Millsburg, Liberia

In early 1828, the Millsburg settlement was established in an agreement between Colonial Agent Jehudi Ashmun and Dei chiefs. In February 1828, Millsburg was settled by a small trading company of Americo-Liberian emigrants.^[3][4] It was established on the north bank of the St. Paul River.^[5] Millsburg is named after Samuel John Mills and Ebenezer Burgess, two agents of the American Colonization Society (ACS) who in 1818 made a reported on the British colony of Sierra Leone and its viability as a colony for African-American emigrants.^[6] Following Millsburg's founding, other settlements were made on both banks of the river.^[4]

In 1835, Mississippi Colonization Society sponsored its first group of African-American emigrants to Liberia, with most of the 71 people settling in Millsburg.^[7] In the 1839 constitution of Liberia, Millsburg is mentioned as one of the settlements comprising the Commonwealth of Liberia. In 1839, the Gola chief Gatumba attacked Dei people in Millsburg.^[8]

In the 1847 constitutional referendum preceding Liberia's independence, 21 voters in Millsburg voted in favor of the constitution, with none voting against it.^[9] In a book published in 1850, James W. Lugenbeel described Millsburg as the Liberian settlement furthest from the sea coast.^[5] In a 1898 book, William Henry Heard described Millsburg as a commercial center.^[10]