History

Today

LaGrange Township is one of the eighteen townships of Lorain County, Ohio, and is steeped in a rich history of agriculture and farming. Founded in 1825, the Township has consistently grown in popularity among those who prefer to live and raise families in a

rural environment. While the existing land use pattern reflects its active farming community with numerous large open farmlands, it is beginning a slow transition to an increasing rural residential landscape, largely subdivided from farm parcels. The Township is almost perfectly level, except in extreme eastern and western parts, where it becomes somewhat rolling and is traversed by small streams. Although the township is located within the Black River Watershed, the Wellington Creek traverses its western side and adds a beautiful element to diversify the landscape.

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Regional access is provided via SR 301 (north and south) and SR 303 (east and west). The nearest freeway, SR 10, is located approximately 5 miles to the north in

neighboring Carlisle Township. Indian Hollow nd Nickel Plate Diagonal are county roads that bound our township to the east and west while Parsons (shared with Carlisle Twp) and Webster (shared with Penfield Twp) roads bound the township to the north and south respectively. Together these roads provide important access routes within and throughout LaGrange Township as well as into nearby communities.

LaGrange Township is nearly centrally located within Lorain County and bordered by eight municipalities, not to include the Village of LaGrange which is located in the center of the Township:

• Carlisle Township - north

• Grafton - northeast

• Grafton Township - east

• Litchfield Township, Medina County - southeast corner

• Penfield Township - south

• Wellington Township - southwest corner

• Pittsfield Township - west

• New Russia Township - northwest corner

The original proprietors of LaGrange Township were Henry Champion and Lemuel
Storrs. Their arrival and subsequent “land conveyance” actions stimulated the “westward ho!” movement for a colony of New Yorkers to make their way into southern Lorain County. The first settlement was made by Nathan Clark, a native of Harlem Connecticut, and his wife Ann Loomis, on November 14 th , 1825. By late 1826, there were 70 people living within the present limits of the Township, all spread in each direction, but were still considered neighbors. At that time, the new settlers found it both alluring and isolating to live on such wide-open land and needed to overcome the obstacles they would experience over the next 50 years to
prepare their lands for their survival and generations after them.

In June of 1824, the Lorain County Commissioners attached LaGrange Township to Carlisle Township for civil and judicial purposes, but in January of 1827, became
completely detached and became its own governing municipality. From this point
forward settlers began developing the Township by constructing factories, sawmills,
businesses, cemeteries, schools, post office, churches, etc., to establish a long-sustaining community we know today as LaGrange Township. For more information on the history of LaGrange Township, please visit the Village of LaGrange Historical Society located within the Village, or visit their Facebook site at:
https://www.facebook.com/lagrangehistoricalsocietyloraincounty/.