History of Georgetown, Brown County, Ohio
from the "History of Brown County, Ohio"
Chicago: W. H. Beers & Co. 1883.
December 10, 1819, Allen Woods appeared before Henry Chapman, a Justice of the Peace in and for Brown County, and acknowledged a plat of Georgetown, containing twenty-two lots and two outlots, including nine acres and forty-two poles, located on a part of Robert Lawson's Survey, No. 523, and described as follows on the record: "The land contained in the above plat begins at a post near a white oak; thence west sixty-five poles to a walnut post; thence north twenty-two poles and eight-tenths to a walnut post; thence east sixty-five poles to a walnut stake, near a branch; thence south twenty-two poles and eight-tenths to the place of beginning." Main Street, running north and south, was three poles wide and twenty-two and eight-tenths long; Apple Street, same length, two poles wide; North Street, one and eight-tenths poles wide; twelve long; Main Alley, one pole wide and eight long.
May 15, 1820, Henry Newkirk and James Woods made large additions, increasing the whole number of lots to 138, extending Main Street and laying out Main Cross Street three poles wide. The public square, containing 144 square poles, is in Newkirk's Addition, which was much larger of the two. An outlot of four acres south of Main Cross Street, at its eastern terminus, was occupied at the time by a tanyard. Lots 31 and 138, at the west side of the Newkirk Addition, were donated "for the use of a public school and a meeting house for public worship."
Abel Rees made an addition September 27, 1821; Andrew Donaldson, July 30, 1822; Thomas Jennings, May 19, 1842; John G. Marshall, February 28, 1867; C.A. White, April 19, 1867 and John Wills, date not given, made the latest addition, at some time within the past three or four years.
By an act of the Legislature of Ohio, passed January 1, 1822, Thomas Morris and William Middleton were appointed Trustees for the town of Georgetown, "with authority to receive conveyances from James Woods, Abel Rees, and the administrators of Henry Newkirk, for their several tracts of land adjoining Georgetown, which lands are given by said Woods, Rees and Newkirk for the use and benefit of the county of Brown, in the State of Ohio; and by the act aforesaid, the said Thomas Morris and William Middleton were empowered to sell and dispose of all lots by them laid off on said land for the best price that could be had for the same, either at public or private sale, and to convey any lot or lots laid of on said land to any purchaser, and that the deed thus made should vest in the purchaser all the title of the said James Woods and Abel Rees, and the title vested in the said Henry Newkirk at the time of his death."
Albert Woods, a native of Ireland, came to America when small, and located in the State of Pennsylvania. Upon arriving at maturity, he was married in that State, and removed to Georgetown, Ky., where he resided several years. Soon after Ohio was admitted into the Union, he came to it and located on the site of Georgetown; this was probably in 1803 or 1804. His son, Albert Woods, Jr., now a retired physician of Clermont County, was born here in October, 1805, and a daughter, now the wife of Peter L. Wilson, Esq., was born on the old place in 1808. In the latter year, Mr. Woods purchased 200 acres of land of Daniel Feagins and it was upon a portion of this purchase that he laid out the original town in 1819, probably naming it from his former residence, Georgetown, Ky. His son, James Woods, who laid out an addition to the town in 1820, settled here with his father, and there were several other children.
When Peter L. Wilson came to Georgetown, in the winter of 1821-22, there was not a finished building in the place. Two or three brick houses were up, but their gable ends were open, and a frame house stood where the city bakery now is, having in it timber enough for two ordinary structures. There were then but five or six houses in the town in the aggregate. A frame building stood opposite the northeast corner of the court house square, where McKibben now is, but it was never finished. The boys were accustomed to playing ball against its walls. It was intended for a two-story edifice, but was finally demolished. Very few people had their homes in Georgetown at that day. Others were coming and going, but the attractions of the place were not yet sufficient to induce new-comers to locate. James Woods lived in a small log cabin on Outlot 21, in the northwest part of town. Allen Woods lived at that time in a log house which stood near the northwest corner of Main and Main Cross Streets, a little in the rear of the brick building which e put up on the corner, and which constitutes a part of the old American Hotel. Mr. Wilson subsequently removed the log building. William Butt was living here at the same time, in a small, unfinished frame house where the Methodist Episcopal Church now stands. He published the first newspaper in the place, and held several responsible offices--Sheriff, Auditor, etc.
Morgan's Raid
Wednesday, July 15, 1863, was a day which will not soon be forgotten by the citizens of Georgetown. It was the occasion of the visit of Morgan's raiders, 200 or 300 strong, under the command of Col. Dick Morgan, brother of John Morgan, the famous rebel guerrilla chieftain. The detachment arrived over the Georgetown & New Hope road, about half past 9 o'clock in the morning of the day given, and remained three hours, picketing their horses around the court house square. Several loyal citizens of the town were shot at, among them Lieut. William Hannah, who was at home on a furlough from Vicksburg; no one was hit, although some received close calls from the leaden messengers. The raiders stole a number of horses in and around Georgetown, robbed the post office and took goods from various parties to the estimated value of ,105 as follows: C. Theis, groceries, ; H. Stigler, groceries and three watches, ; P. Stigler, groceries, ; H. Brunner, boots, shoes, watch and breast-pin, ; H. McKibben, dry goods, ; C Newkirk, dry goods, $1,500; Evans & Woodward, dry goods, ; Adam Shane, clothing, ; C. Zaumseil, jewelry, ; Rieves & Taylor, drugs, ; Louis Weaver, saddlery, ; C. Hurst, grocer, . About 12:30 PM, the rebels left for Russelville, which they also raided, and proceeded thence to Decatur. The mainbody had passed through the northern portion of the county via Mt. Orab and Sardinia.
