A number of farmsteads had been established in the vicinity of where the town of New Paris would come to stand in the 1840's.
The first family to settle in the immediate vicinity of the town was that of William M. Blackburn. The Blackburn family established their homestead in 1846. The house built by the Blackburns was still standing in the 1880's but was, at that time, owned by Mrs. Joseph Mitchell, It was situated just outside the borough limits. Mr. Blackburn, apparently knowing that he was near death, sold his farmstead to Daniel Raffensparger in 1851, just prior to his death on 02 July. Mr. Raffensparger made a living as a blacksmith.
In 1848 Jacob Coplin moved into the vicinity of the Blackburn home and built a stone dwelling. Two years later Reuben Davis located there and constructed a wood frame structure. Over the next twenty years some nineteen families moved into the region and established their homes near each other.
As more and more people came into the region and the village began to form, it was known as Coplin Town at first. Later, Mr. Raffensparger came up with the name 'New Paris' for the little settlement.
