Cornerville An Early Settlement

The Marietta Register, February 1, 1890

In the fall of 1807, George and William Corner, brothers just at the threshold of manhood, went out from Marietta into the unbroken wilderness and built their settlers' cabins on the banks of the Little Muskingum.

The elder, George, was just on the eve of marriage, and when December's snows fell, his cabin sheltered him and his bride. William Corner married in 1811, and about that time also, the brothers were joined by Mr. James Flagg, whose wife was a sister of the Corner's.

George Corner had purchased his land upon the west side of the stream, while William and Mr. Flagg were upon the east side.

Here lived, labored and grew this little community, occupying a considerable extent of territory, which in accordance with the usage of the times, and with the literal truth was known throughout the neighboring country as the "Corner Settlement."

In the course of time, settlements multiplied round about them, and neighbors were less scarce, though separated in some instances by miles. Friendliness and neighborly kindness were large, and claims upon hospitability were a generously made as acceded to, so that to a certain large class of people the family medicine chest and household knowledge of medicine possessed by George Corner were the free and common source of relief for the ordinary ills of a new community, where there was no physician nearer than Dr. Hildreth. George Corner served as Justice of the Peace for many years; was also a surveyor and as such was in frequent and wide demand.

In the winter of 1829-30 George Corner, with Richard and Stephen Alcock of a neighboring settlement, built a saw and grist mill at the bend of the creek in the midst of the "Corner Settlement." This was patronized very largely, and I might say altogether by the countryside, people coming to it for miles in all directions, down the creek, over the hills, and men from the "valley," farmers in that locality coming down the Ohio and up the Muskingum by boat, while the growing logging business further up the stream found here a place where the bulky raw material could be turned into lumber for transportation to points down the river.

"Corner's Mills" came to be quite a center of business activity.

The school of the place from its early beginning has had its home upon ground that has contributed to the support of the state by taxes levied upon George Corner or his representative unto this day. The church also, which was organized in 1843, later built its house of worship upon a plot of ground which was freely given for the purpose from the Corner homestead farm.

In 1844 George Corner died. Previous to his death the place had been called occasionally "Cornerville." After his death, Mr. Edward Johnson, for many years his miller, out of admiration and respect for his late employer, is said to have permanently fixed the name of "Cornerville," which remains to this day.