Freedom Township, Portage County, Ohio Explained

Official Name:Freedom Township
Settlement Type:Civil township
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:Ohio
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Portage
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Total Km2:62.0
Area Land Km2:62.0
Area Water Km2:0.0
Area Total Sq Mi:23.9
Area Land Sq Mi:23.9
Area Water Sq Mi:0.0
Population As Of:2020
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:2649
Population Density Km2:auto
Population Density Sq Mi:auto
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Elevation Footnotes:[2]
Elevation M:359
Elevation Ft:1178
Coordinates:41.245°N -81.1467°W
Postal Code Type:ZIP code
Postal Code:44288
Area Code:330
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank Info:39-28742[3]
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:1086828
Website:https://freedomtwp-pc.org/

Freedom Township is one of the eighteen townships of Portage County, Ohio, United States. The 2020 census found 2,649 people in the township.

Geography

Located in the northeastern part of the county, it borders the following townships:

A small part of the village of Garrettsville was formed from far northeastern Freedom Township.

Formed from Town 4, Range 7 of the Connecticut Western Reserve, Freedom Township covers an area of 24sqmi. The Ravenna Training and Logistics Site covers the southeast corner of the township.

Name and history

Freedom Township was settled in 1818 and organized in 1825, one of the last townships in Portage County to be organized. The first settler was Charles Paine, son of General Edward Paine, whom Painesville, Ohio, is named after. It was said to have been named by Charles Paine's wife after the idea of freedom. Previously it had been referred to as "North Rootstown" since the original proprietor was Ephraim Root. A post office called Freedom was established in 1826 at the town center, and remained in operation until 1903, while another post office for Freedom Station was established in 1864 and remained in operation until 1957.[4] Freedom Station was a station and shipping point on the New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio Railroad. The unincorporated community of Drakesburg is located in the eastern part of the township along Ohio State Route 303. It is named for settler Orasumus Drake, who arrived in 1829.[5]

Statewide, other Freedom Townships are located in Henry and Wood counties.

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,[6] 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.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Freedom township, Portage County, Ohio - Census Bureau Profile . United States Census Bureau . 8 August 2023.
  2. Web site: US Board on Geographic Names. 2008-01-31. United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25.
  3. Web site: U.S. Census website . . 2008-01-31 .
  4. Web site: Portage County . Jim Forte Postal History . 13 January 2016 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304221928/http://www.postalhistory.com/postoffices.asp?task=display&state=OH&county=Portage . 4 March 2016 .
  5. Book: History of Portage County, Ohio: Containing a History of the County, Its Townships, Towns, Villages, Schools, Churches, Industries, Etc. . Warner, Beers & Company . 1885 . 452–459.
  6. http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/503.24 §503.24