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In 1772-73 missionary David Jones visited Blue Jacket’s Town, a settlement of 12 cabins downstream on the east bank and Pickaweekee, a Shawnee town, on the west bank. Deercreek Methodist Circuit Deacon, Dr. Edward Tiffin, met settlers after 1798. Dr. Tiffin was later elected first governor of Ohio. A station of Virginia bounty-land settlers, “Williams Town,” assembled here around 1797. Mill sites, established before Pickaway County, flourished in the dense oak forest of Deercreek Township. Frontier hotels in Williamsport prospered due to the “healthful” sulphur springs.
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The 103rd O.V.I. was recruited for Civil War service from Cuyahoga, Lorain, and Medina counties. The Regiment was organized at Cleveland in August, 1862, and served until 1865 in campaigns at Cincinnati, Knoxville, Atlanta, Franklin, Nashville, and the Carolinas.103rd O.V.I. veterans and their descendants have held continuous, annual reunions since 1867. The organization is believed to be unique in the nation. Descendants live on these grounds today.
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Named for the Native Americans who first dwelled here along both sides of the Kokosing River, the Little Indian Fields is adjacent to the site of the first white settlement of Knox County. Early white inhabitants of this land were Andrew and Catherine Craig and Benjamin and John Butler. John “Appleseed” Chapman planted an apple orchard near here at the confluence of the Kokosing River and Centre Run and in 1809 bought two lots in Mount Vernon. In 1808 the Ohio Legislature created Knox County and later designated Mount Vernon as the county seat.
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A focal point of community pride for generations, McClain High School was the gift of textile manufacturer Edward Lee McClain to his hometown, “as promising the greatest good to the greatest number for the longest time.” Designed by nationally prominent school architect William B. Ittner, the school was dedicated in September 1915. Lauded as one of the most complete and state-of-the-art school plants of its time, McClain High School embodied the ideals of the progressive education movement in the early 20th century. A fully equipped gymnasium, motion-picture equipment, and a pipe organ were rare luxuries for any school during this era. Additional gifts by McClain also furnished a vocational training center and an athletic field. Numerous sculptures, paintings, and other works of art displayed throughout the school continue to enhance the atmosphere of Greenfield’s acclaimed halls of learning.
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On this site in 1809, pious Christians from Virginia and North Carolina erected a Methodist Church, the first in Greene County. The church was officially organized on May 23, 1807 as the Bonner Society. Frederick Bonner, Sr. and the illustrious Rev. John Sale were the principal organizers. This Methodist Church, one of the oldest in Ohio, has been serving the area known as the Union Neighborhood uninterrupted from this site since 1809. Rev. Bennett Maxey was the first pastor. (Continued on other side)
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One of America’s best-known sport shooters and entertainers of the late 1800s, Annie Oakley was born Phoebe Ann Mosey (or Mozee) north of Versailles in Darke County in 1860. She achieved local fame for her shooting ability as a hunter while still in her teens. By 1885 Oakley was a star performer in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West. With husband and manager Frank Butler, she refined a shooting act and image that appealed to late 19th century notions of a romanticized but vanishing West. Throughout her 30-year performing career, Oakley provided honest entertainment in a deception-prone industry while demonstrating widening opportunities for women. She retained her Ohio ties throughout her life and is interred at Brock Cemetery, eleven miles north of Greenville.
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Born here October 9, 1832. Attended Antioch College. Member of Mt. Olivet Masonic Lodge. Enlisted in the 2nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment and volunteered for the famous Andrews Raid. The raiders seized “The General” locomotive at Big Shanty, Georgia, April 12, 1862. Captured and executed, Ross is buried in the National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Tenn. Awarded posthumously the Medal of Honor, September 1863.
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The first overland route between Dayton and Cincinnati was cut by Daniel Cooper in 1795 to provide access to the new town of Dayton, located at the mouth of the Mad River in the Symmes Purchase. The survey, entered into the record by Cooper and Dr. John Hole, extended Harmer’s Trace north from near Cunningham’s Station on the Mill Creek to the mouth of the Mad River, establishing the earliest road between Cincinnati and Dayton. This five-mile segment between David Road and State Route 725 is the last remaining traceable portion retaining this name. Cooper, a miller, was instrumental in the early settlement of Dayton, and Dr. Hole, the first physician in Montgomery County, established his cabin in 1796 on this part of Mad River Road.