Jefferson Township, Logan County, Ohio

Jefferson Township, Logan County, Ohio
Township

Woods and hills northeast of Zanesfield

Location of Jefferson Township in Ohio

Location of Jefferson Township in Logan County
Coordinates: 40°21′13″N 83°41′28″W / 40.35361°N 83.69111°W / 40.35361; -83.69111Coordinates: 40°21′13″N 83°41′28″W / 40.35361°N 83.69111°W / 40.35361; -83.69111
Country United States
State Ohio
County Logan
Area
 • Total 37.5 sq mi (97.1 km2)
 • Land 37.4 sq mi (96.8 km2)
 • Water 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2)
Elevation[1] 1,198 ft (365 m)
Population (2000)
 • Total 2,946
 • Density 78.8/sq mi (30.4/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
Area code(s) 937
FIPS code 39-38682[2]
GNIS feature ID 1086484[1]

Jefferson Township is one of the seventeen townships of Logan County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,946 people in the township.[3]

Geography

Located in the eastern part of the county, it borders the following townships:

Several municipalities are located in Jefferson Township:

Compared with most of western Ohio, Jefferson Township is quite hilly. Campbell Hill, the highest point in Ohio, is located inside the Bellefontaine city limits in western Jefferson Township. On the other hand, the Marmon Valley, which extends through the southern part of the township, is a small pass through the Bellefontaine and Bristlecone Ridges. The same forces that shaped the township's terrain also created Zane Shawnee Caverns, a cave system in the northeastern part of the township.

As a result of its hilly topography, Jefferson Township contains the source of the Mad River,[4] and a ski resort — unusual for western Ohio — is located near Valley Hi in the southern part of the township.

Name and history

It is one of twenty-four Jefferson Townships statewide.[5]

Jefferson Township was formed in 1813 from Zane Township. It was one of the earliest parts of Logan County to be settled: its first settler was Isaac Zane, who arrived in 1800 and built the first house in what is now Zanesfield in 1811,[6] and the Marmons who arrived in the township in 1805 were the first white families to live in the county.[7] Because a significant percentage of the early settlers were Quakers, the township was once home to a large number of African Americans.[8] Today, the township is the location of Goshen Friends Church, the oldest church in Logan County, and of the Martin Marmon House, one of the best examples of early nineteenth-century Quaker architecture in Ohio.[7]

Government

The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1. Two are elected in the year after the presidential election and one is elected in the year before it. There is also an elected township fiscal officer,[9] who serves a four-year term beginning on April 1 of the year after the election, which is held in November of the year before the presidential election. Vacancies in the fiscal officership or on the board of trustees are filled by the remaining trustees.

In the elections of November 2007, Michael Kenoyer defeated two other candidates in the election for the position of township trustee.[10]

Transportation

U.S. Route 33 is the most important highway in Jefferson Township. Other significant highways include State Routes 47, 292, 533, and 540.

References

  1. 1 2 "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. ↑ Logan County, Ohio — Population by Places Estimates Ohio State University, 2007. Accessed 12 May 2007.
  4. ↑ DeLorme. Ohio Atlas & Gazetteer. 7th ed. Yarmouth: DeLorme, 2004, p. 56. ISBN 0-89933-281-1.
  5. ↑ "Detailed map of Ohio" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 2000. Retrieved 2007-02-16.
  6. ↑ Perrin, W.H. and J.H. Battle. History of Logan County and Ohio. Chicago: O.L. Baskin, 1880, 396.
  7. 1 2 Barber, Rachel. National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Martin Marmon House. National Park Service, January 1985.
  8. ↑ Perrin, W.H. and J.H. Battle. History of Logan County and Ohio. Chicago: O.L. Baskin, 1880, 410.
  9. ↑ §503.24, §505.01, and §507.01 of the Ohio Revised Code. Accessed 4/30/2009.
  10. ↑ Examiner Staff, The. "Township Trustees: Township trustee results", Bellefontaine Examiner, 2007-11-07, p. 2.
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