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Milesburg celebrates Founders and Patriots during ceremony

By TAMMY COAKLEY 4 min read

MILESBURG -- The Milesburg Post Office was the scene of a ceremony to unveil a bronze plaque that honors the Founding Fathers and Patriots of the town.

The ceremony on June 28, along with the plaque, honor the Founding Families and Revolutionary War veterans, "Patriots," who called the Milesburg area home.

The ceremony was attended by community members, local historians and civic leaders and saw patriotic musical selections performed by Joe Pillot, who also served as the ceremony's emcee.

Pillot sang the Star Spangled Banner to open the ceremony and later would draw the ceremony to a conclusion by singing God Bless America.

During the ceremony the presentation of the colors and the retiring of the colors were conducted by the Milesburg American Legion Color Guard.

State Representative Paul Takac, (R-Centre), attended and spoke during the ceremony as did Milesburg's mayor, Brooke Christian.

Milesburg was officially established in 1793, but it was first settled in 1760 and the founding families lived there at the time.

President of the Milesburg Museum and Historical Society, Don Peters, honored those Founding Fathers during the ceremony.

The Boggs Family were the first settlers in Milesburg. Andrew Boggs served with the Revolutionary War militia. He and his wife, Margory, lived along the Bald Eagle Creek and owned 300 acres.

Many of Milesburg's Patriots and Founders bearing the names of Fleming, Foster, Green, Holt, Howe, Lee, Malone, Miles, Shirk, Turner and White have headstones in the Milesburg Cemetery.

Also taking part in the ceremony were Frank Kelly who recited the Declaration of Independence and Dan Fisher who spoke of the RW soldiers.

The Revolutionary War military was composed of the full-time, professional Continental Army and part-time, local militia. The militia men were recruited because of their rifle skills to reinforce the Continental Army when needed, disrupt British supply lines and protect populated regions.

Most of these patriots fought together under Nathaniel Miles, Samuel Miles' brother in the French & Indian War 1754-1763 and were given land by the British in lieu payment for military service. This land was here in Milesburg (which was settled in the 1760s). Samuel Miles recruited these men when he became a commander in the Revolutionary War because he fought alongside them in the French & Indian War.

At the time of the Revolutionary War, Milesburg was part of Northumberland County, north of the Bald Eagle Creek, and Cumberland County, south of the Bald Eagle Creek. Thus, the Northumberland Militia as well as the Cumberland Militia consisted of men from this area. All this area was called "The Wilderness" before and during the Revolutionary War and the pioneers living here had expert rifle skills.

Brigadier General Daniel Morgan was one of the Continental Army's most brilliant battlefield tacticians during the American Revolution. Famous for leading his specialized unit of frontier sharpshooters; using guerilla tactics and long-range Pennsylvania rifles. Most of our Milesburg Patriots fought under Morgan's command.

The unveiling of the bronze marker depicting the names of the 15 Revolutionary War Patriots and the 17 Founding Families who were being honored was done by Debbie Arnold, the curator of the Milesburg Museum. Milesburg's Revolutionary War Veterans are noted with an * on the commemorative plaque.

"This was my project -- a way to honor all of the Revolutionary War soldiers and the families from Milesburg. Our little town is so often forgotten," said Arnold.

It is Arnold's hope that the plaque will provide a permanent reminder to the people of Milesburg as well as to future visitors of their earliest residents and the Revolutionary War soldiers that lived in our area.

"We proudly boast that Milesburg had the most Patriots from Centre County!" Arnold later told The Express.

After the ceremony, birthday cake to celebrate the momentous event as well as to celebrate our nation's 250th birthday was enjoyed. The Milesburg American Legion Auxiliary provided the cake.

Historical content from this article was provided by Debbie Arnold as well as local historian Charles Demas and other contributing individuals.

Everyone is encouraged to visit the Milesburg Museum to learn more about the town's history and to view memorabilia on display there. The Milesburg Museum is open most Wednesday's from 1-3 p.m. and at other times by appointment. To request an appointment, visit www.Milesburg.org or send an email to milesburghistory@gmail.com.

The Milesburg Museum is located at 205 Market St., Milesburg. Visit them on Facebook at Milesburg Museum and Historical Society.

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