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Liverpool Township

6801 School Street
330-483-3102

History:
According to research and Township residents, Liverpool Township was the first permanent settlement in Medina County. In 1795 this township became the property of Daniel Coit of Connecticut, who advertised the land for sale. He was part of the Connecticut Land Company, which had bought the Connecticut Western Reserve for about 40 cents an acre. The Western Reserve was land set aside by the Continental Congress for payment of Revolutionary War Soldiers in lieu of wages. Edward Heath also a native of Connecticut first surveyed Liverpool Township. At this time the Township was wilderness abounding with wild beasts including bears, wolves, deer and otters.

In 1807 Seba Bronson, Jr., a Revolutionary War Veteran, came from Columbia Township to the north, and "squatted" on the land. He planted corn, built a dwelling, and met the Pottawattamie Indians who came to the area to hunt. The Indians had found a salt spring, which provided a useful way of preserving meat. They sold the location of the salt springs to Seba and a man named Capt. Jared Pritchard for 5 silver dollars.

With the coming of the Erie Canal it became easier to get salt from other places in the east and the business at Hardscrabble was no longer profitable. In the 1830's a large number of German settler's came to Liverpool and by 1850 they had become very prosperous and owned over half the township. One of the most important industries ever to locate in the village was a foundry established in 1845. A Mr. Charles Pritchard manufactured various articles and implements including plows, flatirons, etc. As many as 8 to 10 men were employed at one time at the foundry.

As the village grew, various types of business enterprises flourished. A Mr. Parmelee operated a woolen mill and Aaron Carr operated a planing mill where large numbers of pumps and washing machines were manufactured. Luther Welton operated a small shop where he manufactured "Windsor" chairs. A tannery also was located in the village. As the population grew, various other shops opened including jewelry, photography, guns and firearms. In 1881, the population of Liverpool Center was two hundred. It was said that at one time in its history more manufacturing was done here than at Medina, the county seat. No other village of its size in the county had done equal business. Manufacturing and mercantile outlets continued to find Liverpool Township a fertile area for doing business through the turn of the century and is still in progress. The kinds of business outlets have been many and varied. Around the turn of the century, the Township had one of the largest horse sales in the country where dealers were known to purchase horses by the ‘car load.' Plows, cultivators, and cistern pumps were among the manufactured items. Cigar manufacturing was at one time a great industry here, lasting many years from the turn of the century.

Also during this period, many different kinds of religious faiths flourished. Churches were organized in the 1830's and have endured many physical and intellectual changes until they have reached the status they are at today. Zion Lutheran Church was established in 1830, and received it's first pastor in 1834, Rev. G. W. Emmanuel Metzger. The present building on Abbeyville Road was dedicated in 1896. The first services held in Emmanuel United Church of Christ on Center Road were held in the Spring of 1838, with the Rev. John Christ Zacharias officiating. With much hard work and generosity of spirit, the people of Liverpool Township established an atmosphere in which all beliefs lived and worked well together.

Schools began as early as 1816 starting in an old log cabin and progressing to seven wood structures throughout the township. The first high school was begun in the present Town Hall with a class of 5 graduates. Liverpool School was opened around 1900 and was used until December of 2003 when the school moved to it's new building in York Township adjacent to Buckeye High School.

Progress and a belief in the future seem to have been bywords for Valley City's ancestors. From the changes now in place since the 1950's, it would seem this philosophy has been carried down together with a love for community and old-fashioned values as Liverpool Township continues to grow beyond its 2000 Census population of 4,349 which was up 16.6% from 1990.


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