 On the eve of the American Revolution, Eli opened a store on the site of the current borough.Lewis and members of other prominent families in the area served in the Pennsylvania militia, and Eli rose to the rank of major.Over the course of the war, the town became known for producing guns, and the Committee of Safety for York County contracted with area gunsmiths to supply the Continental Army; guns made in Lewisberry were in use by the US Army as late as the Siege of Veracruz during the Mexican–American War of 1846.