[3] According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2), all land.

Squire Clement Beckwith laid out the town in 1850 and named it to honor his daughter, Matilda.

Why he chose to call it Port Matilda is not clear, but the name may have reflected his hope that the town would eventually be connected to the Bald Eagle and Spring Creek Branch of the Pennsylvania Canal.

The company was later owned by General Refractories, which closed the Port Matilda plant in 1959.

Its primary product was silica fire brick made from ganister rock, using beehive kilns.