History
History Articles
A Brief History of Boston TownshipThe story of Boston Township Hall
Township Trustees and Clerks, 1811 through 2010
How Boston Township has Changed in the Past 25 Years
The Township's Financial Crisis in 1995
Cemeteries
Our Local CemeteriesChecking History
Township history seen through our check documents"For All People, For All Time"
The documentary of the formation of the park by Mark and Dan Jury.A Community History Project
See community archives, and share some of your own with the Bicentennial Committee.History Matters
Ohio Townships
The pilgrim fathers brought the township form of government to America in 1620. This unit of local government eventually spread as far west as the Rocky Mountains. Today, it is found in 22 states, known as the town or township.In Ohio, the township predates our state government. The townships’ size and shape were determined by the Congressional Acts, which established the various land grants.
As the Ohio territory became populated, it was only natural that the surveyed townships should become the basic unit of local government. In 1804, the elected officials of a township consisted of three trustees, a clerk, two overseers of the poor, and a sufficient number of supervisors of highway, in addition to justices of the peace and constables. A township treasurer and assessor were later added. In the early years of statehood, Ohio township government cared for the poor, maintained the roads and preserved the peace.
Today, just as in 1804, the township is a political subdivision of the state. To keep pace with the demands of changing times, the functions, duties and obligations of the township have changed over the years. Demands for increased or different services have prompted the state legislature to grant Ohio’s 1,308 townships the authority to fulfill these changing needs.
Three trustees and a fiscal officer, each elected for a four-year term, administer our townships today. In addition, some townships now appoint a township administrator, whose duties are defined by the individual township. The township administrator typically helps plan, coordinate and implement township goals. Elected officials fill their roles on a part-time basis; however, their intimate knowledge of their community, its needs and its citizens enables them to offer more personal service than any other unit of government. Townships today are responsible for fire and police protection, parks and recreation, zoning, cemeteries, waste disposal, maintaining roads, and more.
From the March/April 2010 “Ohio Township News”; reprinted with permission.
Bicentennial Fundraiser
Boston Township will celebrate its 200th birthday anniversary in 2011. The Bicentennial Committee is already planning memorial events and activities. These kinds of plans eventually need some funding to go forward and our old township checks are good for that. What better than sharing history through our old cancelled checks, available for a donation toward Bicentennial Activities.An interesting bit of history: Almost every road in the township and village has a first name! Click on the History tab, then on Checking History and see what can be yours. The complete lists are at the bottom of the page. Call or e-mail me so I can set your checks aside. 330-657-2059. bostontownship@bostontownship.org .
This is just a partial list of names on these checks from 1917 through the 1950's. All the checks are available for your donation. Frame them, scrapbook them, gift them, put one in an envelope for your grandchild to open on a 21st birthday. Endless possibilities.
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Boodey Boswell Boyer Bradley Brady Broughton Brown Carter Cassidy Chamberlin Chapman Conger Cook Davis Day Deacon Dickinson Duncan Eisenman Feldman Fisher Garvey Gillette Groff Hall Harrington Hartwig Hatch Henderson Hensley |
Hickman Horner Huey Hyde Johnston Kaminski Keating Keller Krusenski Larkin Lee Lewandowski Lindley Love Major Marin Mayer McClure McDevitt McMann Medcalf Meese Metcalf Miller Montaquila Moore Morris Mott Msal Nestico | Noland Okey Osborn Oznum Packard Payne Point Pollard Post Powers Radcliffe Ranney Reinhart Reusch Richardson Ritch Robinson Roose Roswell Schaedel Schmidt Scobie Scott Seeley Shuey Sikorski Snyder Stanford | Stebbins Stewart Stine Stuart Sullivan Tarasavich Tesmer Thomas Tilling Truxell Twaragowski Vondruska Wagner Watson Wells Whitcraft Wierzbicki Wilke Wilson Wishon Wood Watjkowski Wraggs Wynne Zanko Zdrojdwski Zieluski Zimmer Zitzelberger Zolynisk |
- Joanne Noragon
LIKE A SCAVENGER HUNT
The township minute books since 1811 have been cataloged and are being scanned and posted to the townships’ web site. Over that 200 year span, about 25 years are missing. The missing years may never be found, but we shouldn’t give up searching for them.Considering the Townships’ long history of having no permanent meeting place or storage ability, it is a tribute to many determined people that so much remains. I hope all the clues we have can lead us to some missing minutes. The Boston Township Trustees are offering a modest reward for the location and return of any of the missing minutes.
