Geneva Township is one of the twenty-seven 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 Ashtabula County

Ashtabula County, Ohio

Ashtabula County is the northeasternmost county in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 101,497, its county seat is Jefferson. The county is named for a Native American word meaning "river of many fish"....

, 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 11,954 people in the township, 3,814 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.

Geography

Located in the northwestern corner of the county along Lake Erie

Lake Erie

Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...

, it borders the following townships:

• Saybrook Township
  Saybrook Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio
  Saybrook Township is one of the twenty-seven townships of Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 10,051 people in the township, 5,957 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - east
• Austinburg Township
  Austinburg Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio
  Austinburg Township is one of the twenty-seven townships of Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,234 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northwestern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - southeast corner
• Harpersfield Township
  Harpersfield Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio
  Harpersfield Township is one of the twenty-seven townships of Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,603 people in the township.-Geography:Located on the northwestern edge of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - south
• Madison Township, Lake County
  Madison Township, Lake County, Ohio
  Madison Township is one of the five townships of Lake County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 18,428 people in the township, 15,494 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - west

The Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 province of Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

 lies across Lake Erie to the north.

Two municipalities are located in Geneva Township: most of the city of Geneva

Geneva, Ohio

Geneva is a city in Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The area which would become Geneva was originally settled in 1805, and was incorporated as a city in 1958. It is named after Geneva, New York. The city's population was 6,595 at the 2000 census....

 in the south, and the village of Geneva-on-the-Lake

Geneva-on-the-Lake, Ohio

Geneva-on-the-Lake is a village in Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,545 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Geneva-on-the-Lake is located at ....

 in the north, on the shoreline of Lake Erie.

Name and history

Named for the city of Geneva, New York

Geneva, New York

Geneva is a city in Ontario and Seneca counties in the U.S. state of New York. The population was 13,617 at the 2000 census. Some claim it is named after the city and canton of Geneva in Switzerland. Others believe the name came from confusion over the letters in the word "Seneca" written in cursive...

, it is the only Geneva Township statewide.

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. Currently, the board is composed of chairman Richard Pruden and members Tim Mills and Bob Russell.