Chambersburg, the county seat of Franklin County, is the historic and commercial center of the region characterized by varied small and medium industrial enterprises. It is a rich agricultural and residential area.It was settled by Benjamin Chambers, who in 1730 with his brother crossed the Susquehanna River and headed southwestward to his final destination at the confluence of the Conococheaque Creek and the Falling Spring. This location provided him with the water power necessary for a gristmill and a sawmill which operated there for many years.The Community was formally laid out in 1764 by the then Colonel Chambers extending south and east from the fort that had been built for protection against Indian raids.Chambersburg grew in importance as a crossroad where the travel east to west toward the frontier crossed the travel north and south within the great valley.

The municipal government was established through a state granted charter as a borough in 1803. During the Civil War, Chambersburg played a significant role in the Shenandoah and Cumberland Valley theater of operation. It was occupied three times by Confederate Forces. In the center of town, at the diamond which is now referred to as Memorial Square, General Robert E. Lee, after consulting with his associates, made the fateful decision to move east resulting in the Battle of Gettysburg which was the turning point of the war. Finally, on July 30, 1864, Confederate troops under General J.A. McCausland of the General Jubal Early Army burned down the center of the town when ransom was not paid for alleged outrages committed by Union Troops in the Shenandoah Valley. Since then the Borough was rebuilt and has grown.