The fourteen odd year span from February 2, 1937 to May 2, 1948 is missing. These probably are hand written minutes, in one or more bound books with leather spines. The size probably is about 9” x 14”. The Trustees over this period of time were Leon A. Truxell, C. F. Eisenmann, T. J. Wynne, John Scobie, G. L. Haefele, Arthur Dickenson, William Brady, , Hazel Scobie, James Morris and George Fisher, Sr. The clerks were Elwood Day and Marie McDevitt. Leon Truxell lived in the house that Dan and Jan Schneider live in currently. Mr. Eisenmann lived on Main Street in Boston. Mr. Wynne lived on Riverview in the house on top of the hill after the dip. It burned in the ‘40’s. The Scobies lived in the current Delahanty house. Mr. Haefel’s home was on the former J. A. Mayer property, but burned. Mr. Dickenson and Mr. Brady lived in Boston. George Fisher Sr.’s home is two houses from the Catholic Church. Marie McDevitt’s home was across from the G.A.R.; it burned and has been rebuilt. In the ‘30’s Elwood Day was a renter in the Akron-Cleveland/Geoppert Road area. I don’t know where James Morris lived. If you remember anything about a book like I’ve described, associated with any of these places, please tell us.
The five year span from January 1, 1963 to February 19, 1967 is missing. These probably are typed on 9x14” sheets of paper intended for recording minutes. Across the top is pre-printed: Record of Proceedings. There are red margins printed down the sides. The sheets will have three oblong holes for insertion over posts in a Record of Proceedings ledger. The ledger will be black and red and may have Record of Proceedings embossed in gold on the spine. The pages may also be loose, never inserted in a book. The Trustees over this period were Charles Lorance (Larry) Truxell, George Fisher, Jr., Vernon Boodey, and John Chessar. John Chessar was also clerk in 1963, before being elected Trustee in 1964. The other clerk was Mary Averill. Larry Truxell also lived in the Schneider’s house. George Fisher, Jr. lives on Morris Drive. Vernon Boodey’s is the last house remaining on Stanford. John Chessar’s house was on Stanford, but burned by the Park in the late ‘80’s. Mary Averill’s home was purchased by the Park. After arson attempts on it, the Park burned it. The National Park Service was not responsible for emptying a home of anything left before they burned it, but there is the possibility they may have. If you remember anything about a book like I’ve described, associated with any of these places, please tell us.
The six year span from December 18, 1975 through December 31, 1981 is missing. These minutes or minute books will look the same as those in the previous paragraph. Anyone reading this knows how the events of those years changed this Township and what the recovery of the minutes will mean. The Trustees over this period were Richard Humphrey, George Fisher, Jr., Donald Carpenter, Clara Muldowney, Theresa Reinbolt, John Johnston, and Joseph Broderick. The clerk was Longina Morgan. Mr. Humphrey lived on Major Road in the current Mraz home. Mr. Carpenter lived on Akron-Peninsula Road, near Camp Mueller. The house was later moved to State Route 303 by Ed Hodge. Clara Muldowney lived on Akron-Peninsula Road at the foot of Northampton in a house burned by the Park. Theresa Reinbolt lived on Morris Drive, the house on the corner. John Johnston lives in Boston. Joseph Broderick lived at 1509 Boston Mills, opposite the church. The Park owned the house at one time. Mrs. Morgan lived on Riverview. We think this minute book was returned to the Township but later used as evidence in a legal proceeding. It may have been returned, but we do not know to whom. If you remember anything about a book like I’ve described, associated with any of these places, please tell us.
contact us: bostontownship@bostontownship.org.