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Franklin County Engineer

As a local public works agency headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, the Franklin County Engineer's Office is responsible for the maintenance and construction of 271 miles of county roadway and 351 county bridges, as well as upkeep of all county ditches, drains, retention basins, and other storm water facilities within the right-of-way of county roads in unincorporated areas. To meet the continuing development and infrastructure needs of Franklin County, the Engineer's Office utilizes the latest technologies for determining and maintaining roadway centerlines and boundaries; retracing and setting new monuments for original public land surveys; preparing geographic information system mapping for real estate tax assessments; and establishing precise countywide horizontal and vertical control to maintain uniformity in construction, surveying, and mapping.
Franklin County Engineer
Franklin County Engineer
The 2025 Township Resurfacing Program is underway across participating townships. While overall work areas are set, activity within each location may vary based on the scope of work and weather conditions. Please drive with caution in work zones and follow posted signage. Thank you for your patience as we work to improve the roads in your community!
Franklin County Engineer
Franklin County Engineer
Beach Road, west of Amity Road, will be closed beginning Monday, July 7, 2025, for bridge maintenance work. The closure will last approximately ninety (90) days, weather permitting.
Franklin County Engineer
Franklin County Engineer
The Franklin County Engineer’s Office had a blast at this morning’s WABA - Westland Area Business Association Independence Day Parade! It was great to see so many smiling faces and celebrate with the community ahead of the holiday. Thanks for the warm welcome. We love being part of this tradition!
Franklin County Engineer
Franklin County Engineer
Leppert Road, between Hayden Run Road and Scioto Darby Road, is now open to traffic.
Franklin County Engineer
Franklin County Engineer
The road closure for bridge rehabilitation work on Harrisburg-Georgesville Road over Big Darby Creek, between London-Groveport Road and Opossum Run Road, initially scheduled to begin Monday, June 30, 2025, has been delayed to Monday, July 7, 2025. The closure will last approximately one-hundred eighty (180) days, weather permitting.
Franklin County Engineer
Franklin County Engineer
The West North Broadway 1.18 over Olentangy River project is currently underway. Our contractor, Complete General Construction, is actively working on Phase 1 of construction while bridge improvements continue. Stay tuned for updates as the project progresses.
Franklin County Engineer's Office
970 DUBLIN ROAD
COLUMBUS, OHIO 43215
(614) 525-3030
fracoeng@franklincountyengineer.org

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Surveyor’s Journal Entry Three

Surveyor’s Journal Entry Three

Rufus Putnam Advocates the Apportionment of Land

In the closing months of the American Revolution, Brigadier General and Surveyor Rufus Putnam advocated that war veterans and their families be allocated land in Ohio as compensation for their service. He was a supporter of the Newburgh Petition, signed by 288 Continental Army officers, which called for their pay to be in land warrants that could be redeemed or sold, and that resettled troops would protect the frontier.

Even though the initial proposal was denounced and its supporters labeled as “conspirators,” the petition influenced the legislatures of Virginia and Connecticut that had territorial claims in Ohio, as well as Congress, to set aside military bounty lands.

Putnam, a Massachusetts native, then created the Ohio Company of Associates, in 1786, which purchased 1.5 million acres of public land at the confluence of the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers. Marietta, the first permanent settlement in the Northwest Territory, was established there in 1788 by Putnam and a group of war veterans.

The use of purchased military warrants lowered the investors’ overall expense to 8.5 cents per acre. Congress also gave an additional 100,000 acres to encourage settlement, which became known as the “Donation Tract.”

Putnam fulfilled his promise to protect the frontier by serving in the Continental Army under the leadership of General Anthony Wayne during the Ohio Indian Wars. For his service to the nation, Putnam was appointed as the first “Surveyor General” of the United States in 1796, and as a Supreme Court Judge for the Northwest Territory.

When Congress passed the Enabling Act of 1802, permitting Ohio to become a state, the territory consisted of 20 federally recognized bodies of land, including the Virginia Military District, U.S. Military District, Refugee Tract, and U.S. Congress Lands that covered the state’s midsection. Nearly half of the acreage was designated for settlement by war veterans as envisioned by General Putnam.