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Elizabeth Township Historical Society of Ohio

Name: Elizabeth Township Historical Society of Ohio
Address: 5760 E Walnut Grove Rd, Troy, OH, 45373, US
Telephone: +19372052072
Price range: $$

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Elizabeth Township Historical Society of Ohio

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Mission Statement: To preserve the provenance and continuing heritage lifestyle of the people and the place of Elizabeth Township, Miami County, Ohio.

10/19/2026

There is still time to register for this wonderful program! Call or text 937-307-7142 to reserve your seat.

10/06/2026

Frank E. and Mary Benham Family

We mentioned that Frank and Mary Benham had six children in eight years. When you have that many kids in quick succession, chances are grandchildren may follow in the same way.

Here are twelve of the Benham grandchildren with Grandma Mary in around 1951 or 1952 on the porch at Bob and Edna's home on Tipp-Elizabeth Rd. Twelve grandchildren were born in eight years. Six more were added between 1952 and 1961 when twins, Ruth and Rita, were born. The oldest grandchildren Barbara and Jay graduated from high school that same year.

10/05/2026

Don't forget to register for this engaging program. Details below!

10/04/2026

Here is a picture of the Frank E. Benham family in the late 1920s. Frank Edwin Benham married Mary Etta Young when he was 53 and she was 27. They had a farm on Rudy Road just south of Tipp Elizabeth Road. Their grandson, Jim and great-grandson Doug and his family now own and farm that farm.

Mary Young Benham also grew up in Elizabeth Township on the dairy farm on what is now Tipp-Elizabeth Rd. just east of Gearhart Rd. Frank and Mary had six children in eight years, including Robert Woodrow, who was born in 1917, Frank Arthur (1919), Roy Edwin (1920), Lloyd George (1922), Cassa Elizabeth (1923), and John Morris (1925). They were a lively family and well known at Elizabeth School.

Frank was a farmer, teacher, and Elizabeth Township’s Justice of the Peace for many years. Frank died in 1933. His wife, Mary, continued to farm with the help of her five sons and daughter. She was a very strong but yet loving presence in the family until her death in 1979.

Two of the "Benham Boys" served during World War II. Arthur served in the Army in Europe. He was severely wounded near Tendon, France and was awarded a Purple Heart. Lloyd served in the Marines in the Pacific Theater. He served in two of the worst battles of the war… Peleliu and Okinawa. He also received a Purple Heart.

All five of the Benham brothers farmed. There are still several farmers in the Benham family here in Elizabeth Township and in Clark County where Lloyd and Martha’s family still farms her family's farm.

There are also many other professions in the family, but the most noticeable one other than farming in this family is teaching. Frank and three of his children became teachers. Cassa taught in Tipp City and Troy. Lloyd taught and then was a principal in Yellow Springs and Hudson Ohio. He eventually returned to Yellow Springs as school superintendent and later served internationally in Africa and South America. John was teacher and coach in his younger years at Jackson High School in Champaign County. Later in his career, he taught physical education at Bethel Local and then ended his career at Vandalia Butler as an industrial arts instructor.

There have been over twenty teachers in the Benham family, and teachers are still being added in every generation.

An interesting note: there have been 5 generations of educators in the Miami East School District from the Benham family. Frank Benham was a teacher at Elizabeth Township School #2 (Kyle School) on Tipp Elizabeth Road. Carrie Benham (Frank’s niece) also taught in Elizabeth Township, as did in-laws Martha Benham and Jean Benham. Joan Benham Yount Kocur taught at Staunton and Elizabeth Elementary Schools, Heather Benham Gilliland teaches at Miami East Junior High, and now, Frank and Mary Benham’s great-great-granddaughter, Kaylee Wheat (Barbara Benham Sutton’s granddaughter), is a fifth grade teacher at Miami East Elementary. That is quite a tradition!

Seated:
Frank, John, Cassa, and Mary
Standing: Lloyd, Robert, Arthur and Roy

10/03/2026

This is a photograph most likely from around 1890 of the children of John V. and Cassa (Bousman) Benham. Cassa was born in Elizabeth Township in 1831, the daughter of Leonard Bousman (also spelled Bausman) and Elizabeth Jackson Bousman. Both the Jacksons and the Bousmans came to Elizabeth Township in the early 1810s. John V. Benham was born in Warren County, Ohio in 1822 and moved to Elizabeth Township in 1845. He first stayed with his cousins John and Mary (Covert) Randolph. John went to work for Leonard Bousman and met Leonard’s daughter, Cassa, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The two oldest Benham brothers were fraternal twins, Robert Pierce and Albert Ross. They were born in 1852. Their father took a trip to California during the years of the Gold Rush. He came home with $200 (about $7500 today) and a few good stories. Frank Edwin was born in 1861, followed by Mary Emma “Emmie”(1862) and in Sarah Caroline “Callie” (1864).

Robert Benham married Martha Bradfute of Greene County. They had four children, Carrie, John, Cassa and Walter. Carrie was a teacher in Elizabeth township and went to Oberlin College in northern Ohio. She later moved to North Dakota where she was a nurse and then the head of nurse education for North Dakota for many years. Her sister, Cassa (Cassie) also attended Oberlin College, majoring in Geology. She taught school, then became a nurse, and finally she was a librarian. She moved to Minnesota after she married Robert Selnes, a prominent judge. They had no children. Robert farmed in Elizabeth Township for many years and moved to Troy for his retirement. He died in 1930. His son, John, stayed on the family farm. He married Fannie Fern Saylor and they farmed the farm on Gearhart Rd. Their daughter, Helen, married William Shellhaas and they had four sons, James, David, Joe and John who grew up across the road from Elizabeth School.

