The Buck Run Community

In 1996, my father and I crisscrossed Union County, searching for cemeteries. We decided to start in Allen Township. The first cemetery we photographed was the Buck Run Cemetery, located on present-day State Route 245 on the bank of Buck Run. Stepping through the cemetery gate, I felt as though I was transported to another time.

I wandered through the cemetery and read the inscriptions. In my mind I could hear the voices of children playing in the school yard that was once located across the road. I could hear the church bell ringing at the Buck Run Methodist Episcopal Church. And, I could hear mothers crying at the graves of young children who died all to young.

I could imagine the small Buck Run community, but what was it really like?

The Buck Run Community was never platted as a village. It was simply a cluster of houses that sprouted up near a small, country Methodist Episcopal Church, a township school, and a cemetery. There is evidence that at one time there was also a small country store. The store housed the Buck Run Post Office. This country post office was established on April 18, 1829. Population growth was slow, and most of Allen Township was considered wilderness. And, on December 29, 1830, the post office was closed. The community petitioned for a post office in 1832, and on April 3 the post office was reopened. This post was closed again on September 5, 1834. Again the community petitioned for postal service to return to the area, and on June 3, 1839 the post office was reopened. The Buck Run Post Office was disbanded for the final time on March 8, 1843. It was never reopened.

Today all that remains of the Buck Run Community is the cemetery and the crumbling cornerstone of the M. E. Church. There are a few houses nearby, but these are probably new builds and not at al connected to the pioneer Buck Run area.