LIBERTY TOWNSHIP — Two-hundred years of history will be on display as Liberty Township will celebrate this milestone on Sunday, Aug. 20 at the Liberty Township building, 7277 State Route 134 North.

“We thought we’d have some people come out and have some cake and a drink,” said Liberty Township Trustee Gary Mason.We’ll have some old photos and records. We’re probably going to lay those out so people can thumb through them,”

Among them are class photos from old schools in Liberty Township. They’ll also have a book out that highlights various events.

The records include minutes of meetings in the township and records from the justice of the peace “who took care of things” in the township, according to Mason.

The township was founded on July 15, 1817, but the celebration was delayed due to overlapping events taking up time.

There will also be speakers including Mike Mason will be talk about the Grasshopper Railroad and maybe Gary Kersey will speak about Gilbert “Lil’ Gibb” Van Zandt.

“(Lil’ Gibb) was a drummer in the Civil War,” said Trustee Ron Stryker. “He was one of the youngest drummers in the war. It’s a pretty interesting story.”

Mason said that they’ve been to the Clinton County Historical Society to look at photos and hope to find old newspaper articles at the library about events in the township.

“This event gives a real perspective of where (the township) comes from,” said Stryker.

If anyone has an item or photo they’d like to contribute to the event, contact Gary Mason at 937-486-5345 or Ron Stryker at 937-486-2375.