Greene County, Pennsylvania: History
A significant Native American village, now known as The Fisher Site, was once located in what is now Richhill Township.
One researcher claims that the first white (non-Native Americans) settlers in what later became Greene County were a Dr. Thomas Eckerlin and his two brothers, who lived at the mouth of Dunkard Creek beginning in 1745. Other early pioneers in the mid-1750s include the Provins and Cox families; they lived along Whiteley Creek and at Ten Mile on Castile Run respectively. John Armstrong settled on Muddy Creek and claimed to have the first white child born west of the Monongahela River.
Writing in 1875–1876, another researcher stated that early settlers were largely of Scots, Irish and German origin; that the county was the site of much conflict between early settlers and Native Americans; and that the Great Catawba Indian War Path crossed the Dunkard valley and ran south to Monongalia County, West Virginia.
What is now Greene County was originally claimed by Virginia. Later it was part of Washington County, Pennsylvania.
The Pennsylvania State Legislature created Greene County on February 9, 1796. The capital, Waynesburg, was named after Anthony Wayne, a general in the American Revolutionary War and Native American conflicts.
Garards Fort, an unincorporated community southeast of Waynesburg, is known for the Revolutionary era Corbly family massacre.