Through the terms of his will, absentee British landowner Samuel Gist freed his 350 slaves in Virginia. He intended that these freed people would remain on the land, receive instruction in Christianity, and have schools established for their children. The settlement of Gist’s estate funded the relocation of the free slaves to Ohio, where his executors acquired over 2,200 acres of land, including two large tracts in Scott and Eagle Townships in Brown County in 1819 and another 207 acres in Fairfield Township, now Penn Township, in Highland County in 1831 and 1835. As of 2010 no descendants of the freed Gist slaves lived in the original Scott Township settlement. The original lot owners in the Scott Township settlement were Old Ben, Old Lucky, Dolly, Little Daniel, Billey and Lucy, grandchildren of Old Lucy, Nat, Patcy, Cato, Abraham, Aaron, Nelly, Suckey, wife of Peter Clough, Bob Clough, Anthony Gist, Peter Punch, Rozetta, Nelson, Barnett, Aggy, Cain, Edmond, Caty, Strawberry, Moses Smith, Anderson and Nelson, sons of Betty, Betty Armistead, Bristor, Jack __ and Becky, Tom, Chener, and Hezekiah (Heziah).