I had few expectations about our visit to Concord Township in Highland Countyt, Ohio. My attempt to reach a trustee of the township had gone unanswered. Wikipaedia gave just a thumbnail: “Concord Township is one of the seventeen townships of Highland County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2020 census the population was 1,361.” Google maps shows a dozen roads, three farmstands, and a car repair shop.
I found an old history of Highland County that stated the town of Concord was “Laid off Mar. 4, 1811.” I’m not sure how much credence to give this source since it also states that “Concord New Hampshire was an early center of resistance to the British and the scene of one of the first battles for indepence.” Since there was no “Battle of Concord New Hampshire” during the Revolution, I have to assume the author slept through a few history classes.
Tom and I reached Highland County in the early afternoon. Our expectations were low, but that made every detail all the more important.
The main crossroads had once been the site of three of four shops, but all that remained was an abandoned gas station. I had to get out to capture the beauty in the decay.
I found an old history of Highland County that stated the town of Concord was “Laid off Mar. 4, 1811.” I’m not sure how much credence to give this source since it also states that “Concord New Hampshire was an early center of resistance to the British and the scene of one of the first battles for indepence.” Since there was no “Battle of Concord New Hampshire” during the Revolution, I have to assume the author slept through a few history classes.
Tom and I reached Highland County in the early afternoon. Our expectations were low, but that made every detail all the more important.
The main crossroads had once been the site of three of four shops, but all that remained was an abandoned gas station. I had to get out to capture the beauty in the decay.
About a mile from the crossroad, we found the first of three Amish farm stands. Many Concords across the country have either an Amish or Mennonite community. Both of these Anabaspist sects originally came from Germany and speak Pennsylvannian Dutch. The primary difference is that the Amish are generally most strict about their adherence to traditional ways. There is much overlap in these cultures. The Amish settlements generally predated the Mennonites. Some Mennonites drive cars and tractors while the Amish stick to horse powered vehicles.
According to the website Amish 365, there were no Amish in Highland County in 2000, but by 2017 when we visited, the Amish were firmly established as key members of the community. We found three thriving farm stands/general stores within a couple of miles of each other. It seemed like the Amish were breathing life back into a recently morbund community. Like immigrant communities in Concord North Carolina, and Concord California, The Amish were filling a niche and bringing commerce back to the county. According to the Times Gazette out of nearby Hillsboro, the county commissioners were proposing to build in Concord “a multi-use path, like a bicycle path, that would be wide enough to have buggies pass through… the path would make a safe route for the Amish community.” The same article discussed building emergency cell towers in the area to fill a void in the coverage. Can the past be integrated with the future for the betterment of the community of Concord Township in Highland County, Ohio?