About Xenia Township
Township Overview
Xenia Township is a political subdivision of the State of Ohio located in Greene County. Established on August 20, 1805, the township covers 48.40 square miles with a population of 6,537 as of the 2010 Census. The township is administered by three elected trustees and a fiscal officer, each serving four-year terms.
Township History
The pilgrims brought the township form of government to America in 1620. This unit of local government eventually spread as far west as the Rocky Mountains and is found today in twenty-two states. In Ohio, the township predates our state government. The township’s size and shape were determined by Congressional Acts which established the various land grants.
In 1804, the elected officials of a township consisted of three trustees, a clerk, two overseers of the poor, and a sufficient number of supervisors of highways, in addition to justices of the peace and constables. Today, just as in 1804, the township in Ohio is a political subdivision of the state performing functions defined by the state legislature.
Old Town appears to have been the oldest settlement in Greene County. It was a village of the Shawnee Indians with a peak population of 1,100 persons around 1779. The Shawnee Indians destroyed the village by fire when General Clarke’s forces were approaching in 1780.
Communities in Xenia Township
Xenia Township is comprised of the following towns and villages: Amlin Heights (ca. 1967), Bryson (ca. 1908), Bucktown (ca. 1860s), Deweysville, Fairview (ca. 1855), Goes Station (1846), Monroe (ca. 1908), Oldtown (1833), Sugar Grove (ca. 1855), Tawawa Springs (1852-1860s), Wilberforce (1856), and Xenia (1804).
Universities and Colleges
Xenia Township is home to several institutions of higher education including Wilberforce University, the nation’s oldest private historically black university established in 1856; Payne Theological Seminary, tracing its origin to 1844; and Central State University, which began in 1887 as a state-funded department of Wilberforce University and achieved university status in 1965.
Historic Landmarks
The township features two historic covered bridges: the Charleton Mill Road bridge over Massie Creek, a Howe truss bridge with 120-foot clear span built in 1883, and the Stevenson Road bridge over Massie Creek, a double wood truss bridge from 1877. A 5-foot section of steel beam from the World Trade Center arrived in March 2011 and is displayed at the Xenia Township Trustees Office.
