With the settlement of Cay Henry Ewoldt, one of the original colony of 1857, within the present confines of Center township, in 1862, this township can point almost as far back for the beginnings of its history as its neighboring townships.

Mr. Ewoldt increased his original purchase until he acquired a fine farm of aroud 500 acres of magnificent land. Martin Schimmer acquired holdings in Center township at an early day. Jacob Shoemaker came in about 1866 or 1867. Other early settlers in this township were Henry Grabach,John Greenfield, C. P. Rathbun, Wm. C. Mullen, William Fishburn, F. W. Hessel and Adam Hessel, G. J. Squires, and William McLean.

A roster of those who owned land in the township prior to 1890 shows, among others: A. B. Perkins, Chas. Wasmer, C. A. VonWasmer, E. S. La-

mon, Ira T. Paine, H. H. Vocke, E. B. Engleman, Jas. H. Ring, A. Simon, Lara O. Thompson, Fritz Langman, H. Kruse, Jas. McGuire, J. R. Alter, D. M. Alter, J. L. Johnson, Jas. A. Clemen, Edgar Varney, H. Gosda, John Felske, Martin Witzki, E. Runsthel, Solomon Hopper, george E. Conley, Wm. S. Mittelbacher, Alex. Stewart, S. W. Taylor, L. C. Hixon, Jas. A. Brown, R. H. McAllister, Harvey Petrson, Chris Hann, Fred Roby, N. McCombs, F. J. Fischer, Peter Hames, Henry Davidson, M. A. Davidson, John Nielson, P. and H. Shultz, David Liedtke, Chas. Stroup, Leander Clark, George L. Ropuse, Ernest Graffe, Ed Dinan, Seth Dunbar, E. E. Glenn, Wm. O. Baylor, Ed Searson, Sarah Houser, Meliss Fallis, Emanuel Stringfellow, Jas. H. Watts, Fritz Becker, Henry Shoel, Charles Ewoldt, E. F. H. Shultz, William H. Houser, G. M. Filsinger, B. C. McMaster, Patrick Dunphy, Richard S. Badgett, A. Hofmeister, George Richard, Charles Nichols, Ira Nichols, John W. Pence, S. H. Ferguson.