Muskingum Township, Washington County, Ohio

Coordinates: 39°28′30″N 81°28′27″W / 39.47500°N 81.47417°W / 39.47500; -81.47417
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Muskingum Township, Washington County, Ohio
Township
Colonel Joseph Barker House, built 1811
Colonel Joseph Barker House, built 1811
Location of Muskingum Township in Washington County
Location of Muskingum Township in Washington County
Coordinates: 39°28′30″N 81°28′27″W / 39.47500°N 81.47417°W / 39.47500; -81.47417
CountryUnited States
StateOhio
CountyWashington
Area
 • Total22.2 sq mi (57.4 km2)
 • Land21.3 sq mi (55.3 km2)
 • Water0.8 sq mi (2.1 km2)
Elevation
[1]
620 ft (189 m)
Population
 (2020)[2]
 • Total4,424
 • Density207.7/sq mi (80.0/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
FIPS code39-53452[3]
GNIS feature ID1087140[1]

Muskingum Township is one of the twenty-two townships of Washington County, Ohio, United States. The 2020 census found 4,424 people in the township.

Geography[edit]

Located in the central part of the county, it borders the following townships:

Small portions of the county seat of Marietta are located in southern Muskingum Township, and much of the central part of the township is occupied by the census-designated place of Devola.

Name and history[edit]

The name Muskingum may come from the Shawnee word mshkikwam 'swampy ground'.[4] The name may also be from Lenape "Machkigen," referring to thorns, or a specific species of thorn bush.[5] Muskingum has also been taken to mean 'elk's eye' (mus wəshkinkw) by folk etymology, as in mus 'elk' [6] + wəshkinkw 'its eye'.[7] Moravian missionary David Zeisberger wrote that the Muskingum River was called Elk's Eye "because of the numbers of elk that formerly fed on its banks."[8]

Statewide, the only other Muskingum Township is located in Muskingum County.

Government[edit]

The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1. Two are elected in the year after the presidential election and one is elected in the year before it. There is also an elected township fiscal officer,[9] who serves a four-year term beginning on April 1 of the year after the election, which is held in November of the year before the presidential election. Vacancies in the fiscal officership or on the board of trustees are filled by the remaining trustees.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  2. ^ "Muskingum township, Washington County, Ohio - Census Bureau Profile". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  3. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  4. ^ Mahr, August C. (1957). "Indian River and Place Names in Ohio". Ohio History. 66 (2). Ohio Historical Society: 137–158. Retrieved June 18, 2021.
  5. ^ "Lenape Dictionary" (PDF). October 2000. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  6. ^ "mus". Lenape Talking Dictionary. Archived from the original on March 15, 2012. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  7. ^ "wëshkinkw". Lenape Talking Dictionary. Archived from the original on February 1, 2016. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  8. ^ David Zeisberger (1910). David Zeisberger's History of Northern American Indians. Press of F.J. Heer. p. 44.
  9. ^ §503.24, §505.01, and §507.01 of the Ohio Revised Code. Accessed 4/30/2009.

External links[edit]

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