History

Muskingum Township is one of the 22 administrative townships in Washington County, Ohio. Though it was not formally organized until 1861, its lands sit directly at the heart of the earliest American pioneer movement in the Northwest Territory.  The township is named after the Muskingum River, which bisects its territory.  The word "Muskingum" comes from Native American languages. Scholars trace it to the Shawnee word mshkikwam meaning "swampy ground," or the Delaware/Lenape word Machkigen for "thorns". A popular folk translation also interprets it as "elk's eye".  Long before European settlement, the regional river valleys were inhabited by the ancient Adena and Hopewell earthwork-building cultures. In 1788, the Ohio Company of Associates, led by General Rufus Putnam, founded nearby Marietta.  Because Muskingum Township sits immediately north of Marietta along the river, its land was quickly cleared by early New England pioneers. Families like the Devols moved into the area to farm the rich bottomlands.  Proximity to the river made the area perfect for early water mills and agricultural development   Maincrops included  grains, tobacco and melons, later becoming famous throughout the Eastern United States for its superb garden truck.   The Miskingum River carried may pioneer rafts and flatboats laden with produce to Southern markets. It later became a main artery for the colorful steamboats of the early 1800's.    

 

Originally, the land belonged to larger adjacent townships, primarily Fearing Township and Adams Townships.  First settlements in Muskingum Township were made in Wiseman’s Bottom (Devola) and at Rainbow. The Rainbow settlement was begun in 1795 by a company of Marietta settlers who had drawn lots on the western shore of the Muskingum. The first settlers at Rainbow were Israel Stone and family. Then came the Stacy's, Dyar's and Stowe's (many who still reside here today). The first settlers on Wiseman’s Bottom were Colonel Joseph Barker, Israel Putnam, Captain Jonathan Devol and John Russell. The Wiseman’s Bottom settlement had two noted ship builders, Colonel Joseph Barker and Captain Jonathan Devol, who built sea going craft, and who also built the pioneer stockades.

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Along the Muskingum River north of Marietta. The Rainbow Station Underground railroad stop) was located 10 miles north Marietta were Rainbow Creek flows into the Muskingum. A staunch Abolitionists named Thomas Ridgeway helped nearly 100 fugitive slaves escape to freedom.

 

On September 4, 1861, county commissioners officially carved out Muskingum Township to accommodate the growing population density just north of Marietta.  The township spans about 21.3 square miles and is defined by its two core historic communities: Devola: Situated along the river, this area became famous for the Devola Lock and Dam (#2). Built as part of the massive 19th-century Muskingum River navigation project, it utilized hand-powered locks to let commercial steamboats pass safely.Oak Grove: A historic residential and farming community nestled in the rolling hills adjacent to Marietta's northern edge.

 

Commercial steamboat traffic through the Devola Lock and Dam collapsed after the turn of the century as motorized transport and railroads took over. The locks pivoted away from heavy shipping to serve pleasure crafts and local fishermen.During the Roaring Twenties, elite recreation arrived when a 9-hole golf course and clubhouse were built in Devola. When the clubhouse burned down in 1933 during the Great Depression, the land reverted back to farming corn, cabbage, and tomatoes. The Great Flood of 1913 devastated the township. Water levels reached 20 feet deep near the riverbanks, forcing the community to rethink its development patterns and build further up the ridges.

 

The mid-20th century brought the most radical transformation to the township. Massive family vegetable operations, such as the Chamberlain Farm, were gradually sold off and carved into modern housing developments.  Between 1950 and 1980, modern grid-style neighborhoods sprang up across Devola and Oak Grove. The rise of the personal automobile allowed the township to flourish. Residents could live in a quiet, semi-rural setting while easily commuting into Marietta for work. Muskingum Township experienced steady population retention because it remained unincorporated. While neighboring regions struggled with industrial declines or the environmental scars of strip-mining, Muskingum Township anchored its economy to quiet residential real estate, local utility expansions, and agriculture.

 

By the close of the 20th century, the township had firmly established its modern identity: a well-maintained, highly desirable residential haven that carefully balanced its historic 19th-century pioneer roots with mid-century suburban design.

 

Communities located in Muskingum Township include: 

• Rainbow 

• Ferncliff

• Oak Grove

• Westview

• Devola 

• Pinchtown (Sometime after 1900, the name changed to Unionville because it had once been a part of Union Twp.)

• Ridge Settlement (Far eastern part of the twp., where it divides Duck Creek from the Muskingum River. Many German families settled here)

• Highland Ridge, Cedar Ridge, March Run Hill