T. 2, N. R. 10 E.
     AREA 15,360 ACRES

     T. 2, N. R. 11 E.
POPULATION 1,025

    This township is on the northern line of the county, and was the last township organized in the county.  It was formed of territory taken from the townships of Cass and Portage.
     On the 3d day of June, 1850, the Commissioners of the county, "Ordered that a new township be erected of the following territory, and called Allen Township.  Said territory of Allen to be composed of Sections 5, 6, 7, 8, 17, 18, 19, 20, 29, 30, 31, 32, of township two (Cass) north, Range eleven east, and Sections 1, 2, 11, 12, 13, 14, 23, 24, 25, 26, 35, and 36 in township two (Portage) north, Range ten east.
     "Ordered that there be legal notice posted up in the new township of Allen, for the election of the following named officers for said township, to-wit: Three Trustees, one Clerk, one Treasurer and one Assessor.
     This township was named in honor of Ethan ALLEN, of Revolutionary fame, and is bounded north by Wood County, east by Cass Township, south by Findley, and west by Portage Township.  The Bellefontaine and Perrysburg State Road runs directly through its centre, north and south.

FIRST LAND ENTRIES.
     The first entry of land, in this township, was made on the 25th day of August, 1826, by John GARDNER, and was the west half of the north east quarter of section 13.  On the 1st day of June, 1829, Nathan FRAKES entered the west half of the south-east quarter of section 12, the farm now owned by Sam'l. SPITLER.
     In December, 1828, Major BRIGHT entered the east half of the south-west quarter section 36, and a year later, George C. COLLINS, of Hamilton County, entered the east half of north-east quarter of section 36.
     These entries were followed in 1832 by others, made by Henry BARNEL, George ENSMINGER, Elias BRYAN, Wm. WILKES, Christian, ENSPERGER and others.
     The first settlement was made in 1827 or 1827 by Nathan FRAKES and one MILLER, west of Van Buren, on the farm now owned by S. SPITLER, and by MILLER on the farm now owned by J. KEMPHER.  In 1827, John TROUT, Elias S. BRYAN and John BURMAN came, and they were followed by Christian BARNEL, (father of John, Adna, G. C. and Elijah), who came from Perry County, and located on the SPITLER farm, FRAKES, having purchased and removed to what is now the Infirmary Farm.  John BARNEL, son of Christian, came in the following year, and is still a residents of the township.  He too, removed to the SPITLER farm, and his father, with his family, moved to Findley.  Then came Charles BAKER, of Fairfield, the ENSMINGER's of Wayne, Hugh and John GILCRIST, Jos. Howard and others.  All of these families settled around and near the site of the present town of Van Buren.
     The timber in this township was poplar, walnut, oak, ash, sugar, beech, hickory, &c.  Poplar was very plentiful in the south part of the township, but it has nearly all disappeared, as a few years ago it was considered more valuable than any other kind of wood, and was used very largely for building purposes.
     The soil in the south part of the township is in part what might be termed a sandy clay.  In parts, however, it is almost all clay, whilst elsewhere it is entirely sand.  On the north side of the township, between the ridge and Wood County line, it is a black loam, mostly vegetable matter.  But all parts of the township are easily tilled and very productive.
     The middle branch of the Portage River passes through this township, and is the most considerable stream in that part of the county, and which has water the year around.  It passes out of the township at the north-west corner.  There are no other rounds or creeks in the township, yet there are natural drains in sufficient number, to make all surface drainage necessary.
     The first election held within the bounds of the towship, was in 1833, at which time both of the townships of Cass and Portage necessary.
     The first election held within the bounds of the township, was in 1833, at which time both of the townships of Cass and Portage voted.  There were then but eleven votes cast.  The following are the names of the voters:  John BURMAN, John TROUT, Elias S. BRYAN, James WILEY, Hugh GILCHRIST, John BARNEL, Charles BAKER, George ENSMINGER, Michael ENSMINGER and Peter HOCKENBERRY.  Of these eleven, John BARNEL is the only one now living.  The first election in the present township was held in 1850, in accordance with the order before recited.
     The first school house was built in 1836, on the farm now owned by Peter WHETSTONE.  It was of the round log, clapboard roof, huge chimney kind, of course.  There are now nine school houses in the township, all brick but one, which is a frame.  The enumeration of youth of school age amounts to three hundred and thirty-three.

FIRST MARRIAGE - FIRST MILL.

     The first church was built at Van Buren by the Presbyterians, Rev. George Van EMON, Pastor.  Amongst the first members were Samuel HUNTINGDON, John LEADER, some of the MOOREHEADS, of Portage Township, and the CAMPBELLS,  of Wood County.  This organization still exists.  There are now four church buildings in the township.  One Presbyterian, one Baptist, one German Lutheran, one United Brethren, and all located in the town of Van Buren.
     The Baptist church was organized in 1855, and Henry RODER and wife, Samuel KAGRY, E. SMITH were some of the first members.  Previous to the building of the church, services were held at the hose of Henry RODER, and a branch of the Findley church.
     The first marriages were those of a Mr. BEESON and Miss TROUT; and Francis RUMOR and Miss ENSMINGER. The first death was that of a child of John TROUT.
     John BURMAN built a mill on the creek east of Van Buren, at an early day, which was the first built in the township.  But as it was propelled by water, and during a great portion of the year the water was so low in the creek, as not to furnish power, the mill was of not much benefit to the early settlers, who had to patronize the Teatserth Horse mill at Findley, or go to Perrysburg, or Sandusky City for flour and meal.

