Hickory township was made a civil division of the county in 1833, Shenango and Pymatuning townships giving up portions of their territory to form the new township. The essential points in the history of this township are described in the records of the different towns and industrial interests which center about Sharon, Sharpsville, Wheatland, etc. Hickory township is and has been for over sixty years the principal center of the coal and iron and steel industries of Mercer county. 

 

To the east of the Shenango valley, in the beautiful region traversed by the Sharpsville Railroad, were some of the communities formed by the early settlers which were at one time almost rivals of the villages along the river, and which are still interesting for their former associa­tions if not for their present activities. The Moorfield settlement, church and cemetery, [is one] in which many of the oldest families of this vicinity have a fond interest.

East of Sharon on the Mercer road is Hickory Corners and Hermitage postoffice, a little settlement, which contained a number of German Catholic families connected in an early day with the coal mining interests of this vicinity, and among whom was organized the Catholic church which may be said to have been the parent church of the present Sacred Heart congregation at Sharon. Hermitage postoffice was established in April, 1838, with Thompson Dilley as postmaster. The following year John Hoagland, son of one of the pioneers of the township, became postmaster and continued in that office until 1862, making one of the record terms as postmaster.

Until the rural delivery system was inaugurated there were three postoffices in this part of the county—Hermitage, Neshannock and Five Points, each supplying mail facilities to small communities consisting mainly of the employes of the mines. The postoffice called Five Points was established July, 1876, T.J. Duncan being first postmaster. Half a mile north was the village called New Virginia, with a store, church and school as its principal interests. A mile east of New Virginia was Neshannock, which for some years was the terminus of the Sharpsville Railroad, and derived its importance from the coal mines located there. Neshannock postoffice was established February, 1872, with John Phillips as postmaster. At one time the village maintained four churches and several stores.

An almost forgotten community is Keel Ridge, which was sustained by the coal mines, and declined when the mines were worked out. Here was one of the early postoffices of the county, established in February, 1832, and discontinued October, 1835. William Fruit was the only postmaster.

Source: Twentieth Century History of Mercer County, 1909, page 168 

Hickory Township Cemeteries		Hickory Towns & Villages
Bethel UP Church Cemetery Dutch Hill Cemetery Fairview Cemetery Frogtown Cemetery Hickory Hill Cemetery Hillcrest Memorial Park Holy Cross Cemetery Holy Trinity Lutheran Cemetery Keel Ridge Cemetery Morefield Cemetery Oakwood Cemetery (Sharon) Old Catholic Cemetery	Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cemetery Riverside Cemetery (Sharpsville) Sample Cemetery St. Anns Cemetery St. Anthony's Cemetery St. Elizabeth's Cemetery (Farrell) St. John's Cemetery St. Mary's Cemetery St. Michael's Cemetery St. Rose Cemetery Temple Beth Israel Trout Island Cemetery	Dutch Hill Farrell Five Points Hann Hill Keel Ridge Lamont's Corners Neshannock New Virginia Sharon Borough Sharpsville Trout Corners Wheatland Borough