Allen Township is one of the twenty townships

Civil township

A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States, subordinate to, and geographic divisions of, a county. Specific responsibilities and the degree of autonomy vary based on each state. Civil townships are distinct from survey townships, but in states that have both,...

 of Darke County

Darke County, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 53,309 people, 20,419 households, and 14,905 families residing in the county. The population density was 89 people per square mile . There were 21,583 housing units at an average density of 36 per square mile...

, Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The 2000 census

United States Census, 2000

The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...

 found 1,158 people in the township, 725 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.

Geography

Located in the northern part of the county, it borders the following townships:

• Granville Township, Mercer County
  Granville Township, Mercer County, Ohio
  Granville Township is one of the fourteen townships of Mercer County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 3,885 people in the township, 1,434 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - north
• Wabash Township
  Wabash Township, Darke County, Ohio
  Wabash Township is one of the twenty townships of Darke County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 934 people in the township, 725 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - northeast
• York Township
  York Township, Darke County, Ohio
  York Township is one of the twenty townships of Darke County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 523 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northern part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Wabash Township - north...
  
   - southeast
• Brown Township
  Brown Township, Darke County, Ohio
  Brown Township is one of the twenty townships of Darke County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,046 people in the township, 901 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - south
• Jackson Township
  Jackson Township, Darke County, Ohio
  Jackson Township is one of the twenty townships of Darke County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 3,057 people in the township, 1,290 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - southwest
• Mississinawa Township
  Mississinawa Township, Darke County, Ohio
  Mississinawa Township is one of the twenty townships of Darke County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 779 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northwestern corner of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - west
• Gibson Township, Mercer County
  Gibson Township, Mercer County, Ohio
  Gibson Township is one of the fourteen townships of Mercer County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,869 people in the township, 997 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - northwest

Three incorporated villages are located in Allen Township:

• Part of Burkettsville
  Burkettsville, Ohio
  Burkettsville is a village in Darke and Mercer counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 254 at the 2000 census.-History:Burkettsville was founded after the construction of a railroad line through northern Darke County in 1883...
  
   in the far north
• New Weston
  New Weston, Ohio
  New Weston is a village in Darke County, Ohio, United States. The population was 135 at the 2000 census.-History:New Weston was founded in the 1880s during the construction of a railroad line through Allen Township by a predecessor of the Cincinnati, Jackson and Mackinaw Railroad...
  
   in the north
• Rossburg
  Rossburg, Ohio
  Rossburg is a village in Darke County, Ohio, United States. The population was 224 at the 2000 census.Rossburg is home to the Eldora Speedway, a half-mile clay oval race track.-History:Rossburg was platted by John G. Ross in 1868...
  
   in the southeast

Name and history

Statewide, the only other Allen Townships are located in Hancock

Allen Township, Hancock County, Ohio

Allen Township is one of the seventeen townships of Hancock County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,110 people in the township, 1,797 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...

, Ottawa

Allen Township, Ottawa County, Ohio

Allen Township is one of the twelve townships of Ottawa County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 3,591 people in the township, 3,297 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...

, and Union

Allen Township, Union County, Ohio

Allen Township is one of the fourteen townships of Union County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,518 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the western part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Liberty Township - north...

 Counties.

The first settlers within the bounds of today's Allen Township were the families of Ephraim and Aaron Ireland. The township was organized in March of 1839 as a split from Brown Township

Brown Township, Darke County, Ohio

Brown Township is one of the twenty townships of Darke County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,046 people in the township, 901 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...

. It was greatly reduced when the Mercer County

Mercer County, Ohio

Mercer County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. Its county seat is Celina and is named for Hugh Mercer, an officer in the American Revolutionary War.The Celina Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Mercer County.-Geography:...

 line was extended to the south; approximately half of the township was split off to form that county's Granville Township

Granville Township, Mercer County, Ohio

Granville Township is one of the fourteen townships of Mercer County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 3,885 people in the township, 1,434 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...

. The first school in the township was built in 1840, and the first church was an Evangelical

Evangelical Association

The Evangelical Church or Evangelical Association, also known as the Albright Brethren, is a "body of American Christians chiefly of German descent", Arminian in doctrine and theology; in its form of church government, Methodist Episcopal....

 congregation. The first railroad in the township was a predecessor of the Cincinnati, Jackson and Mackinaw Railroad, which built a line through Rossburg and New Weston in 1883.

Government

The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1. Two are elected in the year after the presidential election and one is elected in the year before it. There is also an elected township fiscal officer, who serves a four-year term beginning on April 1 of the year after the election, which is held in November of the year before the presidential election. Vacancies in the fiscal officership or on the board of trustees are filled by the remaining trustees. The current trustees are Jerry Bergman, Paul Mestemaker, and Neal Siefring, and the clerk is Patricia Kaiser.