Stafford, Ohio
village in Monroe County, Ohio, United States
Stafford is a village in Monroe County, Ohio, United States. The population was 71 at the 2020 census.
History
Originally named Bethel, the town was laid out by John Jones in 1838. William Steel, a Scottish-born abolitionist, is credited with changing the name of the village from Bethel to Stafford. He was the father of William Gladstone Steel. He is credited with establishing a good educational system that was also integrated.
Stafford has a rich history as a station on the Underground Railroad. It was known as a "free black" settlement because of the number of African Americans living there, but its population included both black and white ardent abolitionists. It is said that almost everyone in the village was involved in the protection of slaves fleeing to freedom. The most frequented route ran from Marietta in Washington County, Ohio, through Stafford and on to Summerfield, Ohio.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Stafford, Ohio” as village in Monroe County, Ohio, United States. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as village in Monroe County, Ohio, United States. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 14, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2673066. Authority coordinates are 39.713, -81.278. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020 and 1838.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Stafford, Ohio”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Stafford, Ohio primary sources, Stafford, Ohio archive and Stafford research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Stafford, Ohio”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Stafford, Ohio” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.