Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1867-04-03
HISTORY Y
-OF-
CHAMPAIGN COUNTY,
OHIO
Entered according TO Act Of Congress, IN the
year 1867, by J. ". HoUI. in the Clerks
Office OF the District Court for the
Southern District OF Ohio. -.#-

CHATTER. II.
z. When Ohio became State in 1902,
the county of Hamilton extended from
the Ohio River northward to the Indian
boundary, and in its northern portion
was bounded on the east by Ross cOun-
ty, which had a similar extent north
ward. The Mad River Valley was thus
a part of Hamilton county, but at the
first session of the first General Assem-
| bly, it was made a part of Green county.
Hamilton county was then reduced to
its present limits, by creating on the
north Of it, the counties of Butler and
Warren; and north of these, two other
counties-Green and Montgomery, both
of which extended to the northern
boundary, and the line between these
two counties, was the same as that
which now makes the west line of Cham
paign. The large territory which was
thus included in these two counties was
of course regarded as temporary, and
the law creating them provided that all
the inhabitants of the counties of Mont
gomery and Green who lived north of
the eighth Range, should be exempted
from paying any tax for the purpose of
erecting court houses and jails in said
counties, The eighth Range afterwards
became the South boundary of Cham
paign and Of Miami.
8. The act establishing Green county
provided that until a permanent seat of
justice should be established, the tenn
porary seat of justice for Green county,
should be at the house of Owen Davis
on Beaver Greek. He was one of the
first band of Western emigrants who
left Redstone in 1889 and landed at the
plain below the Little Miami which af-
terwards became the town of Columbia.
His son Lewis Davis, then a small boy,
was widely known in Ohio for his ener-
gy and skill in selecting lands for him
self and others. Benjamin Whiteman
a conspicuous resident at the Falls of
Miami was allied to the family.
9, It is not easy at this day to name
the different settlers who composed the
sparse population north of Owen Davis's
house; but Springfield had been laid
out as a town by JamesDemint George !
Fithian and Griffith FoOs we're resi-
dents there; Joseph Reynolds, the
father of John Reynolds, had settled
west of Mad River. William Ward had
his farm three miles north of Spring
field, and Simon Kenton was seated at
the Run, five miles from Springfield,
The Runyons were on Buck Greek and
the Kenton's on Mad River.
TO- The general population of the
Ehole country may be computed from
he number Of white male inhabitants
over the age of twenty-one years. It
lad been provided in the Constitution
-dopted in the previous year that rep
esentatiOn in the General Assembly
hOuld be appOrtiOned among the cOun- {
les according to the number of white
male inhabitants in each above the age
f twenty-one years. The first Legis- !
ature had provided for this enumera- r
ion, and directed that the enumeration y
hould be made by the listers of taxable
roperty in the several townships and i
= them returned to the Clerks of the D
ourts. The enumeration was duly
lade, and the returns made to the Gen o
raj Assembly which met in Dec, 1903,
bowed that there were then fifteen
ounties in the State and that the num- Ia
er of white male inhabitants in each
ere as follows, naming them in the or q