[5] Originally named Prairie du Lac, Milton was settled in 1838 by Joseph Goodrich, who came from Alfred, New York with his family to the locality for religious and educational reasons.

As soon as he moved he organized a Seventh Day Baptist Church in November 1840, and in 1844 a school that would later become a college.

The Milton House is today one of the oldest poured grout structures in the United States.

[7] A noted abolitionist, Goodrich is known to have helped fugitive slaves escape to freedom via the Underground Railroad.

The Seventh Day Baptist Church in Milton, built in 1934, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in August 2016.

The current mayor is Anissa Welch, first elected in April 2015 and now serving her fourth term.

Milton is the site of a $70 million ethanol plant built by United Cooperative.

[11] A Cargill animal nutrition plant is located in Milton, with a 170-foot (52 m) grain elevator.

The former Milton College started operating in 1844, being incorporated into the Wisconsin legislature in 1848 as Academy DuLac, offering high school courses concurrently with higher education.

The college had clear connections with the US's Seventh Day Baptist church, which offered them operational support.

[6] Milton native Albert Whitford, a graduate of the college, became a leading astronomer.