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The 17th Infantry, created by Congress in 1812 and formed with personnel from western states, was the only Regular Army regiment in General James Winchester’s column of the Army of the Northwest’s campaign to regain Detroit. During the War of 1812, the 17th fought at Frenchtown, Fort Meigs, Fort Stephenson, and Thames River. In 1815, the 17th was consolidated with the 5th, 19th, and 28th Infantry to form the 3rd Infantry. In May 1861, the 17th Infantry was again organized as a Regular Army regiment and has since served continuously with distinction.
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In March 1917, a month before U.S. entry into World War I, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company began construction of the hangar on land the firm purchased here in 1916. During World Wars I and II, the hangar was used for building and testing lighter-than-air craft for military uses, including intelligence-gathering and antisubmarine warfare. The first class of Navy airship pilots also trained at Wingfoot Lake. (Continued on other side)
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Born in Scotland. From 1787-1802, was first governor of the Northwest Territory, which included Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and part of Minnesota. St. Clair established territorial court system and Ohio’s first nine counties, including Belmont in 1801 and named St. Clairsville its county seat. St. Clair’s promotion to major general in 1777 recognized his exemplary service to Washington in New Jersey during American victories at the battles of Trenton and Princeton. St. Clair was a delegate to Congress under Articles of Confederation in 1786 and in 1787 was its president when it adopted the Northwest Ordinance and authorized the convention that wrote the U.S. Constitution. His 1791 attempt to break Indian resistance to American settlement in the Ohio Country ended in bitter defeat. A Federalist, St. Clair disagreed with Jeffersonian-Republicans over the timing of Ohio statehood. This led to his dismissal as governor after 15 years in office.
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Virginia native William Owen, 1769-1821, is credited with being the first American to settle in Mad River Township, Champaign County sometime between 1797-1799. He and his family built a cabin in the northeast quarter of Section 15 directly west of this marker. Later he purchased 240 acres on which the cabin stood for $1.00 an acre from William Ward, founder of Urbana. Accused of being an eccentric, Owen was known for strong language and long oration during times of stress. Owen also raised swine and was called Kosko Elene or Hogman by the local Shawnee Indian population who were known to have taken a few piglets when Owen was not around. Owen and his wife reared eight children and both are interred in the family pioneer cemetery in the woods to the west.
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In 1810, Dr. Oliver Bigelow from Lansing, New York purchased a 4,000 acre tract of land in Monroe Township for $10,000. Dr. Bigelow planned to build a town. After mapping out streets, the town square, and a cemetery, he named the village Johnstown. Dr. Bigelow was the town’s first medical doctor and the first mayor. He died on November 5, 1817 and was buried in Bigelow Cemetery. Located in the southwest corner of the village, the cemetery became the resting place for more than 275 early residents as well as veterans of three wars. Their grave markers, though weathered by the seasons, serve as a reminder of their great contributions to their community and the nation.
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Deerfield was laid out around 1795 and in 1802 Major Benjamin Stites, his son Benjamin, Jr., and John Gano officially recorded the village’s plat. A part of the great tide of Americans moving into the Northwest Territory (and Ohio after 1803), Deerfield’s early inhabitants included Revolutionary war veteran Ephraim Kibbey as well as Andrew Lytle, Nathan Kelly, William Snook, and War of 1812 veteran David Sutton. Deerfield was so called because it was a settlement in Deerfield Township, Hamilton County in the 1790s. (Continued on other side)
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This area of western Hancock County is a part of the Maumee River Watershed known as “Indian Green.” Wyandot Indians chose this area for hunting and ceremonial grounds along the Blanchard River in the 1700s because it was next to the river, yet high enough to avoid frequent flooding. One-half mile east of this location is a Liberty Township cemetery. It is located upon a sand ridge once used as a burial ground by Indians, hence the name “Indian Green.”
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Near this site stood the former Custer Homestead of Emanuel and Maria Custer from 1856-1865. For two years it was the boyhood home of Captain Tom Custer, younger brother of famed General George Armstrong Custer. At age 16, Tom misled a recruiter in neighboring Gilead, Ohio about his age and enlisted in the Civil War. He later earned two Congressional Medals of Honor, the first person in history to do so, for capturing enemy flags at Namozine Church on April 3, 1865 and at Sailor’s Creek on April 6, 1865. His parents relocated to Monroe, Michigan during the Civil War. Tom continued serving in the Army during the Indian Wars in the West and often visited his brother Nevin in Tontogany. He, along with his brothers George and Boston, brother-in-law James Calhoun, and nephew Harry Reed, were killed at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in June 1876.
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