Firelands
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The Firelands or Sufferers' Lands tract was located at the western end of the Connecticut Western Reserve in what is now the U.S. state of Ohio. The land was set aside for residents of the Connecticut towns of Danbury, Fairfield, Greenwich, Groton, New Haven, New London, Norwalk, and Ridgefield who lost their homes in 1779 and 1781 due to fires set by British forces during the American Revolutionary War. Originally referred to as the "Fire Lands" (two words), it is now spelled as one word, "Firelands."
In 1792, the Connecticut legislature set aside 500,000 acres (2,000 km²) for the Sufferers at the western end of the Western Reserve, consisting of all of the present-day counties of Huron County and Erie County as well as Danbury Township in Ottawa County and Ruggles Township in Ashland County.
About 30 towns, cities and villages ended up being situated in the Firelands near the southern shore of Lake Erie.
However, very few of the original "Sufferers" ever settled in the Firelands, as the land was not given for settlement until many years after the war. Even then, the land was not readily hospitable due to Indian hostilities prior to and during the War of 1812 and the necessity of clearing dense forests from most of the land so that it could be used for farming purposes.
In 1803, the Sufferers, or their heirs, legal agents, and purchasers of their deeds, formed a corporation to manage the lands to which they were entitled in the newly formed state of Ohio. The land was divided into 30 five mile (8 km) square survey townships, which were further subdivided into 120 quarters, each containing 4,000 acres (16 km²). (Note: Although the standard for U.S. survey townships in the Northwest Territory was six miles (approx. 10 km) square at that time, the older standard for survey townships in the Western Reserve was employed.) A drawing was held to determine the land received by each individual. Many of the local communities and townships in the Firelands are named for locations in Connecticut.
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[edit] Named places
The townships of the Firelands include Ruggles Township in northwestern Ashland County; Berlin, Florence, Groton, Huron, Margaretta, Milan, Oxford, Perkins, and Vermilion Townships in Erie County; Bronson, Clarksfield, Fairfield, Fitchville, Greenfield, Greenwich, Hartland, Lyme, New Haven, New London, Norwalk, Norwich, Peru, Richmond, Ridgefield, Ripley, Sherman, Townsend, and Wakeman Townships in Huron County; and Danbury Township in eastern Ottawa County.
The incorporated villages and cities of the Firelands include Bay View, Berlin Heights, Castalia, Huron, Milan (part), Sandusky, and Vermilion (part) in Erie County; Bellevue (part), Greenwich, Milan (part), Monroeville, New London, North Fairfield, Norwalk, Plymouth (part), Wakeman, and Willard in Huron County; Marblehead in Ottawa County.
[edit] Further reading
For further information see:
- Connecticut Archives, Revolutionary War, Series I, II, and III
- Connecticut Archives, Susquehanna Settlers and Western Lands, Series I and II
- Aldrich, Lewis C. History of Erie County Ohio. Evansville, IN: Unigraphic, 1978 [CSL call number: F497 .E5 H57 1978].
- Baughman, Abraham J. History of Huron County. Chicago: S. J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1909.
- Carpenter, Helen M. "The Origin and Location of the Firelands of the Western Reserve". Ohio State Archeological and Historical Quarterly, Vol. XLIV (1935), pp. 163-203 [CSL call number: F497 .W5 C37 1935].
- The Firelands Pioneer / The Firelands Historical Society. 1858- [CSL call number F497 .W5 F5].
- Hill, George W. History of Ashland County, Ohio. Cleveland: Williams Bros., 1880.
- Williams, W.W., History of the Firelands, Connecticut, 1879.
(Publications with CSL call numbers are in the collection of the Connecticut State Library)
