| The
threat of Cheshire’s extinction has served as an impetus
to document its history. Other than a recent publication on
Gallia County, which included a brief chapter on Cheshire,
there are no published books detailing the village’s
history. Information was gleaned from old photos, newspaper
clippings, and intriguing oral histories. Residents were eager
to make it known, for example, that at one time Cheshire boasted
a hotel, an academy, a railroad depot and a large flour mill.
What follows are some significant events in the shaping of
the village, as well as some unique occurrences in the region
that affected Cheshire. |
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| Shari
Little-Creech, who has family roots in Cheshire and who—before
the village was sold—planned to retire there, shared
a great deal of primary sources she has compiled in preparation
for her forthcoming book on Cheshire. The filmmakers are greatly
indebted to Shari and the Cheshire residents who generously
shared their materials and photos. |
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| The
Village Origins |
| Cheshire’s
Heydey |
| Industry
and Modern Times |
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| The
Village Origins |
| 1794 |
The
first Anglo settlement closest to the present-day Cheshire village
is established. Most of the early settlers are farmers of English,
Scottish, and Irish descent and have moved west from New England
and the Mid-Atlantic. The bottomlands around Cheshire are some of
the most fertile farmland in the county. Potatoes, corn, wheat,
pumpkins and other crops are grown here and shipped via the Ohio
River to Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Cincinnati and Baltimore markets. |
| Early
1800s |
The
first school is built on a farm on land that is now home to the
Gavin Power Plant. The school building is an 18 by 20 foot log structure
with a stick and mud chimney. Thirty to forty children attend classes
from miles around. |
| 1826 |
The
Cheshire Post Office begins and Phineas Matthews, previously a tax
collector, is its first Postmaster. |
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| Cheshire
Post Office. Will Thompson, probably taken between 1903-1914 |
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| 1841-1860 |
The
first recorded plat maps of the Cheshire village comprising a total
of 27 lots are first filed by Asa Bradbury and later by C.L. Guthrie.
These are the first records that document the official beginning
of the village of Cheshire. |
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| Cheshire’s
Heydey |
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|
Ad in The Journal, January 29, 1874. Paid for Dec. 4, 1873
to run for 1 year. |
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| 1860s-1870s |
Coal
mining begins. By the 1880s, Carl’s Coal Mine (owned by Mr.
Carl from Germany) is the biggest mine operation in the area and
is located one mile north of the village of Cheshire. Coal mining
continues to employ the largest amount of workers, until it slows
down in the 1950s. Nearby mines close in late 1999 leaving many
workers jobless. |
| July
1863 |
Morgan’s
Raid tears through Ohio. From July 2 to July 26, 1863, the notorious
Confederate Cavalry General John Hunt Morgan leads 2500 horsemen
in what is called the longest and one of the most daring raids of
the Civil War. With a goal to throw off the Union troops from capturing
Tennessee cities and to unite with General Lee in Pennsylvania,
Morgan and his Raiders invade Indiana and Ohio, destroying bridges
and stealing horses as they go. The only significant battle fought
in Ohio during the Civil War takes place at Buffington Island on
July 19 to the northeast of Cheshire. |
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Several days and skirmishes later, Raiders are captured and held
in the Cheshire hotel and school dormitory before being shipped
out on the Ohio River to Cincinnati. Morgan’s Raid was the
northernmost campaign of the Civil War and officially ended with
his capture in Ohio on July 26. |
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| Cheshire
Academy Dormitory. Photo taken around 1910 |
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| 1880s |
In
October 1880, the railroad track makes its way to Cheshire and
work on the railroad station is underway. On December 22, William
Symmes of Cheshire writes in his diary, “The first train
went from here to Pomeroy and back. Glory! Glory!”
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| The
Cheshire Depot. Photo taken around 1910 |
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According
to "Gallia County, Ohio People in History to 1980"
(published by the Gallia County Historical Society), when the railroad
first arrived it entered Gallia County in Huntington Township, passed
through the village of Vinton and into Gallipolis. It then followed
a northward course through Addison and Cheshire up the river and
into Meigs County. In
its first year of operation in Gallia County, the Columbus, Hocking
Valley and Toledo Railroad Company (CHV&T) hauled 10,017 tons
of freight, transported 43,062 passengers and earned $37,685.38.
Up until about 1950, the railroad transported coal and conveyed
passengers. Trains still pass through Cheshire on Route 554 en route
to or from the Gavin Power Plant, often times carrying cargo labeled
“Hazardous”. |
| 1913 |
A
devastating flood occurs. From the Gallipolis Weekly Tribune on
April 25, 1913: “The beautiful and prosperous village of Cheshire
is almost a complete wreck. No church services or schools have been
conducted for two weeks as the buildings are badly damaged; furnaces,
organs, seats and desks are ruined. Words fail to describe the misery
caused by the terrible flood.”
The Ohio River crests at 62.2 feet and spans 8 miles wide in the
lowlands. |
| 1937 |
Another
devastating flood. This flood peaks higher and is recorded by the
Gallipolis Daily Tribune as cresting at 66.85 feet. For 19 days,
the Ohio River floods towns and villages. Along some places, the
river reaches 79.9 feet. |
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| Post
Office in January 1937 |
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| Classmates,
ca. 1942 - Cheshire: Unincorporated. |
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| Industry
and Modern Times |
| 1954-1955
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Kyger
Creek Power Plant opens. Operation of this coal-fired power plant
with a generating capacity of 1075-megawatts begins in 1955 about
a mile outside of Cheshire. Kyger Creek is owned by the Ohio Valley
Electric Corporation of which AEP owns 39.9 percent of equity in
the company. |
| 1954 |
The
advent of Kyger Creek initiates the incorporation of Cheshire. By
incorporating, the now self-governed village, run by an elected
mayor and village council, can receive funding from the township
and county to make improvements. Soon after the town incorporates,
the council brings in gas and sewer lines. In later years, the village
council becomes responsible for street lighting, trash removal,
911 emergency service, and hiring a part-time sheriff and groundskeeper. |
| 1966-1967 |
Near
Point Pleasant, West Virginia (about 6 miles from Cheshire), begins
the legend of the Mothman. At the site of a power plant that had
been designed to provide energy to a TNT manufacturing installation,
some Cheshire residents claim to have seen the Mothman, a large
bird-like creature. Over 100 sightings of the Mothman are recorded
during this time period. |
| December
15, 1967 |
Forty-six
people die when the Silver Bridge, a suspension bridge over the
Ohio River— the only one of its kind in the U.S.—from
Point Pleasant, WV to Kanauga, Ohio collapses during rush hour traffic.
One person from Cheshire dies; another from the village survives
the accident. |
| 1975 |
The
General James M. Gavin Power Plant starts up its 2600-megawatt facility.
In order to build the facility, the company buys land near Cheshire,
including homes, farmland, and businesses in the 1970s. As a result
of the land accession, an ice cream shop, roller skating rink, dance
hall, and about 15 homes are razed. |
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| Cheshire's
history continues at Cheshire & the Gavin
Plant: three decades of coexistence |
