The Historical Production of Landscape in Perry County, Ohio
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The Historical Production of Landscape in Perry County, Ohio: National Discourses Materialized A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Science Ethan M. Bottone April 2016 © 2016 Ethan M. Bottone. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled The Historical Production of Landscape in Perry County, Ohio: National Discourses Materialized by ETHAN M. BOTTONE has been approved for the Department of Geography and the College of Arts and Sciences by Timothy G. Anderson Associate Professor of Geography Robert Frank Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 Abstract BOTTONE, ETHAN M., M.S., April 2016, Geography The Historical Production of Landscape in Perry County, Ohio: National Discourses Materialized Director of Thesis: Timothy G. Anderson Beginning with the Land Ordinance of 1785, the American federal government passed a series of laws that regulated the sale of public land to private citizens. These legislations represented a discourse of revenue seeking and debt repayment, espoused by the federal government during this early period of American nation-building. In order to efficiently and rapidly create revenue, the federal government implemented the public land sale system to dispose of land within the public domain. Through the examination of land patents and field surveys of cultural landscapes, a case study of Perry County, Ohio, one of the earliest regions disposed of under this system, was utilized to determine the settlement processes that occurred during the Early American Republic. The results of this study show that the federal controls on size, shape, and locations of purchases created a characteristic settlement landscape represented by tangible landscape elements, like roads and property lines, which have persisted into the present-day landscape. As such, the federal government can be considered the “author” of past and present landscapes through the construction of discourses materialized. 4 Dedication For my grandfather, Andrew “Papa” Bottone August 8, 1932 - October 1, 2015 5 Acknowledgments The research presented in this thesis is the culmination of the work and support of many wonderful individuals whom I would like to thank. First and foremost, without the encouragement and guidance of my adviser Dr. Tim Anderson, this thesis would not have been completed. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Geoff Buckley and Dr. Harold Perkins, for their patience and helpful suggestions throughout this process. I also owe a huge debt of gratitude to the Department of Geography here at Ohio University for allowing me to pursue my passion for the last two years. I would like to acknowledge Dr. James Dyer especially, my original adviser, for putting up with me as my interests changed over the course of the past couple years. His initial advisements were critical in the development of my course at OU. I would also like to thank my parents, Susan Lehman and Richard Bottone, for their eternal support of my academic pursuits and for the many trips we took to a variety of historical landscapes throughout my childhood. They truly fostered my love of geography and history which led me to where I am today. My brother, Andrew Bottone, also deserves much gratitude for his support, especially the use of his car, without which I would not have been able to conduct the field survey portion of this research. Finally, without my colleagues in the Geography department, I would have most likely gone insane completing this research. I am grateful for their continuous support throughout this process, most notably from Megan Sympson and Doug Schuster who guided me through some of the hardest times of my life. Thank you both for your friendship and encouragement, and for the times we have and will share in the future. 6 Table of Contents Page Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3 Dedication ........................................................................................................................... 4 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 5 List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... 8 List of Figures ..................................................................................................................... 9 Chapter 1: Introduction ..................................................................................................... 13 Background .................................................................................................................. 13 Purpose ......................................................................................................................... 15 Rationale ....................................................................................................................... 16 Study Area .................................................................................................................... 17 Methods ........................................................................................................................ 25 Chapter 2: Literature Review ............................................................................................ 29 Culture Areas, Hearths, and Diffusion ......................................................................... 29 Ohio Frontier Settlement .............................................................................................. 32 National/Regional Discourses ...................................................................................... 38 Chapter 3: Settlement Processes in Early Perry County ................................................... 45 Ohio Settlement Prior to the Habitation of Perry County ............................................ 45 Settlement of Perry County, Ohio ................................................................................ 66 The first settlers ...................................................................................................... 66 Public land sales ..................................................................................................... 73 Dates of issuances ............................................................................................... 74 Aliquots ............................................................................................................. 120 Reserved sections .............................................................................................. 145 Assignment ........................................................................................................ 158 Tenanted patents ............................................................................................... 162 Miscellaneous sections...................................................................................... 169 Chapter 4: Federal Discourses Materialized In Perry County ........................................ 175 Discourses .................................................................................................................. 175 Discourses Materialized in Perry County ................................................................... 178 7 Persistence of the National Discourse ........................................................................ 199 Summary .................................................................................................................... 228 Chapter 5: Conclusion..................................................................................................... 229 References ....................................................................................................................... 236 8 List of Tables Page Table 1.1: Congressional Townships within Civil Townships .......................................24 Table 3.1: Production of Staple Crops in Perry County and Study Area, 1840 .............85 Table 3.2: Average Date of Patent Issuance for Study Area Townships ........................86 Table 3.3: Earliest Average Dates of Issuance for Sections in Hopewell Township ...100 Table 3.4: Types of Aliquots Present, Overall Study Area ...........................................121 Table 3.5: Types of Aliquots Present, Individual Townships .......................................123 Table 3.6: Average Date of Issuance for Reserved Sections ........................................148 Table 3.7: Average Date of Issuance for School Land Sections ...................................153 Table 3.8: Types of Aliquots Present in School Land Sections ....................................156 Table 3.9: Rate of Assignments ....................................................................................160 Table 3.10: Tenanted Patents ........................................................................................165 Table 4.1: Orientations of Half Sections.......................................................................191 9 List of Figures Page Figure 1.1: Location of Perry County .............................................................................19 Figure 1.2: Route of Zane’s Trace ..................................................................................21 Figure 1.3: Location of Study Townships.......................................................................23