Albert married Burnetta Sayers and they had Corena, Charles and Roger. Albert farmed in Elizabeth Township and then removed to Tipp City in his retirement. He died in 1923.

Frank Benham farmed, raised Durham Cattle (now called Shorthorn) and Poland China Hogs. He also taught school and was the justice of the peace for Elizabeth Township for many years. There will be more on his family tomorrow.

Callie married Harry Freeman of Bethel Township. They had three children and lived in Phoneton, Ohio, where they ran a boarding house. After Harry died in 1897, Callie moved back to Elizabeth Township and lived with her sister, Emmie. She bought the farm next door for her son John Freeman, who paid it off in 10 years. John married Lilly Saylor (Fannie’s sister). Callie’s other son, Frances, moved to Montana, where he had a farm. Her daughter, Mary Emma (named for her sister), passed away at not quite a year old in 1895.

As we noted in a previous post, Emmie Benham never married but lived in the township her entire life. She helped the family as needed and had a route to sell eggs and butter in the Tipp City area. She told family she had had a very full and happy life.

09/10/2026

Don't miss this riveting program on one of the most challenging times in colonial America:

08/30/2026

This is a charcoal drawing of Mary Emma Benham who was born in Elizabeth Township in 1862. Emma (or Aunt Emmie), a descendant of the Gearhart, Bousman, Jackson and Benham pioneer families of Elizabeth Township, spent virtually her entire life living in the same home. She attended the first Kyle School (Elizabeth Township School #2). She never married but had many nieces and nephews who kept her busy.

After her parents died, she kept their little farm on Tipp-Elizabeth Road between Benham Road and Rudy Road. She sold butter and eggs to grocers and homes in Tipp City to supplement her income. She was a member of Cove Spring Church and Cove Spring Grange.

Emma had four siblings, three who lived with their families within a mile of her little farm. Her brother, Frank, lived on an adjoining farm with his wife, Mary (Young) and their six children. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Emma’s nephew, Arthur Benham, his wife Virginia (a nurse) and their two oldest children, Dick and Joan, lived with Emma and cared for her. Emma spent most of her life happily on her little farm and died in December of 1956 at the age of 94.

08/14/2026

SUTHERLY FAMILY SERIES
POST #6:

While Wes and Kate Sutherly were neither born in Elizabeth Township, they loved their community. They served actively as members of Cove Spring Church and on a committee of concerned township citizens that in 1993 opposed the potential expansion of Interstate 675 through the township. This committee’s work laid the foundation for the entire township to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997 as Ohio’s first rural historic district.

Their grandson, Ben, became involved with the work and put his skills as a journalist to work when he wrote the book, A History of Elizabeth Township, Miami County Ohio, with Carol Mumford. That book has had its second printing and is still in popular demand today.

Wes and Kate Sutherly met as newcomers to Elizabeth Township, but they quickly made it their home. They instilled an understanding in their children and grandchildren that hard work, good sense and determination will bring success. They also put a very strong emphasis on the importance of family. That formula combined for quite a lasting legacy.

ETHS extends a huge thank you to the Sutherly family for helping us tell their story. Special thanks to Ben Sutherly who allowed us to use excerpts of the article he wrote about the Sutherly/Miller Families for the Elizabeth Township Historical Society Newsletter (published in August of 2021).

08/13/2026

SUTHERLY FAMILY SERIES POST #5:
The Sutherly grandchildren (ten in total) grew up in Elizabeth Township, the third generation to do so. They went to Elizabeth Elementary School and Miami East High School, participating in many school activities. Their participation in 4-H and FFA have also been a part of this family’s story. The Sutherlys have won many awards, championships, and earned recognition for different achievements.

One wonderful highlight for the family was when the eldest cousin, Dan Sutherly, won grand champion market steer at the Ohio State Fair in 1986, setting a new sale price record at that time.

Wes and Kate’s grandchildren attended university and moved into the workforce. Their numbers include an accountant, agri-business managers/owners, educators, a professor in the field of agriscience, a healthcare communication director/journalist, an agricultural insurance agent, livestock producers, and farmers. The great grandchildren’s generation has already produced an attorney, a farm implement dealership manager, and ag communications/sales associate, livestock producers, and of course, farmers.

There is now a fifth generations of the Wes and Kate Sutherly family that will undoubtedly be taught to be the best people they can be whatever they choose to do in life. Their family continues to grow and excel, and they work hard to further the field of agriculture and the rural way of life.

08/12/2026

SUTHERLY FAMILY SERIES
POST #4:

Wes and Kate’s farm eventually became known as “the dairy” as it was where their four sons milked Holsteins until 2003.
Even after Wes and Kate’s children married and had families of their own, the dairy remained the hub for
Sunday evening meals. Without fail, Kate had a big batch of salted or caramel popcorn sitting atop the stove that family members munched out of metal bowls. Wes would often buy fried chicken for these dinners. Kate’s meringue puffs, or “kisses,” often rounded out the family potluck.

Afterward, there were often baseball games or volleyball games in the side yard, or board games inside the house. “Hide the Thimble” was a favorite of some of the grandkids. When these evenings drew to a close, Kate always stood outside the kitchen door, waving to family members as their cars departed.

On Christmas morning, Kate always served breakfast at the dairy. Like many farmwives of her day, she was not familiar with the term “portion control”. Platters were heaped with bacon, ham, sausage, scrambled eggs, and about every bread product you could imagine. She also served grape juice she had made from the farm orchard’s arbor. Kate’s family could always count on her to yell “Christmas gift!” as they tried to quietly enter the house … the trick was to try to shout it out before she could. This family tradition endures to this day.

Address

5760 E Walnut Grove Rd
Troy, OH
45373

Opening Hours

Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm
Saturday	12pm - 5pm

Telephone

+19372052072

Website

http://ETHSofOhio.com/

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