Pierpont Township is one of the twenty-seven

townships A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

Ashtabula County Ashtabula County ( ) is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,574. The county seat is Jefferson. The county was created in 1808 and later organized in 1811. The name Ashtabula der ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

, United States. The 2020 census found 1,158 people in the township.

Geography

Located on the eastern edge of the county, it borders the following townships: * Monroe Township - north * Beaver Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania - northeast corner * Conneaut Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania - southeast corner * Richmond Township - south * Dorset Township - southwest corner * Denmark Township - west * Sheffield Township - northwest corner No municipalities are located in Pierpont Township, although the

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

of Pierpont lies in the center of the township.

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, 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. Currently, the board is composed of Barbara Culp (chair), Pamela Hudson, and Robert Jackson.

History

Named for

Pierpont Edwards Pierpont Edwards (April 8, 1750 – April 5, 1826) was a delegate to the Congress of the Confederation and was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. Education and career Born on April ...

,Ashtabula County, Ohio
Ashtabula County, 2007. Accessed 2007-05-28. it is the only Pierpont Township statewide. In 1790, at Buffalo,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, the

Seneca nation The Seneca Nation of Indians is a federally recognized Seneca tribe based in western New York. They are one of three federally recognized Seneca entities in the United States, the others being the Tonawanda Band of Seneca (also in western Ne ...

, represented by

Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807) was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. Perhaps ...

, ceded their rights east of the

Cuyahoga River The Cuyahoga River ( , or ) is a river located in Northeast Ohio that bisects the City of Cleveland and feeds into Lake Erie. As Cleveland emerged as a major manufacturing center, the river became heavily affected by industrial pollution, so m ...

to the

Connecticut Land Company The Connecticut Company or Connecticut Land Company (e.-1795) was a post-colonial land speculation company formed in the late eighteenth century to survey and encourage settlement in the eastern parts of the newly chartered Connecticut Western Re ...

. The community was named after

, delegate to the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

and part owner of the Connecticut Land Company, who bought the land from Connecticut in 1795. In 1798,

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provin ...

er Edward Spear began settlement on lot 18 (on what was afterwards known as the "Beaver Meadows"), about two miles from the head of the east branch of the

Ashtabula River The Ashtabula River is a river located northeast of Cleveland in Ohio. The river flows into Lake Erie at the city of Ashtabula, Ohio. It is in length and drains . Name ''Ashtabula'' derives from Lenape language ''ashte-pihële'', 'always enough ...

. Spear erected the first log house in Pierpont Township (this building was burned by the Indians subsequent to his removal), and the next year (1799) raised the first crop of corn grown in the township. This was on the "Beaver Dam" and the surrounding meadows. Spear lived in this cabin until around 1801, when he took his departure. He was, however, during the early part of his sojourn in Pierpont, married, and fathered a child. This was the first white birth in the township. The date, sex, or subsequent history of this young pioneer is not known. In 1808, the first permanent settlers arrived in the township. They were Wareham Grant, Martin Vosburg, Harry Rockwell, and Ewins Wright. Grant and Vosburg erected their cabins about one mile north of the center. Rockwell built his cabin on lot 21, cleared a small piece of ground, sowed it to wheat, and in 1809, returned to

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

for his family. The cabin of Wright was erected near the center of lot 17. In November 1811, Benjamin Matthews arrived from

Washington, Massachusetts Washington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 494 at the 2020 census. History Washington was first settled in 1760 and wa ...

, and located temporarily near the cabin of Vosburg; he remained until the December following, when he moved into a cabin which he had in the meantime constructed. In the summer of 1811, Amos Huntley arrived, selected his land, and made a beginning on lot 42. In the fall he returned to

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

for his family, with whom he arrived the next season. The next settlers were Asa Benjamin, Joseph Dewey, and Samuel Brown. During the summer of 1811, a number of gentlemen came on from Massachusetts, selected their land, and the following year (1812), with their families, occupied these lands, and began business in earnest. Among these settlers were Aaron H. Holmes, Asa Leonard, Shiron Turner, Jepthat Turner, Amos Remington, Abijah Whitton, Archibald Gould, Ezra Cole, Ezekiel Brayman, William Read, Eli Prince, Edson Beals, Ashel Cleveland, Reuben Benjamin, and Zebina Rawson. Pierpont Township was organized in 1818. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, Captain Henry Hathaway raised a company of volunteers for the army and marched it to Browers Corners where he resigned the command to Captain Wilber Stevens, who marched it to

Jefferson Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foo ...

, its place of rendezvous. Soon after, he marched it into the Army, commanding Company B in the 29th Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

Notable residents

* Chester Hardy Aldrich, 16th

governor of Nebraska The governor of Nebraska is the head of government of the U.S. state of Nebraska as provided by the fourth article of the Constitution of Nebraska. The officeholder is elected to a four-year term, with elections held two years after presidential e ...

References

External links

County websiteTownship website
{{authority control Townships in Ashtabula County, Ohio Townships in Ohio 1818 establishments in Ohio Populated places established in 1818