In the spring of 1851 several families moved into the southwestern corner of Clarke County, followed by more the next November. The township was not then named. These settlers held a meeting to organize the township and give it a name. The name Doyle was chosen by Wm. Osmond, father of Mary Osmond. Hopeville was the town located in a far corner and was then as large or larger than Osceola. It never grew in any way but to grow old.
Land then cost $1.25 an acre. The land was beautiful though the people who toiled to make homes here shook with chills and burned with fever. The winters were hard to endure, for the houses were small and poor, the first ones all log cabins. Wm. Osmond rived out of logs with a broadax, clapboards, three or four feet long and were used in place of shingles. They were as good to turn rain as any shingles and lasted many years. A house 18 x 18 was a large house in early times.
The first school house in Hopeville was a log cabin. Here both school and all public gatherings were held. Here the Methodist Episcopal was organized and held their meetings. By 1856 more people had moved in and the Baptists put up a little log house for themselves. People of the Christian faith who had come in organized and held meetings at the home of Dr. Jesse Emery. Small frame houses were taking the place of the cabins, about 1860 two frame churches, the M.E. and the Christian, were built. A frame school house took the place of the old log one. Prosperity was coming when the black cloud of war came and took away the young men, many of them never to come back.
Hopeville, though it never grew, holds in some ways a good record-never a murder or suicide in it, while preachers, teachers and missionaries were sent out of it. One of the first saloons was visited one dark night by women who poured out all the liquor they could find. Few were the drunkards among those early settlers. Horse thieves, yes there were some, and on account of this one man was murdered in Doyle Township. A strong Anti Horse Thief League held this evil in check. The mistake of the first settlers was locating so far away from a county seat. The cause of that was the need of timber and water.
From writings of Ella J. Osmnd Ashley-1925.