Liberty Township, Butler County, Ohio
Encyclopedia
Liberty Township, one of thirteen townships
in Butler County
, Ohio
, United States
, is in the east-central part of the county, just south of the city of Monroe
. With an area of about twenty-eight square miles it is smallest of the thirteen townships but one of the fastest growing areas in southwest Ohio, having a population of 22,819 in 2000
, up sharply from 9,249 in 1990
; of this total, 22,005 people lived in the unincorporated portions of the township. It was named for Liberty, Pennsylvania
, at the suggestion of John Morrow, a resident in the township at the time of its formation in 1803 who was the brother of Governor Jeremiah Morrow
, after his hometown. The first settler was John Nelson, who arrived in 1796, seven years before Ohio
became a state. It is one of twenty-five Liberty Townships statewide
.
The northeast corner of the township has been annexed into the city of Monroe, the sole municipality in Liberty Township. Unincorporated places are Bethany
, Hughes Station, Kyles Station, Jericho, and Princeton.
The original boundaries included what is now West Chester Township
, which was separated from Liberty Township by the Butler County Commissioners on June 2, 1823. Today, the township is located in the eastern part of the county and borders the following townships:
The Miami and Erie Canal
passed through the northwest corner of the township. The Dayton Short Line, now the Norfolk Southern, ran through the township.
The old Cincinnati and Dayton Turnpike, later known as Dixie Highway
and United States Highway 25, is now Cincinnati-Dayton Road. It connects the township to Monroe
to the north and Sharonville
to the south. Major highways today include the Butler County Veterans Highway (also known as State Route 129), which connects I-75 to Hamilton
through the southern tier of the township and State Route 4, which links Hamilton to Middletown
. I-75 runs through the eastern edge of the township with direct access to Liberty Township at Liberty Way (Exit 24), plus at two exits along the Butler County Veterans Highway (State Route 129).
Most of the township is in Cincinnati Bell
's Bethany (West Chester) telephone exchange, but a part in the west and southwest centered on Princeton is in Cincinnati Bell's Hamilton exchange. Electric and natural gas service is provided by Duke Energy
.
Most of the township is served by the Middletown post office, with the Hamilton post offices serving a large area in the west. Areas on the margins of the township are served by several other post offices: West Chester in the south, Fairfield in the southwest, Lebanon on the east, and Monroe on the north. The lack of their own post office and zipcode has recently become an issue of debate amongst residents, who feel that since West Chester has its own zipcode and postoffice, Liberty should have one as well - particularly since West Chester grew out of Liberty.
Except for the northeast corner, the entire township is in the Lakota Local School District. The remainder in the northeast is in the Monroe Local School District.
Civil township
A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States, subordinate to, and geographic divisions of, a county. Specific responsibilities and the degree of autonomy vary based on each state. Civil townships are distinct from survey townships, but in states that have both,...
in Butler County
Butler County, Ohio
Butler County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of 2010, the population was 368,130. Its county seat is Hamilton. It is named for General Richard Butler, who died in 1791 fighting Indians in northern Ohio. Butler's army marched out of Fort Hamilton, where the city of...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, is in the east-central part of the county, just south of the city of Monroe
Monroe, Ohio
Monroe is a city located in east central Butler and west central Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of 2007, the city population was 7,655, up from 4,008 in 1990....
. With an area of about twenty-eight square miles it is smallest of the thirteen townships but one of the fastest growing areas in southwest Ohio, having a population of 22,819 in 2000
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
, up sharply from 9,249 in 1990
United States Census, 1990
The Twenty-first United States Census, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 248,709,873, an increase of 9.8 percent over the 226,545,805 persons enumerated during the 1980 Census....
; of this total, 22,005 people lived in the unincorporated portions of the township. It was named for Liberty, Pennsylvania
Liberty, Pennsylvania
Liberty is the name of some places in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania:*Liberty, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania*Liberty, Tioga County, Pennsylvania*Liberty Mountain Resort, a ski area located in Carroll Valley, Pennsylvania...
, at the suggestion of John Morrow, a resident in the township at the time of its formation in 1803 who was the brother of Governor Jeremiah Morrow
Jeremiah Morrow
Jeremiah Morrow was a Democratic-Republican Party politician from Ohio. He served as the ninth Governor of Ohio, and the last Democratic-Republican to do so....
, after his hometown. The first settler was John Nelson, who arrived in 1796, seven years before Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
became a state. It is one of twenty-five Liberty Townships statewide
Liberty Township, Ohio
Liberty Township, Ohio may refer to:*Liberty Township, Adams County, Ohio*Liberty Township, Butler County, Ohio*Liberty Township, Clinton County, Ohio*Liberty Township, Crawford County, Ohio*Liberty Township, Darke County, Ohio...
