Sharon Township is one of the seventeen 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 Franklin County

Franklin County, Ohio

Franklin County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. In 2010 the population was 1,163,414, making it the second largest county in Ohio and the 34th largest county in population in the United States. Franklin County is also the largest in the eight-county Columbus, Ohio...

, 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 16,455 people in the township, 1,831 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.

Geography

Most of Sharon Township has been annexed by the cities of Westerville

Westerville, Ohio

Westerville, once known as "The Dry Capital of the World", is a city in Franklin and Delaware counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 35,318 at the 2000 census.-Early history:...

, in the northeast of the township, Worthington

Worthington, Ohio

-Dissolution of the Company:By August 11, 1804 the plat maps were completed, payments or notes promising payments collected and deeds prepared for all sixteen thousand acres of the Scioto Company's purchase...

, in the center of the township, and Columbus

Columbus, Ohio

Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...

 (the county seat

County seat

A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....

 of Franklin County), around the edges of the township. The village of Riverlea

Riverlea, Ohio

Riverlea is a village in Franklin County, Ohio, United States, surrounded by Worthington on its north, south, and east sides, and bordered on the west by the Olentangy River, across which is Columbus. Riverlea was incorporated in 1939, a small community that formed on former farmland...

 is located in the central part of the township, south of Worthington.

Today, the township is composed of many small "islands," all of which border the city of Columbus. While some are completely surrounded by Columbus, several have other borders:

• In the northeast, one "island" is surrounded by Westerville, while another borders the city to the north and east
• In the north, one "island" borders Worthington to the south
• In the northwest, one "island" borders Perry Township
  Perry Township, Franklin County, Ohio
  Perry Township is one of the seventeen townships of Franklin County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 4,087 people in the township.-Geography:Most of Perry Township is now part of one of these four cities:...
  
   to the west and Delaware County's Liberty
  Liberty Township, Delaware County, Ohio
  Liberty Township is one of the eighteen townships of Delaware County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 15,429 people in the township, 9,182 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township. This was a significant increase from the 1990 census, at which time its population...
  
   and Orange
  Orange Township, Delaware County, Ohio
  Orange Township is one of the eighteen townships of Delaware County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 12,464 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southern part of the county, it borders the following townships and city:...
  
   Townships to the northwest and north respectively.

Name and history

Statewide, other Sharon Townships are located in Medina

Sharon Township, Medina County, Ohio

Sharon Township is one of the seventeen townships of Medina County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 4,244 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the east part of the county, it borders the following townships and city:...

, Noble

Sharon Township, Noble County, Ohio

Sharon Township is one of the fifteen townships of Noble County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 353 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southwestern part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Noble Township - northeast...

, and Richland

Sharon Township, Richland County, Ohio

Sharon Township is one of the eighteen townships of Richland County, Ohio, United States. It is a part of the Mansfield Metropolitan Statistical Area...

Counties.

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.