Green Township, Ashland County

How Green Township, Ashland County began

Green Township began as part of Richland County, created in 1808, was settled about 1818, and joined the newly formed Ashland County in 1846. It is one of sixteen Green Townships in Ohio. Its lasting historical significance is not the township's own settlement history but the Lenape (Delaware) village of Greentown, founded in the late 1780s near present-day Perrysville within the township's bounds, which stood for roughly thirty years until it was forcibly emptied and then burned by renegade militiamen in the last days of August 1812, an act that helped touch off the Copus massacre two weeks later. Greentown is marked today by a state historical marker and is the subject of ongoing local preservation efforts.

Settled c. 1818, incorporated 1808 (part of newly created Richland County); joined Ashland County 1846.

Where the name comes from

Not documented in the sources consulted for this specific township; it is one of sixteen townships named Green statewide in Ohio.

Before the town

Green Township is the documented site of Greentown, a Lenape (Delaware) village founded in the late 1780s near present-day Perrysville, in what is now Ashland County (then part of Richland County). Greentown and the neighboring Delaware settlement of Jeromesville (in adjacent Mohican Township) stood for about thirty years. Chief Armstrong led the village; in August 1812, after General William Hull's surrender at Detroit raised settler fears of a Native alliance with the British, militia authorities ordered Greentown's roughly 150-200 residents removed to Piqua, about 100 miles west, despite Armstrong's offer to surrender the village's weapons and submit residents to daily roll calls. Between August 27 and September 3, 1812, the residents were marched out under guard; days later, six soldiers or stragglers who had stayed behind burned the village without authorization, an act the displaced Delaware could see as black smoke rising in the distance. On September 15, 1812, in apparent retaliation, Native warriors attacked the cabin of Reverend James Copus, a Methodist minister who had befriended the Greentown Delaware and tried to protect them; Copus and three soldiers guarding his family (George Shipley, John Tedrick, John Warnock) were killed in a five-hour fight, and Copus's fifteen-year-old daughter Nancy was shot in the knee. The Copus family fled to Guernsey County and returned to Ashland County in 1815. Greentown was never resettled.

Nations recorded here: Lenape (Delaware).

• Greentown (village) — Green Township, near present-day Perrysville, Ashland County, late 1780s to 1812 (hmdb.org)

Timeline

1. 1780s — Lenape (Delaware) settlers found the village of Greentown near present-day Perrysville, in what is now Green Township.
2. 1808 — The land that becomes Green Township falls within the newly created Richland County, effective March 1.
3. 1812-08-16 — General William Hull surrenders Detroit to the British, raising settler fears that nearby Native villages including Greentown might side with the British.
4. 1812-08-27 — Militia authorities begin removing Greentown's residents under guard toward Piqua, Ohio, roughly 100 miles west, despite Chief Armstrong's offer to surrender arms and submit to daily roll calls.
5. 1812-09-03 — The removal of Greentown's residents is complete; within days, soldiers or stragglers who stayed behind burn the abandoned village without authorization.
6. 1812-09-15 — Native warriors attack the Copus cabin near Greentown; Rev. James Copus and soldiers George Shipley, John Tedrick, and John Warnock are killed in a five-hour fight, and Copus's daughter Nancy is wounded.
7. 1818 — Settlement of Green Township proper is underway.
8. 1846 — Green Township joins the newly formed Ashland County, separating from Richland County.

Stories

The burning of Greentown

For roughly thirty years, the Lenape (Delaware) village of Greentown stood near present-day Perrysville, led by Chief Armstrong and home to somewhere between 150 and 200 people. When General Hull surrendered Detroit to the British in August 1812, panic spread through the Ohio frontier that Native villages nearby, including Greentown, might join the British side. Armstrong tried to head off trouble, offering to hand over the village's weapons and have his people report for daily roll calls under settler supervision. Militia authorities refused the compromise and ordered Greentown emptied instead, marching its residents under guard toward Piqua, about 100 miles to the west, between August 27 and September 3, 1812. Within days of the removal, a handful of soldiers or camp stragglers who had lingered behind set fire to the empty village on their own authority, an act of unauthorized revenge for old grievances. The displaced Delaware, still within sight of home, watched black smoke rise over the place they had just been forced to leave. Twelve days later, on September 15, warriors believed to be avenging the burning attacked the cabin of Rev. James Copus, a Methodist minister who had tried to protect the Greentown Delaware; Copus and three of the soldiers guarding his family were killed, and his teenage daughter Nancy was shot in the knee. Greentown was never rebuilt, and the episode remains one of the best-documented Native removal stories in this part of Ohio.

Local history sources: en.wikipedia.org · hmdb.org · ashlandcountypictures.com · en.wikipedia.org · web.archive.org

Mostly private wells The water here

• Loudonville Village68% of residentsGroundwater wells (4 wells)
• Perrysville Village32% of residentsGroundwater wells (2 wells)
• Mohican Young Star Academy0% of residentsGroundwater wells (2 wells)

Private schools (1)

Facilities reporting toxic releases (1)

Spills reported since 2021 (1)

Money issues on the ballot since 2023: 1 of 1 passed.

Ballot issues

Elections for office

Winners in bold. Results from the county board of elections' official canvass unless marked.

Auditor of State record

• No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
• Agreed Upon Procedures, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-11-06

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