.
The northeast corner of the township has been annexed into the city of Monroe, the sole municipality in Liberty Township. Unincorporated places are Bethany
Bethany, Ohio
Bethany is an unincorporated community in southeastern Liberty Township, Butler County, Ohio, United States, located in the southwestern part of Ohio...
, Hughes Station, Kyles Station, Jericho, and Princeton.
Erection
One of the original five townships of the county, it was erected by the Butler County Court of Quarter Sessions on May 7, 1810 with these boundaries:- Beginning at the southeast corner of section No. 14 of the second townshipSurvey townshipSurvey township, sometimes called Congressional township, as used by the United States Public Land Survey System, refers to a square unit of land, that is nominally six miles on a side...
in the second entire range on the south boundary line of the county: thence north to the Great MiamiGreat Miami RiverThe Great Miami River is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately long, in southwestern Ohio in the United States...
; thence northeastwardly up the Miami to the northern boundar of fractional section No. 10 of the second township in the third of military range; thence east to the eastern boundary of the county; thence south with the eastern boundary of the county to the southeast corner thereof; thence west with the southern boundary of the county to the place of beginning.
The original boundaries included what is now West Chester Township
West Chester Township, Butler County, Ohio
West Chester Township, formerly known as Union Township, is a township located in the southeast corner of Butler County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio, one of thirteen townships in the county. It is situated between Sharonville and Monroe, about 18 miles north of Cincinnati, and...
, which was separated from Liberty Township by the Butler County Commissioners on June 2, 1823. Today, the township is located in the eastern part of the county and borders the following townships:
- Lemon TownshipLemon Township, Butler County, OhioLemon Township is one of thirteen townships in Butler County, Ohio, United States. Located in the northeastern part of the county, it includes most of the city of Monroe and now exists as six disconnected pieces because of annexations by Monroe and Middletown...
- north - Turtlecreek Township, Warren CountyTurtlecreek Township, Warren County, OhioTurtlecreek Township is one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States. It is in the central part of the county and surrounds the county seat of Lebanon. Turtlecreek is the largest township in the county, originally containing sixty-three whole and seven fractional sections. ...
- northeast - Deerfield Township, Warren CountyDeerfield Township, Warren County, OhioDeerfield Township, one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States, is located in the southwest corner of the county. The most urbanized of the eleven, it had 25,515 people in the 2000 census, down from the 26,359 in 1990...
- southeast - West Chester TownshipWest Chester Township, Butler County, OhioWest Chester Township, formerly known as Union Township, is a township located in the southeast corner of Butler County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio, one of thirteen townships in the county. It is situated between Sharonville and Monroe, about 18 miles north of Cincinnati, and...
- south - Fairfield TownshipFairfield Township, Butler County, OhioFairfield Township, one of thirteen townships in Butler County, Ohio, United States, is located in the south central portion of the county. It had a population of 15,571 in 2000, down sharply from 49,353 in 1990 because of the withdrawal of the city of Fairfield in 1994 and annexations from...
- west - Madison TownshipMadison Township, Butler County, OhioMadison Township is one of thirteen townships in Butler County, Ohio, United States. Located in northeastern Butler County just west of Middletown, it had a population of 8,611 people in 2000, up from 8,547 in 1990. While it surrounds the city of Trenton, the city is no longer part of the township...
- northwest, across the Great Miami River
Government
The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1. Two are elected in the year after the presidential election and one is elected in the year before it. There is also an elected township fiscal officer, who serves a four-year term beginning on April 1 of the year after the election, which is held in November of the year before the presidential election. Vacancies in the fiscal officership or on the board of trustees are filled by the remaining trustees. Day-to-day functions are overseen by a township administrator, hired by the trustees, who typically has an assistant, also approved by the trustees. Politically, Liberty Township leans heavily toward the Republican Party. In the 2004 presidential election, George W. Bush carried the township with over 80% of the vote.Transportation, utilities, and schools
Miami and Erie Canal
The Miami and Erie Canal was a canal that connected the Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio with Lake Erie in Toledo, Ohio. Construction on the canal began in 1825 and was completed in 1845. It consisted of 19 aqueducts, three guard locks, and 103 canal locks. Each lock measured by and they...
passed through the northwest corner of the township. The Dayton Short Line, now the Norfolk Southern, ran through the township.
