Milton, Pennsylvania facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Milton, Pennsylvania
Borough
Milton's old railroad depot and current borough office.
Keystone Marker
Location of Milton in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania.
Milton, Pennsylvania Location in Pennsylvania Show map of Pennsylvania Milton, Pennsylvania Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Northumberland
Settled	1770
Incorporated (borough)	1817
Area
• Total	3.77 sq mi (9.77 km2)
• Land	3.47 sq mi (8.98 km2)
• Water	0.30 sq mi (0.78 km2)
Elevation (borough benchmark)	472 ft (144 m)
Highest elevation (eastern boundary of borough)	570 ft (170 m)
Lowest elevation (West Branch Susquehanna River)	435 ft (133 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	6,609
• Density	1,905.16/sq mi (735.60/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST)
• Summer (DST)	EDT
ZIP code	17847
Area code(s)	570 and 272
FIPS code	42-50016

Milton is a small town, called a borough, in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. It sits right on the West Branch Susquehanna River. Milton is about 50 miles (80 km) north of Harrisburg, which is the capital city of Pennsylvania. It's part of the beautiful Susquehanna River Valley in Central Pennsylvania.

History of Milton

Milton in 1930

People first settled in Milton way back in 1770. It officially became a borough in 1817. This means it got its own local government. Over the years, Milton grew quite a bit. In 1900, about 6,175 people lived here. By 1940, the population had grown to 8,313. More recently, in 2020, about 6,609 people called Milton home.

Milton is also home to some important historical places. The Milton Historic District is a special area. It helps protect old buildings and the town's history. Other historic spots include the Pennsylvania Canal and Limestone Run Aqueduct, the Milton Armory, and the Milton Freight Station. These places are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This means they are very important to the history of the United States.

Milton's Industries and Factories

At the start of the 1900s, Milton was a busy place for factories. Many different companies were located here. These included places that made car parts and woodworking machines. There were also mills for flour, knitting, and sawing wood. Other factories made things like nuts, bolts, furniture, and shoes.

One very famous company that started here was the original Chef Boyardee factory. Today, Conagra Foods still makes Chef Boyardee products in Milton. This shows how important manufacturing has been to the town. These industries helped Milton become a major center for making goods in the region.

Geography of Milton

Milton is located at coordinates 41°1′3″N 76°51′3″W / 41.01750°N 76.85083°W / 41.01750; -76.85083. The borough covers about 3.8 square miles (9.8 square kilometers) in total. Most of this area, about 3.5 square miles (9.1 square kilometers), is land. The rest, about 0.3 square miles (0.78 square kilometers), is water. This water area comes from the river and other small bodies of water.

The land in Milton is mostly flat. However, there are some small hills scattered around. Milton is also home to the Milton State Park. This park is a great place for outdoor activities. Several state roads, like Route 254, Route 405, and Route 642, pass through Milton. These roads help people travel to and from the borough.

Milton's Population and People

Let's look at who lives in Milton. In the year 2000, there were 6,650 people living here. These people lived in 2,762 households. A household is like a home where people live together. The population density was about 1,922 people for every square mile. This tells us how crowded an area is.

Most people in Milton are White. In 2000, about 94.8% of the population was White. About 2.4% were African American. A small number of people were Native American or Asian. About 2.2% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.

Milton's Population in 2010

By 2010, the population of Milton had grown to 7,042 people. The racial makeup changed a bit. About 88.4% of the people were White. About 4.5% were African American. The number of Hispanic people grew to 6.2%. Milton has a growing number of people from Puerto Rico. This group has tripled in size since the year 2000.

In 2010, about 29.9% of households had children under 18 living there. About 48.3% of households were married couples. About 10.9% of homes had a female head of household with no husband. Many households, about 32.6%, were made up of people living alone.

The average age of people in Milton in 2010 was 39 years old. About 23.7% of the population was under 18. About 18.9% of people were 65 years or older. The median income for a household was about $30,252 per year. For families, it was about $38,438 per year. This means half of the households earned more, and half earned less. About 13.5% of the total population lived below the poverty line. This included 19% of those under 18.

Notable People from Milton

Milton has been home to several interesting people who became famous in different fields:

• Phil Auten (1840–1919) – He was a business leader. He also co-owned the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team.
• Burton C. Bell (1969) – He was a co-founder and singer for the heavy metal band Fear Factory.
• Ettore Boiardi (1897–1985) – You might know him better as Chef Boyardee! He created the famous brand of food products.
• James Curtis Hepburn (1815–1911) – He was a missionary and a linguist. He created the Hepburn system. This system helps write the Japanese language using Roman letters.
• George Theodore Hyatt (1830–1900) – He was awarded the Medal of Honor. This was for his bravery during the U.S. Civil War.
• Fay Kellogg (1871–1918) – She was an important architect in the early 1900s.
• Lew McCarty (1888–1930) – He was a professional baseball player. He played as a catcher for teams like the Brooklyn Superbas and the New York Giants.
• James Pollock (1810–1890) – He was a congressman and also the Governor of Pennsylvania. He was also in charge of the Philadelphia Mint. He is buried in Milton Cemetery.
• Christian Markle Straub (1804–1860) – He was a U.S. Representative for Pennsylvania.

See also

In Spanish: Milton (Pensilvania) para niños