NARRATIVES OF JOHN BARND.

     John BARND, Esq., to whom I am indebted for much valuable information, relates the following incidents:
     A very distressing accident occurred at a very early day, in the settlement of this township, by which two persons lost their lives.  John GILCHRIST and his little son, a boy about twelve years of age, and his brother, Hugh GILCHRIST, were out in the night season hunting coon.  When about one and a half miles north-west of Van Buren, on the farm now owned by Hugh McMURRAY, a coon was treed, and it became necessary to cut the tree down in order to get it.  This they did, but before it fell, John and his son took the dog, who was restless, and, to keep him from getting under the tree as it fell, went in the direction the tree was to fall, and at a distance they thought out of reach of the falling tree.  When the tree fell, it struck another, which in falling killed the boy outright, and broke the thigh of his father.  When Hugh found them, it being in the night season, he could not move them without help, and this was some distance away.  Having procured it they took his brother to his home, where he died two days after.  John left a wife and five children, all young.  They were very poor, and were assisted by the neighbors.
     In October, 1833, Mr. BARND, with a neighbor, went into what was known as the "Wild Cat Thicket," to cut a bee tree, which had been found by Mr. BARND.  At that date wild bees were very abundant, and every pioneer, were he so minded, could always keep his table well supplied with honey.  It so happened that in this instance, the bees were in a very large poplar tree, perhaps five feet in diameter.  Others besides Mr. BARND and his friend knew of the tree, for attempts had been made to chop it down, but its great size had been discouraging, and it had been abandoned Mr. BARND himself had, after examining it, about concluded that there was too much labor in the cutting, for the pay he was likely to get, and had concluded to spare the tree, and lose and honey.  Whilst looking up at the bees, busy at work in the body of the tree, he discovered another swarm at work in a large limb still higher up.  This, he says, gave him courage for the undertaking, and they two worked with a will until the tree fell.  The limb broke off at a distance of about twelve feet from the body of the tree, and at that place honey could be seen.  On cutting into the limb at several places, it seemed to be filled with honey.  He and his friend took the buckets they had with them, and filled them from the body of the tree, went home, got their wives, and with them took buckets and tubs, and returned to the tree, where they procured the honey from the limb, which amounted to sixteen gallons.
     Mr. BARND says that when he came to the county, the "Wild Cat Thicket," which extends through this township, was so densely covered with an undergrowth, as to be hardly passable, and although game was plenty elsewhere, it could not get through this thicket.  The timber or brush was then quite small.  A few large trees only were standing.
     Game was very abundant, and the second year that Mr. BARND was in the township, he killed forty-five deer, besides large quantities of smaller game, yet he did not consider himself a hunter, as he had his farm to attend to.
     The first frame building erected in the township, was the Presbyterian church, which was built by John KELLEY.  The first brick building was that of John TROUT, on the south side of town of Van Buren.  Old Johnny Appleseeds was through this part of the county, and there are still standing several apple trees of his planting, some of which are on the farm of MR. BARND.
     At a meeting of the Pioneer Association of Hancock County, held a few years ago, Mr. George W. TROUT, read a paper, giving an account of the emigration of his father's family to the county, and of some of his recollections of frontier life.  I take the liberty of making some extracts from that paper.
     Mr. TROUT commences by saying that "On November 12, 1828, my father, John TROUT, with his family, left Somerset, Perry county, Ohio, for the regions of Hancock.  We passed through Thornville, Newark, Johnstown, Sunbury, Delaware and Marion, thence into the Wyandotte Reserve, where we remained one night, at the house of a widow WALKER, a half-breed Indian, formerly the wife of an Indian.  Here we had sight of the first Indians we ever beheld.  We took dinner and fed our teams the next day, at a tavern in Upper Sandusky, kept by one ARMSTRONG.  Mrs. ARMSTRONG was an Indian.  We crossed the Tymochtee Creek near the dwelling of John JAMES.  From this place we sent back our four horse team, and father and my brother Ephraim proceeded to Van Buren, or rather to the settlement near there, as at that time and for many years thereafter, there was o town, to procure teams to take us the balance of the journey.  After procuring the necessary teams, on their return, taking the Indian trail, they cut their way back, by way of taking the Indian trail, they cut their way back, by way of the Big Springs.  We were eleven days, anxiously awaiting their return.  We again took up our line of march, and on the following night, stopped with Peter GEORGE, in what was then known as the 'Swamp Settlement.'  On leaving Mr. George's, we were told to strike the river as far up as possible on account of high water.  This we did, and came to the river at a point called 'Ashery Ford,' but even here the water was so high, that in crossing, it ran into the wagon box.  That night we caped in the woods, having failed to reach any settlement.
     "The next day, by dint of hard traveling, by a road we had to make as we went, we, at sunset, arrived at the house of a Mr. Powell, about three miles above Findley.  On the next day, about noon, we reached the old 'Fort,' passing on the way, school house, which was a very insignificant log cabin.  There were then but sixteen buildings in the place, and these seemed to have been built in mud and water.
     "Though the town was then in its infancy, its people showed, by the generous assistance afforded us in crossing the river, they at least possessed noble hearts.  We crossed the river in a 'Pirogue,' and passed the night in a shanty near were Carlin's mill now stands.  We still had seven miles to go.  Mother, brother John and myself started on foot, and so continued our journey as long as the logs in the way furnished a passage over the water.  But presently we reached the end of this natural bridge.  Here, luckily for us, a Mr. Foster came to our relief.  He took mother on the horse he had brought with him.  All that was left for John and I was to wade, and we did wade until we reached Mr. Foster's house.  We had by this time become quite cold, for it had snowed the night before.
     Having been refreshed by the kindness of Mr. FOSTER and his family, we continued our journey, urging our cattle through the mud and over the logs, and at last, about the middle of the afternoon, tired out, we arrived at the house of Mr. MILLER, on the farm on which Samuel SPITLER now resides.  In the evening, the balance of our party arrived with the horses, but no wagon.  The wagons had got stuck in the mud about three miles back, and the horses were unable to extricate them.  It required all the next day to secure the wagons and bring them in, for it was sunset on December 15, when they arrived at the cabin on the hill.  These cabins were of the rudest build, and plainest surroundings.  On the morning after the first night in our cabin, our first inquiry was, who are our neighbors, and how far are we from any place.  We were on the eastern frontier of our immediate neighborhood.  MILLER, BRYAN and FRAKES living about one half mile to the west of us.  Our nearest neighbor on the east, was a Mr. WADE, who lived about eighteen miles distant.  On the south, Mr. FOSTER lived at a distance of about six miles.  On the west the nearest settlement was at Fort Defiance, about forty-eight miles away.  Twelve miles to the north lived Mr. HASKINS.
     "Soon after our arrival, the Mr. MILLER of whom I have spoken, died, and Mr. FRAKES moved to his new home on the river, now the Infirmary farm, which left but two men in the settlement.
     Mr. TROUT has resided in the township ever since he came to the county, and has witnessed the vast improvements, made here, and the almost unparalleled increase in wealth and population.  The wilderness has disappeared, and been replaced by beautiful farms, pleasant homes, comfortable churches and school houses.

