Hookstown is named after Matthias Hook,[4] early pioneer and Revolutionary War soldier, and his family. The only known surviving relatives are the McCormick family, who still reside in Hookstown and surrounding areas in western Pennsylvania.
Through his daughter Catherine Hook who married George Griffey there are many who can trace their roots back to Mathias living throughout the country. There has been a Griffey reunion held annually for more than a hundred years every June in West Springfield, PA.
Hookstown was the birthplace of Robert Justice.
In 1975 Little Blue Run Lake, the U.S.'s largest coal slurry waste impound, was built directly west of the town and has caused environmental damage to the surrounding communities
