Lewis Center in Delaware County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

James Kilbourne

The Columbus and Sandusky Turnpike

⎯⎯⎯
Anson Williams

The Village of Williamsville

James Kilbourne Marker (Side A) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 28, 2008

1. James Kilbourne Marker (Side A)

Inscription. Marker Front: James Kilbourne
and
The Columbus and Sandusky Turnpike James Kilbourne, an Ohio pioneer who led settlers to the Worthington area in 1803, was born in Connecticut in 1770 and died in Ohio in 1850. In 1805 he was appointed to a federal district surveyor position in charge of 4,800 square miles from Delaware County to Lake Erie. He surveyed and laid out several towns and 100 miles of roadway for the Columbus and Sandusky Turnpike, which was completed in 1834. Famed novelist Charles Dickens wrote of the road, “A great portion of the way was over what is called a corduroy road, which is made by throwing trunks of trees into a marsh, and leaving them to settle there.” Despite its early difficulties, Anson Williams saw potential benefit to having a tavern and hotel on the turnpike. Besides being a surveyor, Kilbourne served Ohio as a U.S. Representative and later as a member of the Ohio General Assembly.

Marker Reverse: Anson Williams
and
The Village of Williamsville Anson Williams visited Ohio in 1834 before he moved to Orange Township. A former resident of New York State, Williams purchased

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this site and the surrounding 1,000 acres of U.S. Military District lands and hoped to find opportunity for himself and his family. He bought the land for $6.00 an acre from James D. Wolf, who owned the 4,000-acre section three of Orange Township. The Village of Williamsville was laid out with 80 lots in 1836 on both sides of the Columbus and Sandusky Turnpike. Williams built his home and a hotel with a store and tavern. A hotel and tavern, owned by George Gooding and where the stage changed horses, had already been established north of Williamsville. Competition may have led to Williamsville's decline. A church was built in 1845 and remained until 1900. Anson died in 1847, and his wife Hannah passed away in 1851. Both are buried in nearby Williamsville Cemetery.

Erected 2003 by Anson Williams Family Descendents and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 10-21.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Roads & Vehicles • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the Ohio Historical Society / The Ohio History Connection series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1803.

Location. 40° 10.296′ N,

Anson Williams Marker (Side B) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 28, 2008

2. Anson Williams Marker (Side B)

83° 1.295′ W. Marker is in Lewis Center, Ohio, in Delaware County. It is on Columbus Pike (U.S. 23). Marker is at the entrance to Kingwood Memorial Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 8230 Columbus Pike, Lewis Center OH 43035, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Scioto Valley

and in the Columbus Metropolitan Area.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Kingwood Memorial Park Veterans Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); The Four Chaplains (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); In Memory of all World War II Veterans (approx. 0.2 miles away); In Memory of all Vietnam Veterans (approx. 0.2 miles away); In Memory of all American Veterans (approx.

James Kilbourne / Anson Williams Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., December 28, 2008

3. James Kilbourne / Anson Williams Marker

Looking northeast across US Rt 23 in background.

0.2 miles away); Kingwood Memorial Park Vietnam Wall (approx. 0.2 miles away); In Memory of all Operation Iraqi Freedom Veterans (approx. 0.2 miles away); In Memory of all Korean War Veterans (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Lewis Center.

Regarding James Kilbourne / Anson Williams. Williamsville Cemetery, mentioned on the marker, is just to the south, on the opposite side of the road.

Also see . . . The Columbus & Sandusky Pike and James Kilbourne. Sandusky History website entry (Submitted on November 13, 2024, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

Anson Williams Headstone in Williamsville Cemetery image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., June 7, 2009

4. Anson Williams Headstone in Williamsville Cemetery

Williams Family Headstones in Williamsville Cemetery image. Click for full size.

Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., June 7, 2009

5. Williams Family Headstones in Williamsville Cemetery

(l to r, in foreground) Henry (son), Hannah (wife), and Anson Williams.

Credits. This page was last revised on November 13, 2024. It was originally submitted on April 24, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 2,426 times since then and 68 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 24, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. 4, 5. submitted on June 8, 2009, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. • Christopher Busta-Peck was the editor who published this page.

James Kilbourne

The Columbus and Sandusky Turnpike

⎯⎯⎯Anson Williams

The Village of Williamsville

⎯⎯⎯
Anson Williams