| Page 221 This township was
organized after the erection of Noble county, and was the
last one erected by the board of county commissioners.
The date of organization is Mar. 27, 1851. It embraces
the 12 northern sections of original township 2, of range 5,
added to this county as the time Noble county was erected,
and the 12 southern sections of township 3, of same range,
being 6 sections long from east to west, and 4 sections wide
from north to south. It is drained by the waters of
Muskingum creek, which enters the township in section 8, and
flows in a general southwest direction through the northwest
corner of section 36 into Washington township. The
writer will here remark that it is not very well settled
where the Muskingum waters take the name of Little Muskingum
river, but he believes the better opinion is, that after the
junction of the Crane's Nest fork and Rich fork, in Wayne
township, the stream is properly called Muskingum creek, and
when joined by the Clear fork, in Washington township, its
proper name is the Little Muskingum river. The
tributaries of Muskingum creek, in this township are:
Trail run, which has its source in Jackson township, and
empties into the Witten fork in section 8, which joins
Muskingum creek in the same section. Big Lick run,
which has its source in Washington county, flows north and
empties into Muskingum creek in section 19. Old Camp
run has its source also in Washington county, flows through
the southwestern part of the township, and empties into
Muskingum creek, in Washington township. Thee are also
Rock Camp run, Brown's run, at the mouth of which Isaac
Brown, an old settler, lived, and George's run,
on which George L. Cline lived. The names
Trail, Bick Lick, Old Camp and Rock Camp, sufficiently
indicate why these runs were so called.
The township is bounded on the north by Perry township,
on the east by Jackson, on the south by the Washington
county line, and on the west by Washington township.
From the numerous streams within its borders its surface is
necessarily very broken, but on the ridges the surface is
comparatively smooth. Soil, sandy clay.
Professor Andrews says: "No very interesting geological
facts were obtained here, the only coal seam mined, so far
as could be learned, being one of the higher ones. On
the land of Eli Eddy, section 11, the seam is mined,
and found to be three feet thick. This seam is
believed to be the same as that found in section 34, Jackson
township. About thirty feet below the coal in Jackson
township is found nodular iron ore. It is worth
looking for in the same geological horizon in Benton
township, for it may be found to exist in a regular seam of
much value."
In this township some of the earliest settlements in
the county were made. Isaac Brown, Joseph Cline,
and William Cline settled in 1804, and John
Cline in 1805, all in section 25. John Cline
entered the first congress land. In the year 1804, he
had lived in Virginia, about three miles above Sistersville,
where he had raised a large crop of hemp, and sold at it
Marietta, and with the proceeds made the first payment on
the land he entered in section 25. George Cline,
father of the Clines above mentioned, and his wife,
came from Germany, settled in Pennsylvania, was a soldier in
the revolutionary war, and after the settlement of Marietta,
removed west and settled near what is now called Grandview,
Washington county. The first cabins were built by
Isaac Brown, and Joseph and William Cline,
in 1804.
The first child born in this settlement was Mary
Cline, Apr. 5, 1805, daughter of Joseph and Sarah
Cline; and the second, Mary Cline, daughter of
George and Christina Cline, Apr. 6, 1805. The
first marriage was that of Solomon Tice and Rosa
Cline, in 1806. The first death was that of
Johnny Cline, a child of William and Polly Cline,
about two years after the first settlement. It was
supposed to have been bitten by a poisonous snake in the
night, dying next morning.
The first election, for this township, as organized,
was held Sept. 7, 1851, in Brownsville, and the first
officers elected, the following: Trustees, John
Hensell, Jacob Cline, Jonathan Harris; clerk, Major
B. Ray; treasurer, Charles Algeo; assessor,
Simon Whitney; constables, Israel McWilliams, Samuel
H. Cline.
The first grist-mill was built by John Cline,
at the mouth of Big Lick run, about the year 1810; it was
destroyed by fire in 1816. In 1817 Mr. Cline
built a saw-mill where Ring's mill now is, and in
connection with it, his second grist mill.
In 1813, the first school was taught by Henry Bower,
in a small log cabin in section 20. A school was
taught, in 1815, in a log cabin on the land now owned by
Isaac N. Cline, by William Knight, father of
Lemuel and Valentine C. Knight, who lived many years in
Wayne township. Lemuel and V. C. Knight and
another brother, name not remembered, were printers.
There are now six school houses in the township.
Subdistrict No. 4, (Brownsville) has a two story frame
building, 24x44 feet, with a steeple twenty-six feet above
the "comb" of the roof. The lower story contains two
rooms; the smaller or ante-room is used for township
business. The other five subdistricts have each a
substantial one story frame building.
The first postoffice in the territory now comprised in
Benton township, was established Sept. 10, 1839, called
Pleasant Fountain, George Gray, postmaster; May 20,
1840, he was succeeded by George Cline, senior; Dec.
