March & April 2024 Newsletter

On March 18, 2024 the Cridersville Historical Society hosted a special presentation entitled “Building A New Home In The Wilderness”. Its focus was on the pioneer families who came to the region in the 1830s. CHS Member, Greg Myers, was the presenter. The presentation explained how the first pioneer families began to arrive after the departure of the Shawnee in 1833. The first land purchase was made by George Delong in 1834 for $1.25 per acre. He bought the land without seeing it. His land is now the site of Cridersville Elementary School and the Otterbein Retirement Community. The program also outlined the expedition, lead by Daniel Bowsher and his brother Benjamine, in 1836 from southern Ohio to Shawnee Town- ship. This began the process to build new homes in the wilderness. The historical society brought artifacts from its collection relating to the pioneer families including the 1829 Bowsher family Bible, a section of the Bowsher log home built in 1836, and original 1830s documents...