I grew up in a small town in northern Ohio named New London. There were 2,000 residents and one stop light. I noticed when I was in elementary school, that many of the adjacent towns shared names with towns in Connecticut. Also, it took me years to say the names correctly, I said Greenwich (Green-which) as in Ohio, instead of Greenwich (Gren-ich) as in Connecticut. I did some digging and found out that the towns were in the Firelands District.

            The Firelands district was reserved for families that had their homes burned by British soldiers during the Revolutionary War. At that time, northern Ohio was part of the Connecticut Western Reserve. About thirty Connecticut towns and villages were moved to the Firelands, but very few people relocated there, due to conflicts with the Native Americans.  

            After the War of 1812, in 1815 people started to migrate to the area and clear the woods for farming. Since the district borders Lake Erie, many of the small towns on the lake became important shipping areas, which increased even more after the canals were built. Once the railroad came through, the Firelands were known for farming and manufacturing. Many of the small towns have New England style homes. It is interesting to note that Cedar Point was part of the district also. Many of these records are held at the New London Library and the Norwalk Library. On a side note, the New London Library was built in 1915 has a grant from Andrew Carnegie.