28, 1843, the office was discontinued. The office was
on the route from Wittens to Cumberland, 53 miles,
once a week, Jesse Hildebrand, contractor, at $300.00
per year. The postoffice at the town of Brownsville,
is called Jolly, and was established July 8, 1842, with
W. F. Ayres, postmaster. The postmasters since
that have been as follows: B. Amos, appointed
Jan. 12, 1843; F. Simon, Dec. 31, 1843; Francis
Wilson, Feb. 3, 1848; A. McWilliams, Apr. 8,
1848; G. S. Gilliland, Jul. 27, 1848; V. Barnes,
Nov. 8, 1849; L. Chalk, Feb. 24, 1853; Geo. S.
Algeo, Dec. 19, 1855; Christian Sander Jan. 30,
1864, and present incumbent.
The first sermon was preached at the house of John
Cline, in 1812, by Rev. Robert C. Hatten, of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, and a society of that
denomination was then organized, and services were held at
private houses until the building of a hewed-log meeting
house in 1828, which was also used as a school house.
In 1852-3, they built a new frame meeting house, 28x30 feet,
on the same site, and is known as the Jericho Meeting House.
No preacher at present; membership, 60. The Methodist
Episcopal Church, at Brownsville, was organized in 1833, one
mile south of the town, and held services at Frank Linn's
dwelling, called Linn's appointment, which was one of
the twenty-one appointments of the Woodsfield circuit.
In 1834 they built a log meeting house, when Wesley
Browning was presiding elder. The preachers from
1832 to 1836 were: R. Armstrong, H. Bradshaw, C. D.
Battelle, G. Smith, J. W. Miner, D. C. Merryman, W. Athey
and W. J. Tuttle. In 1838-9 the
congregation built a log meeting house in Brownsville, 22x24
feet in size, and in 1856 a frame building, 26x40 feet,
which was dedicated Oct. 12, 1856; Rev. J. Henderson,
presiding elder, and Rev. A. Bell and T. Stephen,
preachers; present pastor, Rev. W. H. Piggott.
Christian Sander has been recording steward of
Brownsville circuit for eighteen years. The third
church organized was the German Evangelical St. Paul's
Church, at Trail run, in 1841; Rev. C. Bahrenz, first
pastor. The congregation built a meeting house in
1848, and a new frame in 1871, in size 32x46 feet;
membership thirty-six families; Rev. R. Luesher
present pastor. The fourth church organized was the
Reformed Presbyterian Church, at Brownsville, in 1851;
Rev. Thomas Hannah preached the first sermon, and
Rev. Wylie was the first settled pastor. The
church edifice was built in 1861, in size 33x45 feet.
The congregation is now served by Rev. S. R. McClurkin
with occasional preaching; membership, 27. The fifth
church organized was the United Presbyterian Church, at
Brownsville, in 1852, by Rev. Alex Young. In
the year 1853, the society built a frame church edifice,
26x36 feet in size; present pastor, Rev. M. M. Pollock;
membership, 45. The sixth church organized was the
German Evangelical Church, at Brownsville, Aug. 30, 1856.
They bought a lot with a house on it, which they remodeled
and used as a meeting house. In 1866, they built a new
frame church edifice, 24x30 feet; present pastor, Rev. R.
Luescher; membership, twelve families.
There are four Sabbath schools in the township; the
Methodist Episcopal Sabbath school, Brownsville; No. of
scholars, 60; Christian Sander, superintendent, since
May 1, 1859. United Presbyterian Sabbath school,
Brownsville; No. of scholars, 45; S. C. McWilliams,
superintendent; Jericho Christian Union
Sabbath school; No. of scholars, 40; G. W. Cline,
superintendent; the Trail run German Episcopal Sabbath
school; No. of scholars, 50; Michael Lohr,
superintendent.
Brownsville was laid out in 1834, by Israel Brown,
to which some additions have been since made, and had a
reported population, in 1880, of 84. The commissioned,
and other officers of the township Jan. 1, 1882, were:
Christian Sander, notary public, from 1869 to the
present time; Roseberry M. Cline and August Meyer,
justices of the peace; clerk, August Meyer treasurer,
S. Ferguson; trustees, J. McCaslin, T. P. Cline,
E. Meyer; treasurer, S. Ferguson; trustees, J.
McCaslin, T. P. Cline, E. Steward.
The town of Brownsville has two
stores of general merchandise, one tine and stove store, one
shoemaker shop, one blacksmith shop, one physician and one
dealer in leaf tobacco.
The school statistics for the township, for the year
ending Aug. 31, 1881, were as follows: Total school
moneys received within the year, $1,770. 58; paid teachers
$795.00; fuel, etc., $235.32; balance on hand, Sept. 1,
1881, $740.266; No. of school houses, 5; value of school
property, $1,750.00. No. of teachers employed, 5;
average wages paid to teachers, per month, gentlemen,
$26.00, ladies, $22.50; No. of scholars enrolled, 199.
School statistics for Brownsville special district, for
the same period: Total school moneys received,
$435.75; paid teachers, $225.00; fuel, etc., $22.55; balance
on hand. Sept. 1, 1881, $188.20; No. of school houses,
1; No. of school rooms, 2; value of school property $2,000;
No. of teachers necessary, 1; wages paid teacher, per month,
average $24.00; No. of scholars enrolled, 36.
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