The area of Sugar Grove was first settled in 1797 by Robert Miles, a surveyor for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania who first came to the area to assess the land available for donation to veterans of the American Revolutionary War. A veteran of the war himself, Miles obtained his large tract of land in what would become Sugar Grove township and moved his family there in 1797. Miles soon convinced others to join him in the wilderness of Northwest Pennsylvania and begin a community.

By 1820, the crossroads of trails and fledgling roads about a mile from the Miles Settlement became the site where several business began to spring up to gain a market from the travelers through the area. With those businesses came homes that were outside of the Miles Settlement and became what is today Sugar Grove’s downtown. In 1821, after more than a year’s discussion, Robert Falconer applied for a US Post Office for the community and chose for it the name “Sugar Grove.” That date also represents the organization of a government for the Township of Sugar Grove.

The Borough of Sugar Grove was incorporated out of the Township of Sugar Grove on March 18, 1893, creating two separate governments within the borders of the Township. The Borough today has a population of 559 people living in 248 homes in 1.11 square-miles. The Borough is completely surrounded by the 35.5 square-mile Township which out-populates the Borough with 1870 residents living in 664 homes.

Here you will find a detailed history of Sugar Grove and links to some of its important sites, people and organizations that helped shape the area, the State and the Country.  Having been named for its vast maple forests, Sugar Grove remains today one of the most important sites in the region for the production of Maple Syrup.  A tradition dating to 1810 when John Hood first brought a copper kettle to boil sap into syrup, Sugar Grove annually awards medals for superior syrups in all three grades of Light, Medium and Dark as well a the coveted medal for the Superior Syrup of the Season.

Beginning in the 1830's, Sugar Grove became an important link for the anti-slavery movement and ran a well-known branch of the Underground Railroad.  The activities of the community gained them status as a key lecture site and nationally famous anti-slavery leaders including Frederick Douglass, Rev. JW Loguen, William Wells Brown, and Sallie Holley all spoke in Sugar Grove to large crowds eager to learn more about the cause.  Numerous organizations formed to aid escaping slaves including the Female Assisting Society, the Ladies Fugitive Aid Society, and the Vigilance Committee.  The movement was also political and several individuals in the area were members of national political parties such as the Liberty Party that worked to bring about an end to slavery.