St. Teresa of Avila Parish

In the early 1800's, the portion of the Western Reserve soon to be called "Sheffield" was heavily wooded and generously populated with wild game of many species. Early explorers to this wilderness area returned to the east with stories of the beautiful forests, rich soil and an abundance of water provided by Lake Erie and nearby rivers and streams. The number of newly arriving immigrants to the eastern shores of America was steadily increasing each year. Many immigrants had fled religious persecution and political tyranny in their homelands. All were anxious to break the bonds of servitude they were forced to endure in Europe. These new arrivals were hungry for an opportunity to settle in a place being described as a "bountiful land in the wilderness". Many of these arrivals had heard stories of land for sale in the Western Reserve area of Ohio and were anxious to buy their share.

Decisions concerning the sale of Ohio Lands were taken prior to the adoption of the Constitution of the United States in 1787. The Congress of Confederation, which ruled until that time, needed money but had few ways to raise it other than the sale of land. Conflicting claims to the western territories were based on grants to the original colonists of the original thirteen states. These grants had to be settled before legal titles to the land could be issued. This was accomplished by the concession of all claims with the exception of a tract of three million acres along the South Shore of Lake Erie reserved by the State of Connecticut. This area was six percent larger than the whole state of Connecticut and became known as the Western Reserve.