Historical Sites
The Ealy House
The Ealy House
Following the Revolutionary War, the Federal Government claimed 2.5 million acres of land for veterans. This land, the Military District in Ohio, encompassed what is now Plain Township, which New Albany is part of. This was in 1796, by which point many veterans had sold their warrants for the land in question, which was in the southeast portion of Plain Township. A man named Dudley Woodbridge owned the southwest 4000 acres from having purchased land from the government, but sold it in 1802 to Pennsylvania farmer John Huffman. The Huffmans and many of their relatives had been pushed west into Ohio by the 1794 “Whiskey Rebellion,” during which federal troops were sent to eastern Pennsylvania because the farmers there were not paying federal tax on whiskey, which they had made out of their grain so that it could resist rot and transport easily.
By 1812, it was clear that the federal government had reserved too much land in Ohio for the veterans of the Revolutionary War. What is now the north portion of Plain Township was part of this land, and it began being sold at two dollars per acre. By 1814, many were settling onto the land. An early settler, Archibald Smith, wrote that land in Ohio was an exciting opportunity that motivated “hundreds” to move to “the new country.”
Noble Landon, who gave the town its name and was its first postmaster, established the town of New Albany with William Yantes in 1837. The location was chosen for the roads that crossed there, connecting settlements in the area to one another. These roads are now Route 62, Route 161, and Route 605. Landon and his family were well-known, and some relatives followed him to Ohio and into New Albany.
There were eleven one-room schoolhouses in Plain Township, all established after 1830. According to the older citizens interviewed by the local historical society, the districts in the township were specifically arranged so that individual students would be within a mile of a school so they would not have to walk longer distances to school. The one-room schools were all closed in 1925, when a central school in the village became the base of the consolidated school system.
The record of New Albany’s history as presented on the New Albany Plain Township Historical Society’s website is relatively vague from the period surrounding the American Civil War up until more recent decades. We know that people came to the area looking for work and inexpensive land during the Great Depression, and many people moved to Columbus and the surrounding areas from border states during World War II, but other than that, more big changes did not come to New Albany until the end of the 20th century. Les Wexner’s New Albany Company has expanded the town and created a very uniform look for many of its buildings. White fences and Georgian style architecture mean the “look” of the town is very characteristic, but the New Albany Company has “tight architectural control.”
Information from New Albany Plain Township Historical Society
By 1812, it was clear that the federal government had reserved too much land in Ohio for the veterans of the Revolutionary War. What is now the north portion of Plain Township was part of this land, and it began being sold at two dollars per acre. By 1814, many were settling onto the land. An early settler, Archibald Smith, wrote that land in Ohio was an exciting opportunity that motivated “hundreds” to move to “the new country.”
Noble Landon, who gave the town its name and was its first postmaster, established the town of New Albany with William Yantes in 1837. The location was chosen for the roads that crossed there, connecting settlements in the area to one another. These roads are now Route 62, Route 161, and Route 605. Landon and his family were well-known, and some relatives followed him to Ohio and into New Albany.
There were eleven one-room schoolhouses in Plain Township, all established after 1830. According to the older citizens interviewed by the local historical society, the districts in the township were specifically arranged so that individual students would be within a mile of a school so they would not have to walk longer distances to school. The one-room schools were all closed in 1925, when a central school in the village became the base of the consolidated school system.
The record of New Albany’s history as presented on the New Albany Plain Township Historical Society’s website is relatively vague from the period surrounding the American Civil War up until more recent decades. We know that people came to the area looking for work and inexpensive land during the Great Depression, and many people moved to Columbus and the surrounding areas from border states during World War II, but other than that, more big changes did not come to New Albany until the end of the 20th century. Les Wexner’s New Albany Company has expanded the town and created a very uniform look for many of its buildings. White fences and Georgian style architecture mean the “look” of the town is very characteristic, but the New Albany Company has “tight architectural control.”
Information from New Albany Plain Township Historical Society