Rutland Township is one of the twelve 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 Meigs County

Meigs County, Ohio

Meigs County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 23,770. Its county seat is Pomeroy, and it is named for Return J. Meigs, Jr., the 4th Governor of Ohio.-Geography:...

, 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 2,347 people in the township, 1,946 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.

Geography

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

• Scipio Township
  Scipio Township, Meigs County, Ohio
  Scipio Township is one of the twelve townships of Meigs County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,050 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northwestern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - north
• Bedford Township
  Bedford Township, Meigs County, Ohio
  Bedford Township is one of the twelve townships of Meigs County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,212 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - northeast corner
• Salisbury Township
  Salisbury Township, Meigs County, Ohio
  Salisbury Township is one of the twelve townships of Meigs County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 6,441 people in the township, 1,950 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - east
• Cheshire Township, Gallia County
  Cheshire Township, Gallia County, Ohio
  Cheshire Township is one of the fifteen townships of Gallia County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,259 people in the township, 1,038 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - south
• Morgan Township, Gallia County
  Morgan Township, Gallia County, Ohio
  Morgan Township is one of the fifteen townships of Gallia County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,341 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - southwest
• Salem Township
  Salem Township, Meigs County, Ohio
  Salem Township is one of the twelve townships of Meigs County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 944 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southwestern corner of the county, it borders the following townships:*Columbia Township - north...
  
   - west
• Columbia Township
  Columbia Township, Meigs County, Ohio
  Columbia Township is one of the twelve townships of Meigs County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,018 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northwestern corner of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - northwest corner

Two populated places are located in Rutland Township: the village of Rutland

Rutland, Ohio

Rutland is a village in Meigs County, Ohio, United States. The population was 401 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Rutland is located at . The village lies in the Appalachian Plateau physiographic region...

, the smallest village in Meigs County, in the center; and the unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 of Langsville

Langsville, Ohio

Langsville is an unincorporated community in western Rutland Township, Meigs County, Ohio, United States, along Leading Creek. Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office, with the ZIP code of 45741.-Education:...

, in the center, a short distance west of Rutland.

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.