The old Cincinnati and Dayton Turnpike, later known as Dixie Highway
Dixie Highway
The Dixie Highway was a United States automobile highway, first planned in 1914 to connect the US Midwest with the Southern United States. It was part of the National Auto Trail system, and grew out of an earlier Miami to Montreal highway. The final result is better understood as a small network of...
and United States Highway 25, is now Cincinnati-Dayton Road. It connects the township to Monroe
Monroe, Ohio
Monroe is a city located in east central Butler and west central Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of 2007, the city population was 7,655, up from 4,008 in 1990....
to the north and Sharonville
Sharonville, Ohio
Sharonville is a city in Butler and Hamilton counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 13,804 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sharonville is located at .It is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area....
to the south. Major highways today include the Butler County Veterans Highway (also known as State Route 129), which connects I-75 to Hamilton
Hamilton, Ohio
Hamilton is a city in Butler County, southwestern Ohio, United States. The population was 62,447 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Butler County. The city is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area....
through the southern tier of the township and State Route 4, which links Hamilton to Middletown
Middletown, Ohio
Middletown is an All-America City located in Butler and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Formerly in Lemon, Turtlecreek, and Franklin townships, Middletown was incorporated by the Ohio General Assembly on February 11, 1833, and became a city in 1886...
. I-75 runs through the eastern edge of the township with direct access to Liberty Township at Liberty Way (Exit 24), plus at two exits along the Butler County Veterans Highway (State Route 129).
Most of the township is in Cincinnati Bell
Cincinnati Bell
Cincinnati Bell is the dominant telephone company for Cincinnati, Ohio, and its nearby suburbs in the U.S. states of Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. The parent company is named Cincinnati Bell Inc. Its incumbent local exchange carrier subsidiary uses the name Cincinnati Bell Telephone Company LLC,...
's Bethany (West Chester) telephone exchange, but a part in the west and southwest centered on Princeton is in Cincinnati Bell's Hamilton exchange. Electric and natural gas service is provided by Duke Energy
Duke Energy
Duke Energy , headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is an energy company with assets in the United States, Canada and Latin America.-Overview:...
.
Most of the township is served by the Middletown post office, with the Hamilton post offices serving a large area in the west. Areas on the margins of the township are served by several other post offices: West Chester in the south, Fairfield in the southwest, Lebanon on the east, and Monroe on the north. The lack of their own post office and zipcode has recently become an issue of debate amongst residents, who feel that since West Chester has its own zipcode and postoffice, Liberty should have one as well - particularly since West Chester grew out of Liberty.
Except for the northeast corner, the entire township is in the Lakota Local School District. The remainder in the northeast is in the Monroe Local School District.
Historic population figures
- 1900—1,024
- 1910—986
- 1920—1,024
- 1930—1,481
- 1940—1,628
- 1950—2,195
- 1960—3,143
- 1970—3,736
- 1980—6,506
- 1990—9,314
Further reading
- Bert S. Barlow, W.H. Todhunter, Stephen D. Cone, Joseph J. Pater, and Frederick Schneider, eds. Centennial History of Butler County, Ohio. Hamilton, OhioHamilton, OhioHamilton is a city in Butler County, southwestern Ohio, United States. The population was 62,447 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Butler County. The city is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area....
: B.F. Bowen, 1905. - Jim Blount. The 1900s: 100 Years In the History of Butler County, OhioButler County, OhioButler County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of 2010, the population was 368,130. Its county seat is Hamilton. It is named for General Richard Butler, who died in 1791 fighting Indians in northern Ohio. Butler's army marched out of Fort Hamilton, where the city of...
. Hamilton, OhioHamilton, OhioHamilton is a city in Butler County, southwestern Ohio, United States. The population was 62,447 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Butler County. The city is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area....
: Past Present Press, 2000. - Butler County Engineer's Office. Butler County Official Transportation Map, 2003. Fairfield Township, Butler County, OhioFairfield Township, Butler County, OhioFairfield Township, one of thirteen townships in Butler County, Ohio, United States, is located in the south central portion of the county. It had a population of 15,571 in 2000, down sharply from 49,353 in 1990 because of the withdrawal of the city of Fairfield in 1994 and annexations from...
: The Office, 2003. - A History and Biographical Cyclopaedia of Butler County, Ohio with Illustrations and Sketches of Its Representative Men and Pioneers. Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati, OhioCincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
: Western Biographical Publishing Company, 1882. http://www.rootsweb.com/~ohbutler/cyc/index.html - Ohio. Secretary of StateOhio Secretary of StateThe Secretary of State is responsible for overseeing elections in the State of Ohio. The Secretary of State also is responsible for registering business entities and granting them the authority to do business within the state, registering secured transactions, and granting access to public...
. The Ohio municipal and township roster, 2002-2003. Columbus, OhioColumbus, OhioColumbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
: The Secretary, 2003.