| In April, 1819, the state
legislature declared Shelby a new county with a population of 1,500 to 2,000.
Sidney’s original town plat of 70 acres, nestled against the great Miami river, was
part of the Starrett farm, given to
local authorities for the sole purpose of starting a town. Charles Starrett, the founder
of Sidney, was an Irish emigrant whose
original homestead was located near Starrett’s Run, along South Walnut Avenue (in
the vicinity of what was Erb Lumber, 231 S. Walnut). Although it was a noble gesture on the part of the donor to give 70 acres for the establishment of a new town, it was also a shrewd business plan since land cultivating corn fetched a price of $8 an acre in 1820 (a 70 acre sale would realize $560), while Starrett’s share from the sale of lots brought him more than $3,000. The county was named after General Isaac Shelby, an officer in the Revolutionary War and first governor of Kentucky. The new town was named Sidney, after Sir Philip Sidney, an English soldier, statesmen, patriot, writer and member of parliament. David Henry, Director of Sidney, hired Benjamin Cox, a surveyor, to lay out the town in 113 lots. Although it would be several decades after the founding of Sidney before the seed of commerce was planted, once it sprouted, this area developed into a formidable business and industrial power. And thus, a successful community was born. [Back]
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Site of Klipstine Lumber Company, ca. 1909, just one of the many lumber companies that located along South Walnut Avenue near the homestead of Sidney founder, Charles Starrett. |
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