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 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.
Passages that mention Millerstown, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History Of Perry County, Pennsylvania1922 · page 962Read the page →
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Hart’s gristmill was located over two miles from Millerstown, on a branch of the Cocolamus. It was erected by Frederick Harter, a reside: of Millerstown. In the assessment of 1805 he is assessed with 4oo acres of land, a gristmill and a sawmill. Michael Wenner purchased it and sold it to Joseph Hart, at whose death it descended to his only heir, Mrs.
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History Of Perry County, Pennsylvania1922 · page 388Read the page →
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In September, 1847, the Juniata’s waters were seething and carried away the bridges at McVeytown and Port Royal, two spans of the Mifflintown bridge (the second such occurrence), and the east half of the Millerstown bridge, which fell at 11 p.m. The Millerstown bridge was rebuilt during the winter by Isaac Kirkpatrick, who fell from the trestle work and was drowned under the ice. His son Garrett finished it, he being then fess than seventeen years of age. Before he was twenty-one he contracted for and
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History of Perry County, Pennsylvania, including descriptions of Indians and pioneer life from the time of earliest settlement1922 · page 1010Read the page →
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*Millerstown Borough, the oldest town in Perry County, is located on the eastern bank of the Juniata River, thirty-three miles west of the capital of the state, the Pennsylvania Railroad station being located on the western side of the river. Millerstown was the first town in the territory now comprising Perry County to be plotted for the sale of lots, which was done in 1790. It is located on a tract of ground originally warranted to James Gallagher on September 23, 1766, although he had located there before 'that and had made improvements thereon. The old English custom
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History of Perry County, Pennsylvania, including descriptions of Indians and pioneer life from the time of earliest settlement1922 · page 1018Read the page →
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Millerstown Presbyterian Church. Presbyterianism in Millerstown is almost as old as the settlement itself. The first sermon was preached by Rev. John Hutchinson, of Mifflintown, in 1806, in the bar room of the Cnchran tavern, on South Main Street, now owned by Mrs. S. C. Alexander. Later they were held throughout the town, and often in the same bar room. While the services were held as stated the members of the faith belonged to the churches at Middle Ridge and at Lost Creek (now Mc-
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Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
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Millerstown, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1850s to the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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