Millersburg Ferry

HISTORY OF THE MILLERSBURG FERRY

The actual birth date of the Millersburg Ferry is not known. When Daniel Miller founded Millersburg in 1807, he reserved the shad fishery and ferry rights to himself. While the evidence of ferry operations at the Millersburg Ferry site from the 1750’s is scant, written evidence does exist of a continuous operation since 1817 when a Mr. Michael Crow was the sole owner. Even though Mr. Crow may have operated a ferry before 1817, it is a lease that establishes the date of continuous operation at this location.

An unsigned lease written in July 1817 between Michael Crow Sr. and George Carson, slated to begin its terms on September 1, 1817, is still in the possession of Robert Wallis (owner of the west shore landing of the Millersburg Ferry). According to the lease, Carson would rent the ferry from Crow and in exchange, he was required to construct an artificial road from the ferry landing to “the Great Road” (Routes 11/15) leading to Liverpool. The construction of the road was to be considered full rent for the first two years of the five year lease. The final three year’s rent was to be determined by a disinterested three person panel. Carson never signed the lease and it is unclear as to whether he ever ferried, but Crow continued to maintain the ferry and petitioned to have a road built to the Great Road in 1819. The date coincides with the founding of Bendersettle now known as Elizabethville.

Then in 1816, a sheriff’s sale transferred Daniel Miller’s proprietary reserve and ferry rights to David Kramer, who subsequently established a ferry in Millersburg. The transportation requirements of growing communities inspired the evolution and progression of the Millersburg Ferry. The landings, ferry wall and river bed have not been altered and no changes that effect its historic use are present. The ferry passed through a number of family owner/operators over the years until 1971 when Robert Wallis became the sole owner of the Millersburg Ferry.

In 1990, Community Banks, N.A. of Millersburg purchased the ferry from Robert Wallis and gave it to the Millersburg Area Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber then formed the Millersburg Ferry Boat Association, a board of nine members from various community organizations, who oversee the seasonal operations of the boats while preserving the historic value of the area and the boats for future generations.

The Boats

The Roaring Bull V is painted red or maroon and was built in 1998. Its flat is 83′ long while the power boat is 50′ long. The Falcon III is painted gray. It was built in the 1917 and is slightly smaller than the bull by several feet. Both hulls are of wood (white pine) construction, consisting of 30′ long timbers 6″ wide. The bottom is crossed planked with 3″x10″x12′ planks. The bows of each boat have covered open air deck and pilot house. The basic design, character, feel and nature of these boats have remained faithful to the vessels used during the 19th Century. They are powered by 57hp Deuetsch Diesel Engines with hydraulic systems.

Each ferry can accommodate up to 4 vehicles or 20 plus motorcycles. We welcome walk-on passengers as well.

The Millersburg Ferry’s nomination to the National Registry of History Sites was approved by the Pennsylvania Historic Commission on June 13, 2006, and the National Park Service on August 2, 2006, as having a significant historic impact to the state and nation.
- All of this information is from the Millersburg Ferry Boat Association website and you can find more by following this link: http://www.millersburgferry.org/

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