The township as originally created was approximately and included all of the Butler County portions of what is Middletown and most of the Butler County part of Monroe, the remainder being in Liberty Township. The southern part of the township was within the limits of the Symmes Purchase, the northern boundary today being marked by Todhunter Road, north of the southern boundary. It was bounded on the east by the Warren County line and on the west and north by the Great Miami River. Lemon Township was erected by the Butler County Court of Quarter Sessions on May 10, 1803, with these boundaries: The original boundaries included all of what is now Madison Township, Madison being divided from Lemon on May 7, 1810.
Historic population figures
1900—1,743
1910—1,534
1920—1,583
1930—1,988
1940—2,109
1950—2,545
1960—6,236
1970—12,795
1980—13,553
1990—6,056
2000—8,607
2010—13,875
Geography
Located in the eastern part of the county, it borders the following townships and city:
Middletown - north
Turtlecreek Township, Warren County - east
Liberty Township - south
Madison Township - west
The Miami and Erie Canal passed through the township, parallelling the eastern shore of the Great Miami and linking Hamilton to Middletown. Remains of the canal, including the lock at Excello, are preserved as parks in the township. The Norfolk Southern Railway has a main line through the center of the township. Major roads include Interstate 75 and State Routes 4, 63, and 73. The old Dixie Highway, later U.S. Route 25, passed through the township and is now an unnumbered road sharing the name of Main Street through the center of Monroe. The community of Excello lies in the central part of the township, and the community of Blue Ball was on the Dixie Highway where it crossed the Warren County line.
Government
The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1. Two are elected in the year after the presidential election and one is elected in the year before it. There is also an elected township fiscal officer, who serves a four-year term beginning on April 1 of the year after the election, which is held in November of the year before the presidential election. Vacancies in the fiscal officership or on the board of trustees are filled by the remaining trustees.
Community services
The township is served by the Monroe and Middletown post offices and lies in the Monroe and Middletown telephone exchanges. The newly created Monroe Local School District serves the southern portion of the township and the Middletown City School District the remainder. Duke Energy provides power and natural gas service.
