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It
wasn't Jacob Ostrander. For that matter, it wasn't
Shelemiah Ostrander. It was James Liggett, Solomon Carr,
and I.C. Buck.
When
most people think of the history of Ostrander, they look at
the namesake. For many years, historians recorded Jacob
Ostrander when in fact it was later learned it was named for
Shelemiah Ostrander of Springfield, Ohio, who was the chief
survey for the Springfield & Mansfield Railroad.
But, even then it wasn't the village that was being named; it
was the station. Early maps clearly identify Ostrander
as insignificant to Edinburgh by using a much larger font for
Edinburgh as well as some maps which clearly identify it as
Ostrander Station. It seems likely the station was named
in Shelemiah Ostrander's honor as he died the same year
construction was completed on the Short Line Branch passing
through the township. White Sulphur Station has already
been named so for the White Sulphur Springs at Rathbone.
That
aside, how did Ostrander end up on the map? Well, it
turns out the survey for the railroad bed passed directly
through James Liggett's farm which lie on the western bank of
Blue's Creek. The site was chosen for a railroad station
to serve the people of western Scioto Township and Edinburgh,
and on account of the available water at Blue's Creek.
In
1852, it appears James Liggett came into contact with I.C.
Buck, of Delaware, Ohio, who surveyed the land surrounding the
railroad station, most of which was on Mr. Liggett's land,
while part of the survey fell North onto the property of his
brother-in-law; Solomon Carr. The boundary between the
Liggett and Carr property is clearly defined even today.
It is North Street. Ever wonder why it was called North
Street? It was James Liggett's northern boundary.
The survey identifies James Liggett as the Proprietor.
I.C.
Buck appears to have had an interest in the village.
Early real estate records show transfers of lots from Liggett
to Buck. A lawsuit follows whereby lots are transferred
back and forth between the parties. Further information
could be ascertained by researching the court records.
The
Carr family also got in on the action although sale of lots in
the Carr District were not as great as those surrounding Henry
Street which in the early days was the business district of
the village. As the village grew, the Carr family
expanded to the north by adding additional lots to the
original 104 lot plat.
The
first lot sold in the village was lot# 1 where William C.
Winget would open the first store in 1853, one year after the
village is platted and one year prior to the completion of the
railroad. Interestingly enough, the property was not
purchased by Winget, but instead by Savage Morgan.
Why? Was Morgan a builder that built the building and
then sold it to Winget? Savage Morgan can also be found
as a mortgage holder on the Ostrander Flouring Mill which sat
on the northwest corner of 2nd and High Street.
Regardless, Mr. Winget later comes to own the property.
He also owns the lot to the south where he built his home
which still stands today.
Regardless,
we owe Ostrander being placed on the map to the Liggetts and
Carrs who developed their land and I.C. Buck who was
instrumental in surveying and marketing the lots.
Twenty-six
years after platting the village, the people petitioned the
Delaware County Commissioners to incorporate as the Village of
Ostrander as it had become to be known due to the
station. The Commissioners accepted the village's
petition and on May 18, 1875 Ostrander became a Village.
Written
by David Cooper
July 9, 2007
EDITORIAL
NOTES:
People
identify quickly to the Carr family home in downtown
Ostrander. which may or may not have been the location of
their first home which more likely was a cabin. But,
where was the home of James Liggett. It would have had
to have been south of North Street.
Edinburgh
sat just north of this development on the Delaware Marysville
Pike. It has been platted into 27 lots much earlier and
was flourishing in the late 1840s when there were discussions
of building a Short Line Branch from Springfield to Mt. Vernon
via Delaware. Edinburgh lobbied for the railroad bed to
pass through it. Millville (Warrensburg) was at the time
the largest village in the township and of great importance.
It lobbied as well for the railroad to pass at its
location. Instead, the railroad passed just south of
Edinburg. Imagine for a second how the people in
Edinburgh felt as they watched the railroad bed being
constructed and the Liggett and Carr families benefiting from
the development of their land.
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