Townsend Township, Sandusky County, Ohio

Townsend Township, Sandusky County, Ohio
Township
Across the broad fields of rural Townsend Township Across the broad fields of rural Townsend Township
Location of Townsend Township, Sandusky County, Ohio Location of Townsend Township, Sandusky County, Ohio
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Ohio
County	Sandusky
Area
• Total	33.8 sq mi (87.6 km2)
• Land	32.5 sq mi (84.1 km2)
• Water	1.3 sq mi (3.5 km2)
Elevation	604 ft (184 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	1,670
• Density	51.4/sq mi (19.9/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
FIPS code	39-77162
GNIS feature ID	1086918

Townsend Township is one of the twelve townships of Sandusky County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, 1,670 people lived in the township.

Communities

• Vickery is an unincorporated community and census-designated place located at within the western portion of the township.
• Whites Landing is an unincorporated community and census-designated place located within the northern portion of the township along the shore of Lake Erie.

Geography

Located in the northeastern corner of the county, it borders the following townships:

• Margaretta Township, Erie County - northeast
• Groton Township, Erie County - southeast
• York Township - south
• Green Creek Township - southwest corner
• Riley Township - west

No municipalities are located in Townsend Township. Prior to the settlement the southern part of the township was all heavily timbered. Extensive prairies broke the forest in the northern part. These prairies were covered with a heavy marsh grass, interspersed with an occasional branch of a more nutritious variety, which attracted the cows of the early settlers. The surface slope of the township is uniformly toward the northwest, and a number of small streams flow rapidly in that direction.

Name and history

It was ordered by the county commissioners at their April session, 1820: That a township be detached from the town of Croghanville (Fremont), to be known by the name of "Townsend," bounded as follows: Beginning on the east bank of Green Creek, at the division line between Sandusky and Seneca counties, thence east with said line to the east line of Seneca reservation, thence north along said line until it shall intersect the road leading from Croghanville to Strong's settlement, thence along said road until it shall reach the Huron county line, thence north along said line to Sandusky Bay, thence along the shore of the bay until it shall reach Green Creek, thence along the bank of the creek to the place of beginning. An old document says there were within this territory at that time more than twenty voters, but their names are not given, and early election records are lost. The establishment of Green Creek in 1822, and Riley in 1823, reduced Townsend to its present size. Statewide, the only other Townsend Township is located in Huron County.

The first settler in the township was Moses Wilson. He built his cabin on the North ridge in the spring of 1818. When the land came into market, he made a purchase and removed to the west part of the county. The Townsend family, whose name the township bears, made the second improvement on the present Brush farm, in the spring of 1818. Abraham Townsend emigrated from New York to Canada before the War of 1812. His son, Ephraim K., joined the United States army, which circumstance, together with his known sympathy with his native country, made it not only judicious, but necessary, at the opening of that unfortunate struggle, for the family to return to the States. The war over Mr. Townsend was one among the earliest of the pioneers of Northern Ohio, and in 1818 pushed into the thick and heavy forest of this county. The place of settlement had possibly been selected, during the war, by Ephraim K. The family, at the time of coming to this county, numbered two sons and five daughters, viz: Ephraim K. and Gamalial, Margaret (Chit-tendon), Betsey, wife of Addy Van Ness, Mary (Loux), Amy, and Eliza. Mr. Town-send removed to Huron county about 1824, and a few years later to Michigan. Ephraim K. remained in Townsend, where he owned eighty acres of land, until 1826, when he removed to Sandusky City, where he died the following year. Mr. Townsend was the first clerk 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.

The first election was held at the house of M. Wilson. The town government of that year was as simple as possible. It was, indeed, little more than a law and order society. The land had not yet come into market, and consequently the principal business of our present official system—the collection and expenditure of taxes—was a thing of the future. Indeed, officers for the protection of personal property were unnecessary, for the citizens took into their own hands the business of inflicting punishments.

External links

• County website