[3] The town's tree-lined streets lie in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, 30 miles west of the Allegheny River's headwaters.

In the 1800s natural gas was discovered in the area, which led to the expansion of industries including glass firms, chemical plants, cheese factories, machine shops, brick plants, sawmills, planing mills and tanneries.

A concrete tower that is part of the manufacturing plant is the tallest structure in Port Allegany and is visible from most of the small downtown area.

[4] According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 1.8 square miles (4.7 km2), all land.

Many older homes, barns and other buildings in the region were at least partly built with hemlock lumber.

The contemporary forests in the region produce high quality black cherry lumber, valued in the furniture and cabinetry industries.

Major League Baseball player Josh Kinney grew up in Port Allegany.

Writer Grace Sartwell Mason was born and raised in Port Allegany.