Milton is a borough in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, on the west branch of the Susquehanna River, 50 miles (80 km) north of Harrisburg. It was first settled in 1770, then incorporated in 1817, and is governed by a charter that was revised in 1890. Formerly, its extensive manufacturing plants included car and woodworking machinery shops, rolling, flour, knitting, planing, and saw mills; washer, nut, and bolt works; and furniture, shoe, couch, nail, fly net, bamboo novelty, and paper-box factories. In 1900, 6,175 people lived in Milton. In 1940, 8,313 people lived here. The population was 6,650 at the 2000 census.