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The original inhabitants of the county were the Delaware Indians. "Tuscarawas" is a Delaware word meaning "old town" or "open mouth." The first recorded European American in the county was Christopher Gist of the Ohio Land Company in 1750. Christian Fredrick Post and John Heckawelder, who were Moravian missionaries, built a cabin near Bolivar in 1761, but it was David Zeisberger, another Moravian missionary, who began the first white settlement in the county with five converted Delaware Indian families at Schoenbrunn, near present day New Philadelphia, in 1772. Fort Laurens, the only Revolutionary War fort in Ohio, was built near present day Bolivar for a raid on the British at Fort Detroit. Water reached (Canal) Dover in 1829 and the canal was completed through the county in 1830. There were 15 lift locks in the county (Locks 7-22 South [Portage Summit]), 12 of which still have visible remains. There was also a guard lock on the canal proper as well as two aqueducts. The Sandy & Beaver Canal, the Zoar Sidecut, the New Philadelphia Lateral Canal, and the Trenton Feeder were other navigable canals that linked to the Ohio & Erie Canal in Tuscarawas County. The Ohio & Erie Canal National Heritage Area ends in Tuscarawas County at the southern part of New Philadelphia. Highway construction and road improvements destroyed much of the canal prism in the county throughout the 20th century, but there are still many areas where the canal can be seen today. The route of the canal can be roughly followed along the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway, SR 416, and US 36. The Towpath Trail will link Stark County with New Philadelphia and proposed improvements to SR 416 and US 36 for bicyclists will allow the route of the canal to be enjoyed by many for years to come.
The remaining piers are visible from the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway (SR 212) and from the NTR Canoe Livery drop off point nearby. When the Towpath Trail is constructed through the area, it will cross the Tuscarawas River at this location on a bridge much like the trail does in Peninsula farther north. With the completion of the bridge over I-77, the Tuscaraawas Aqueduct Bridge is the top priority of the Canal Lands Development Committee.
The town was laid out on both sides of the proposed canal but only the west side of town remains today. The first building in town was a tavern at the corner of Water and Canal Streets built by Shorb. The town grew slowly until plans were made to link the Sandy & Beaver Canal to the O & E Canal in Bolivar. Many new lots were added to the town in anticipation of it becoming a major shipping center. After several failures, the Sandy & Beaver Canal opened in 1848 but was constantly plagued with problems. It arrived in Bolivar across a great aqueduct over the Tuscarawas River and met the O & E Canal at the foot of Water Street. The Sandy & Beaver Canal only lasted until 1852 and was never profitable. It continued as a feeder for the O & E Canal until 1883 when the great aqueduct collapsed. Despite the failure of the Sandy & Beaver Canal, Bolivar was still a significant shipping port on the O & E Canal, drawing farmers from as far away as Magnolia who brought their grain to town for milling and shipment on the canal. An early historian wrote that Bolivar was "the handsomest little village in the northern part of Tuscarawas County." Today, Bolivar maintains the historic feel of its canal days. Canal Street has been designated as the town's "Historic Canal District" and several local businesses' names pay homage to the canal. The Towpath Trail will follow the historic route of the canal into the village between Canal Street and I-77, the latter of which's construction in the mid 20th century wiped out much of the canal prism on the east side of town and caused the Tuscarawas River to be rerouted to provide an exit for SR 212. Bolivar is accessible by following SR 212 which is the CanalWay Ohio National Scenic Byway. It is also accessible from I-77 at exit 93.
The first boat to complete the full journey on the canal did so on January 9, 1848. This was much later than had originally been planned. The "Big Tunnel" near Hanover was supposed to be completed by 1837 but wasn't until 10 years later. The Panic of 1839 also contributed to the delay in completing the canal. The Sandy & Beaver Canal was divided into three sections with the Eastern and Western Divisions getting the bulk of the traffic. The Middle Division at the summit did not supply enough water and disruptions to the reservoirs there caused it to be less than navigable in dry seasons. By 1852, the Middle Division was abandoned and the canal was declared a failure. The Ohio & Erie Canal continued to use the Western Division as a feeder until the collapse of the aqueduct in 1883. Today, there are still remains of the Sandy & Beaver Canal prism on the east side of the Tuscarawas River near Bolivar. The Tuscarawas County Trail and Greenway Plan identifies the possibility of constructing a trail along the canal's towpath for recreational use. Remains of various locks can still be seen along the route of the canal.
The fort was located in the vast undeveloped wilderness of the Tuscarawas Valley and the winter was a hard one for the Americans who stayed there. The fort came under attack by Native Americans who sided with the British. At least 20 Americans were killed in those attacks. The planned attacks on Ft. Detroit were never carried out and the fort was abandoned in August of 1779. The fallen soldiers were buried in an unmarked grave on the property. The fort itself was partially destroyed by the coming of the Ohio & Erie Canal in the 1820's. The route of the canal passed through what was once the eastern side of the fort. The rest of the land was turned into farmland. The Ohio Historical Society took ownership of the property in 1915 with the hopes of reconstructing the fort. That has never happened but archeological digs in the 1970-80's unearthed the graves of the fallen soldiers. A memorial was built on the site and is operated as a museum today. The Towpath Trail will be constructed along the route of the canal through Ft. Laurens and the park will serve as a trailhead. A stone bridge is still extant that allowed for crossing of the canal. At the far south end of the park, a gravel trail leads to the newly constructed Towpath Bridge over I-77 which opened in October of 2007. A slideshow of its construction and dedication ceremonies is posted below. The bridge leads to the next segment of the Towpath Trail to Zoar.
  
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To view the pictures in a separate window, click the "View All Images" button and choose the photo in the slider bar at the top of the new window.
Modern photos taken by the page author. Plat map photos courtesy of the Ohio Division of Natural Resources, Division of Water Historic photos marked with a "*" are courtesy of the University of Akron Archival Services: Louis Baus Canal Photo Collection.
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uscarawas County was formed from Muskingum
County in 1808, only 5 years after Ohio attained statehood. It
covers 571 square miles, all but 4 of which is land. The
Tuscarawas River, one of two that merge to form the Muskingum
River (the other is the Walhonding River), bisects the county
from north to southwest into two nearly equal halves. The river
and canal enter Tuscarawas County from Stark County to the north
and leaves it to Coshocton County to the southwest. The 2000
U.S. Census lists the county's population at 90,914. There are
19 municipalities in the county, seven of which were served by
the Ohio & Erie Canal (Bolivar, Zoar, Dover, New Philadelphia,
Tuscarawas, Port Washington, and Newcomerstown). New
Philadelphia is the county seat.
olivar was preceded by a small town on the
opposite side of the Tuscarawas River called Lawrenceville
(named after the nearby fort) but when the Ohio & Erie Canal was
planned for the west side of the river, Lawrenceville faded into
memory. John Shorb and William Christmas platted Bolivar in
1825. They originally named their new town Kelleysville after
Alfred Kelley, who was the canal commissioner for the northern
section of the canal. Kelley declined the honor and the name
changed to Bolivar in honor of Simón Bolívar, often referred to
as the "George Washington of South America."
ort Laurens was built by American soldiers in
1778 during the Revolutionary War for a garrison to mount an
attack on the British at Fort Detroit. It was the only fort
established in the Ohio country during the war. 1,200 men set
out from Ft. Pitt under the leadership of General Lachlan
McIntosh in November of 1778. But with winter upon them, General
McIntosh decided to build the fort in the Tuscarawas Valley,
leave it occupied by 172 men and women, and return the following
spring to continue the planned attacks. The fort was named in
honor of Henry Laurens who was President of the Continental
Congress at that time.
