 The name of the town comes from its days as a coal port on the Pennsylvania Canal.Coal from the mines of the Zerbe Valley, near Trevorton was shipped to the town via the Trevorton and Susquehanna Railroad, which was completed in 1855, crossing the Susquehanna River on a long bridge from Herndon to Port Trevorton.A canal basin was built for coal loading from the railcars.