Salem Township was one of the original five townships and was part of Steubenville. It was created June 3, 1807 and contains 36 sections. Many Quakers settled in this area and the Underground Railroad was found here as well as throughout the entire county, concentrating in Ross, Salem, and Mt Pleasant townships. It is a rugged area with tributaries from Cross Creek, Town Fork, and several other creeks and streams. It is good farming land and has coal and oil. Some early surnames that can be found are: Crew, Hout, Coe, Moores, Miser/Mizer, Ford, Farquhar, Walker, Andrews, Cole, Bailey, Gillis, Douglas, McComb, Jackman, Flennigan, Ong, Watson, Strayer, Hardenmadder, Helmick, Lyons, and Wycoff.
