Shelby County History

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Salem Township  Location & Features | First Families | Other firsts | Churches (for a larger view of the map, click here)     Salem Township was organized June 5, 1826.  It is bounded on the north by Franklin & Jackson townships, on the east by Logan county, on the south by Perry & Clinton townships, and on the west by Clinton & Franklin townships.
    The surface of Salem township is generally rolling , and along the streams, somewhat broken and hilly.  The soil is varied.  Clay predominates in some parts and in others, it consists of rich black loam and is well adapted to growing grain and grass.  The township is well supplied with springs and streams.  The south is bordered by the Great Miami River, the east is crossed by Rum creek, the central part by Counts Run, the extreme west by Plum Creek (and they all empty into the Miami).  These streams are all fed and supported by springs.
     
 

First Families of Salem Twp. 
(this list is by no means complete - others were settled in the area that I do not have listed)

1814/15	John Hathaway or ____ Gilbert located here.  It is also claimed that the first white settler was Charles Weeks in 1810/1811.
Bef Spring 1818	Jesse Jackson, Alex. Jackson, Elisha Kirtland, and Caleb Goble.
1818	Adam Counts and Jacob LeMasters
1818 to 1820	Wm. Roberts, Samuel Taylor, George Morrison, Benjamin Beden, Joseph Donaldson, and Wm. Skillen.

  top     Other Firsts  

• 1st log cabin built by John Hathaway.
• 1st hewed log house built by Alex. Jackson.
• 1st frame house built by John Johnston.
• 1st road surveyed was Sidney & Bellfontaine Rd. and was surveyed by ______  Thompson.
• 1st school house was built on land owned by Elisha Kirtland.
• 2nd school house was built on land owned by Wm Skillen, but burned down.
• 3rd school house was built on land owned by Wm Roberts.

top   Churches    

Methodist Episcopal Church	Antedates the organization of the village of Port Jefferson.  There is no record of the church before 1845, but it is known to have been a society prior to 1830.  The 1st building was a hewed log structure (unknown when it was built).  A frame church was built some years later.  On June 6, 1862, a new church was dedicated by Rev. R.D. Oldfield.
The Miami Christian Church	Organized in 1849 by Rev. James Skillen & Joseph Warble at the house of John Mulford.  A log church was built in 1852 on the land of Jacob Near in Logan county.  This church burned in 1871.  In 1872, a new frame church was built on the land of Henry Kemp.

top   Information was gathered from the following sources: "History of Shelby County, Ohio" by R. Sutton & Co. 1883    Back to Shelby County OHGenWeb ©1999 by Tina Hursh