BIOGRAPHIES:

* WASHINGTON TAYLOR
* JOHN HARDY
* JOHN BARND
* GEORGE ENSMINGER

JUSTICES OF THE PEACE.

     We here give the names of those who have elected to this office in the township:
     John Barnd - 1850, 1853, 1856, 1859, 1862, 1865, 1868, 1871, 1874, 1877.
     W. L. Heller - 1852
     J. W. McCaughey - 1855.
     Philip Burman - 1861 - 1864.
     Robert Thornberg - 1867, 1870, 1873, 1876, 1879.
     G. W. Barnd - 1880.

GRAIN CROP AND VALUE OF DOMESTIC ANIMALS IN 1881.

     An exhibit of the acreage and products of the grain crop and the number and value of domestic animals, as reported by the Assessor of the township in 1881:

VAN BUREN.

     This town was laid out by George ENSMINGER and John TROUT, in December, 1833, and is located on parts of sections twelve and thirteen, in range ten, and sections seven and eighteen, in range eleven, and comprised fifty-three lots.  The town is laid out in the form of a cross, with a public square in the center.  There were quite a number of large and substantial buildings put up, and nearly at the lots facing on the square were built upon.  For a time the place assumed considerable importance in trade, but as the country became settled, other towns sprang up, and were fortunate enough to secure rail-roads, and this place gradually lost its prestige, until now it may be safely said to be on the down hill side of life.  There are here still some pleasant residences, and a very genial, intelligent population, but business has almost entirely departed.  The surrounding country is a rich and well improved agricultural district.
     In June, 1866, upon the petition of thirty of its citizens, this town was incorporated.  Daniel FRICK was first Mayor, and C. S. WILKINSON, J. H. LOEHR, Dr. E. C. WELLS, Dr. E. GEORGE, A. MUMERT and L. P. McCUNE have succeeded him.
     A post office was established here as early, perhaps, as 1836, and the following persons have been Post masters: Dr. Geo. SPRINGER, John ZARBAUGH, S. M. HELLER, C. S. WILKINSON, L. MICHAELS, Dr. E. C. WELLS, D. FRICK,, L. L. HISSONY, Sol. ZARBAUGH, H. C. HARTMAN, John LEE, Mrs. E. WELLS.
     The business of the place is transacted by one dry goods store; one grocery; one saloon, one steam saw mill; three blacksmith shops; one wagon shop.  There are also one Baptist, one German Reformed, and one United Brethren Church, and one Physician.  There were one hundred and thirty inhabitants here in 1880.