The History of Monroe, Ohio

The Village of Monroe was platted and the plat recorded in 1817. The two men whose names were on the plat were John H. Piatt and Nathanial Sackett. The former was a merchant of Cincinnati and during the War of 1812 he was the largest army contractor in the west, it is doubtful if he ever lived in Monroe, probably his interest was financial. Nathanial Sackett was a descendant of Simon Sackett, who came to America with Roger Williams in 1631. The grandfather of Nathanial was a Presbyterian clergyman of West Chester County, N.Y. and the father, Nathanial Sr. (1736-1805) was a member of the Committee of Safety and head of the secret service at Fishkill, N.Y. during the American Revolution.

Nathanial Jr., who founded Monroe, was married to Elizabeth Terboss in Fishkill. She was baptised in the Episcopal church there, in 1800, as an adult age 22. In 1805 Nathanial was baptised, as an adult age 35, (his tombstone dates and age would make him nearer 36 or 37 in 1805) and in the same year their daughter, Almira, was baptised. In 1809 a son, William Augustus, was baptised in the same church.

Nathanial Sackette came to Ohio in 1816, probably bringing his family. In order to try to find a possible link to what became of Monroe and this family, we will tell the story of another man.

The last solider of the American Revolution to die in Butler County was Pierson Sayre. Born in New Jersey in 1761, he served two and a half years in that war. In 1809 he bought a tavern called "Cross Keys", seven miles from Hamilton on the Middletown road. He kept it for a few years, then moved to Cincinnati and kept a tavern called the "Green Tree". While in Cincinnati, he bought (from Col. James Clark) a tract of land in Lemon Township, which under another owner, was the site of the town of Monroe. He returned to Butler county in 1814 and kept taverns in Hamilton and served several terms as sheriff. He died in 1852.

Now it is possible that Pierson Sayre sold the tract of land in Lemon Township to Mr. Piatt before he returned to Butler County, and Mr. Piatt and Mr. Sackett were partners in the founding enterprise.

However the land got into the possession of these men, they did have it and as President James Monroe took office the year of the founding, it was named for him.

Mr. Sackett bought a farm, with double log cabin, from a pioneer named John Baker, (nothing is known of him except that he had been here before 1800, he died January 4, 1852, age 77 and is buried in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery).

The first plat of Monroe had a Main Street, (no Old Street) with three cross streets, (now Lebanon, Church, and Elm) and three alleys. There was an addition made in 1819, probably (?) what is now West Elm Street to the end of the old school yard on Lee Price. The next known addition was not made until 1919/20 when the rest of Lee Price and Ohio Avenue were added, in a subdivision known as Fairview.

In 1820 Nathaniel Sackett wrote to his brother Samuel, on March 12, and told him he had laid out a town and there were 20 houses, 2 stores, and 2 taverns up and a Presbyterian church on site.

The Presbyterian congregation was here by 1802, and built first a log church. They may have been building their second, frame, church at this time; the third, brick church was built about 1834/35. This second one may be the one he referred to in his letter.

In the same year Almira Sackett wrote a letter to a cousin in New York, Dr. John Halstead Sackett, it was dated March 26, 1820 and reads: "Dear Cousin: After a long absence from you and the rest of our relatives and friends, I am glad to inform you that we are all at present in the enjoyment of good health. Father has purchased a very handsome farm. It is as elevated a situation as any in the state. He has 100 acres of it cleared and a comfortable house and barn on it, besides other outbuildings. Father has laid out a town on a portion of his farm, which improves very fast and has several handsome buildings on it. He has named it Monroe, and I think you or some other eminent doctor would do very well here, as at present we have no doctors, only quacks, who are not fit to draw a tooth. Father has a large stock of cattle, sheep and hogs, a yoke of oxen and four elegant horses as handsome and fat as Old Sorrel, and he, you know, is a great favorite of mother's. Riding on horseback is very fashionable here. I have a beautiful milk-white horse and a splendid saddle and bridle..." the letter continues with how productive the soil was and she expected to see "James and Mathew Dubois, who are talking of moving here this summer."

Almire Sackett married George P. Williamson who was the second postmaster of Monroe.

Another early settler was Isaac Conover, he came from New Jersey to Ohio in 1802 and settled in Monroe in 1822. He was a store keeper and in business with Sackett. His son Thomas raised the Butler County Hogs. A grandson I.A. Conover lived for over 80 years, all of them in Monroe.

There were several early manufacturing establishments. About 1840 Peter Jotter had a wagon shop and later made a patented gate and corn markers. His son, William, took over the business about 1872 and kept it for many years. The shop was on the corner of the alley next to the hotel, between Church and Lebanon.

The Paragon Plow Works was owned by Charles Warner, the business was started in 1859, the plow was invented by Mr. Warner in 1976, it was the only ploy of the type in the country. There was also a blacksmith shop and this was carried on, doing custom iron work, by Clarence F. Warner, his son, until 1955.