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The history of Belpre and the Ohio River are inextricably linked. Settlers from New England, including farmers and Revolutionary War veterans, arrived via flatboats at “Belle-Prairie” (beautiful prairie) in 1789. Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery paid a visit in keelboats in 1803 as they began their epic journey to the Pacific. Belpre’s farmers raised fruits, vegetables, and grain. Packet boats carried flour, livestock, vinegar, and passengers down river, some all the way to New Orleans and thence throughout the world. (Continued on other side)
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The land on which Coventry Township is situated was ceded in 1785 to the United States by the Delaware, Chippewa, Ottawa, and Wyandot tribes under the Treaty of Fort McIntosh. The area was a choice location for Native Americans, settlers, and fur traders due to the abundant bodies of water and proximity to the Portage Path, a land connection between the Tuscarawas and Cuyahoga rivers and Lake Erie. In 1788, Coventry Township was initially part of Washington County, the first county formed in the Ohio Territory. After Moses Warren finished a survey in 1797, a succession of county splits located Coventry Township in Jefferson County, Trumbull County, Portage County, and, finally, Summit County in 1840. The township originally encompassed Summit Lake and the lands south to the southern line of the Western Reserve (Green-New Franklin lines). Daniel Haines was the first resident to settle in Coventry Township in 1806.
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The Ohio and Erie Canal Lock 22, constructed from 1830-1831, is the only canal lock in Groveport. Constructed by W.H. Richardson as part of his $2,937 bid to build section 52 of the canal, the sandstone lock is 117 feet long and ten feet deep and has a sixteen foot wide channel. Its purpose was to raise and lower canal boats to meet the changing terrain. The canal’s presence helped fuel commercial and population growth in Groveport in the 19th century by providing a fast and reliable form of transportation to move people, goods, and services to and from the Ohio frontier. It was also a source of recreation as residents used its waters for fishing, row boating, and ice skating. The canal basin at the western end of Lock 22 was a favorite spot for ice skating parties.
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