Mifflin is the oldest town in the county. It was laid out about 1828 by Col. Priddy who, with James Bank, opened a business house there about that time. James Smithers sold goods there possibly a little before the others. Spencer and Glass built a cotton-gin and a store about a mile and a half east of Mifflin, in 1832. From 1830 to 1840 Wm. Priddy, Ezekiel Halton, William and Henry Collins, and Wm. Watkins did business in Mifflin. Among the later ones were John West, Beaver, Carver & Co., John Smith and J. M. Priddy. Following the war were Beaver & Carver, Ashcraft & Co. The late business men are Wheeler & Edwards, Beaver & Son, Bell & Bros. and R. C. Cooper. Mifflin is surrounded by a good farming community and contains about 100 inhabitants, also a Methodist church and a schoolhouse.

Source: Goodspeeds History of Chester County TN 1886

It is generally accepted that the first settlement in what is now Chester County was made in the vicinity of Mifflin about 1821 by Cot. John Purdy. Mifflin, at the time, was located in Henderson County. Col. Purdy was a prominent businessman, surveyor, and a member of the TN Constitutional Convention in 1834. This was the same John Purdy that laid out the town of Old Purdy in McNairy County. Col. Purdy and wife are buried in the Mifflin Cemetery. One source of the name of the town says John Purdy named the town in honor of a town in his old home state of PA. Another source says that it was probably named in honor of Thomas Mifflin, who was governor of PA from 1790-1800.

Col. Purdy was a near neighbor of James Thomas, who settled in 1824. Other early settlers were James Clifford, Jere Hendrick, Micajah Joyner, William Billingsley, James and Richard Shackleford, William Arnold, Charles Riddle, John and J.D. Stutts, A.J.C. Mcllwain, J.M. Cooper, Robert McRea, Stephen Beaver, W.L. Stegall, Dr. B.H. Brown, and James Smith.

Charles Riddle was a "Hard Shell" Baptist preacher and a celebrated hunter. As game became scarce, he moved to Mississippi where it was more plentiful. George Still, a pioneer, was a surveyor. He moved to Texas in 1838. James Glass taught the first school in the new settlement in 1828. He later moved to Lexington, then to Jackson, and to Louisville. Thomas Garland, the first circuit rider of West Tennessee, formerly preached at Holly Springs. Job Dean; a soldier of the Creek War, was a settler at Mifflin.

Col. Purdy and James opened the first business house in Mifflin. James Smithers was also an early merchant. Spencer and Glass built the first cotton gin and store east of Mifflin between 1830 and 1840. William Priddy, Ezekiel Haltom, William and Henry Collins and William Watkins also had businesses in Mifflin. Later businesses included John West Carver and Co., John Smith and J.M. Priddy. Following the Civil War stores were built by Beaver and Carver, Ashcraft and Co., Wheeler and H. Edwards, Beaver and Son, and R.C. Cooper. Calvin Scarborough constructed a combination dwelling and store building. Scarborough's store ran the length of the residence with a porch around the building. There was a well in the rear and a basement under the store. The basement walls were insulated with sawdust and were used as magistrate and postmaster.

Calvin Scarborough (March 11, 1825-July 18, 1909) built a large store building with a dwelling attached. The basement of the store was insulated with sawdust; and during the winter, ice was hauled from a nearby pond and stored for the summer use. The store had a barber shop and a post office. W.T. Carroll carried the mail from Luray three days a week for $6.00 a month. Dick Taylor transported mail to Jackson and many of those trips were made on foot in the winter. In addition to the post office, Mifflin later served by rural routes from Henderson, Pinson, Beech Bluff, and Luray. The post office was closed many years ago.

Lorenz Whitfield Lafayette Scarborough, a son of Calvin Scarborough, was a master carpenter and built several two-story residences, including one for himself, one for Dr. W.C. Brown, and one for Mr. Tom Butler. Other merchants were John Edwards, Miles A. Jones, was Homer Jones, Wilkes Taylor, W.A. Reid, David Vestal, Henry Linton, Rome Russell, J.P. Inman, T.L. West, John Stutts, Henry Johnson, Lee Johnson, Milt Attaway, H.E. Jones, Will Mullins, Henry Beecham, Fred Linton, Edward Tignor, Jimmy Wells. and Mrs. Izz Rogers operated a hotel and Kit Stanfill operated a blacksmith shop and grist mill for many years. There were three saloons in the Mifflin before, during, and after the Civil War.

The first school house was a frame house 12' x 16' on J.W. Butler's lot. It was destroyed by a storm and the church was used until a two room school building was built in South Mifflin about 1910. The latter building was used until about 1962 when county-wide consolidation was begun. The first doctor in the Mifflin Community was perhaps Dr. Thcker who built a large two story house just outside Mifflin. It was begun in 1840 and completed in 1847. The fifth generation of the same family occupies it today. Other doctors have been T.J. Kilpatrick, Dr. B.H. Brown (1828-1887), D.W.C. Brown (1858-1923), Dr. Homer B. Brown (1881-1919), Dr. J.G. Anderson, Dr. Outlaw, Dr. Cobb and Dr. Wallace.

The road to Henderson was graded in 1917, graveled in 1927, and blacktopped in 1956. TV A brought electricity to Mifflin in 1950 and Bell Telephone came in 1951. Mifflin is 16 miles east of Jackson and 10 miles northeast of Henderson. Until after the Civil War, Mifflin was the largest town in present day Chester County. During the Civil War most Mifflin residents favored the southern cause, however, a few supported the Union. A few small skirmishes were in the area.

From the Historical Society about 1995