borough
{{authority control Populated places established in 1780 Boroughs in Perry County, Pennsylvania