Grove City History - Part 7

(The following was written by Harold Windsor and is reprinted from “Reflections II”, a collection of local stories available at the Grove City Welcome Center and Museum. Any opinions made in the article are from the author.)Rightfully to those whose names appear before 1867 belong the distinction of being the founders of Grove City. For on March 5th, 1866, thirty-seven of the early settlers prepared a petition seeking the incorporation of the village of Grove City, which petition was granted by the commissioners of Franklin County, and the secretary of the state of Ohio, on March 13th, 1866. The establishment of the name was due to the fact that the land to be known as Grove City was in the center of several large, beautiful groves, which is been left standing when the first settlers cleared the ground. A few of these groves still stand--White's Grove in North Broadway, Beulah Park Grove, and Grant Grove, part of which stands in Woodlawn, which at one time covered the greater part of that addition.The petition for incorporation read as follows: “The undersigned citizens and legal voters of the village of Grove City, in the township of Jackson, County of Franklin, hereby petition your honorable body for the incorporation of the above-named village. Said proposed incorporated town is situated in Jackson Township, Franklin County, on the Columbus and Harrisburg turnpike, six miles southwest of the city of Columbus, and being part of the Virginia Military Survey No. 1388 entered originally by Washington and Morgan, and accurate plat of said village is being attached to this petition. The Incorporated name of said town to be ‘Incorporation of Grove City’”.The new village, of ”body corporate,”  was given the power to enact laws and ordinances, levy taxes, elect a mayor, marshal, clerk, treasurer, council, appoint assessors and other subordinate officers as deemed necessary. Each elected or appointed officer to serve a term of two years.The first election in the village was held May 10th, 1866, and the following were elected to the village’s first officials:Dr. Joseph Bullen, mayorRandolph Higgy, clerkGabriel Postle, Sr., marshalWilliam Sibary,Anton Pilger, Sr.,A.M. Anderson,John L, Smithand Leonard Buckholtz, councilmen