This lovely area along the West fork of the Whitewater river was first occupied by white settlers when Benjamin Maple built his log cabin there in 1811, followed by a log church. Just a short distance south, in 1816, Edward Towner laid out the settlement named Somerset. In 1836, the plans of Rev. James Conwell, formerly of Laurel, Delaware would eventually change the name of the area, and give a boost to it’s economy.  Conwell had hoped his new town would be model example to future communities, in that no lots were to be sold to anyone who made or sold “spirituous liquors”. James Conwell, was one of those instrumental in acquiring appropriation for the Whitewater Canal.
              Even before the canal was completed, the area was an important location for mills and industry in the county, but the canal, and it’s locks, (built of Laurel stone), were ideal power sources for new industry. Laurel became an important location as a canal shipping point for movement of products of the western counties. Pork packing plants, cooper shops and other shipping industries developed around its warehouses, which were packed with salt pork and other commodities, most importantly wheat and lumber, waiting for their shipment down the canal to Cincinnati.
             Eventually, the stone/quarry industry became the leading one in the town, until widespread use of cement developed around WWI.  The Laurel Steam Stone Company was organized in 1900, at that time there was an active quarry 3 miles west of Laurel with a railroad spur over which it was shipping up to 15 car loads of dressed stone a day. It employed from 100 to 150 men. This limestone was used mainly for sidewalk paving. Laurel Stone is an unusually high quality limestone occurring naturally in layers of ideal thickness, and easily separated and worked. Workers at the quarry developed great skill in shaping the stone for many uses, and Laurel stone walkways still grace homes around the county.
            Laurel Fruit Farms, a large orchard of around 650 acres, was located on what is currently Haspin Acres. The soil, climate and hillside exposure were ideal for apple production, and the healthy and productive trees where said to yield an amazing number of bushels per tree. During harvest season, Laurel Fruit Farms hired a great number of local people.
           Laurel grew to an active little town, by the 1930’s it had 6 grocery stores, one drug store, a hotel, a café, a restaurant, a bakery, a garage and full-service gas station, and several other filling stations Most (outside of farming) eventually sought employment in the factories of Connersville.

Today, Laurel is a quiet community along the beautiful Whitewater River, with a population of approximately 600.

References

Weersminger Store	A fine pair of horses.	Laurel Depot	Laurel Street Fair, 1910
Haymaking, c.1910	James Carr's Saloon	Rural route carrier on winter roads.	E. Zacharius, painter and mail carrier, 1909
Laurel Band	Laurel Review newspaper office

References