In 1782, Somerset Township was formed from regions of Bethlehem, Fallowfield, Nottingham, and Strabane Townships. The families of Isaac Newkirk and William Colvin were the first settlers in the year 1777.  The name of this new township was spelled “Summersett” when Christian Leatherman was appointed as supervisor of the highways. The first principal villages of the township were Dunningsville, Eighty Four, Kammerer and Vanceville.

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Dunningsville: In 1791, Alexander Scott purchased a tract of land where he built a home, store, horse grist mill, tavern and a blacksmith shop.  He eventually sold this land to John Dunning who succeeding in having the little village made into a post-town and was appointed its first postmaster in 1830.  He died September 7, 1843 and is buried at the Pigeon Creek Presbyterian Church cemetery.

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Eighty Four: Many stories have been told as to the manner in which Eighty Four received its name.  One of the said storied goes like this: William J. Smith ran a mill, owned a store and established a train station known as Smithville.  Mr. Smith secured a post office and became the postmaster. However, since a Smithville, PA was already established, Mr. Smith, was unable to dedicate his village using that name. It was suggested that he use a number to designate his post office. To commemorate the election of President Grover Cleveland in the fall of 1884, he decided to name his village Eighty Four. 

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Kammerer: This tract of 85 acres was originally owned by George Meyers in 1788.  Through subsequent transfers, it eventually became the property of John Kammerer who built a tavern which was known as “Dutch John’s”. He also conducted business as owner of an extensive country store and became postmaster of the village. In 1859, his son Joseph built a distillery and in 1881 formed a partnership with Christian Hootman and John Leyda for the purpose of manufacturing liquors. 

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Vanceville:  In the center of the township, Isaac and John Vance, two brothers, owned 556 acres of farm land situated on Pigeon Creek. They developed the village of Vanceville: building a store, blacksmith shop, and steam saw mill, a school and two churches.