Tuscarawas Road, Brighton Township's primary thoroughfare, has held this distinction since prehistoric times. The road closely follows a former Indian trail, "The Great Path, " which led from the forks of the Ohio to the Tuscarawas Valley and the flint deposits in Central Ohio. In successive Indian campaigns, beginning with Colonel Bouquet in 1763 (who camped near Dawson Ridge), armies moving westward followed the trail.
Originally included in South Beaver Township and later in Ohio Township, Brighton Township was formed in 1816. This was eleven years after Brighton Village was surveyed and named (for Brighton, England) in what would be the township's northwest corner, on the middle falls of the Beaver River. In time, Brighton village would form the nucleus of its own township (Patterson, 1841) and eventually would become part of Beaver Falls. Two other important industrial villages developed in Brighton township and eventually withdrew: Fallston (by incorporation in 1829) and Industry (by formation of Industry township in 1856). Other land was lost to Beaver and Bridgewater borough, through annexation.
The township today is largely suburban, though it maintains much rural character. Its growth has largely emanated from Beaver, and the communities retain a close association through the Beaver Area School District. The community's industrial history was forfeited with the loss of the river villages. An exception was the former Morgan Carriage Works, built shortly after the Civil War and still standing on Dutch Ridge Road. Several one-room schools remain, including the Richmond School which has been transformed into a noteworthy museum. The building was acquired by the township and restored to its former appearance and condition by local residents. It was opened for tours in 1969 as the Richmond Little Red School Museum. A reenactment of school days was filmed here by educational TV station WQED in 1976 as a Bicentennial project.
Most significant among local homes is the cut stone Wray Barrickman House, built in 1835 off Beaner Hollow Road, and the Wolf manor, Mount Pleasant, on Western Avenue.
Brady's Run Park, established in 1947 in Brighton Township's north side, is Beaver County's largest and best developed park property. A huge ice-skating rink, now under construction at the park entrance, is scheduled for completion in 1977. The township has recently acquired its own park along Gypsy Glen Road. A recreation building and picnic shelter have been built on the property, which is called Two mile Run Park.
There are six churches located in the township: Beaver Assembly Of God on Dutch Ridge Road, Beaver Baptist Church on Tuscarawas Road, First Church of God on Beaner Hollow Road, Hope Lutheran Church on Tuscarawas Road, Four Mile Reformed Presbyterian on Darlington Road, and the Presbyterian Chapel on Dutch Ridge Road.
The foremost employer in the township is the engineering firm which bears the name of its founder, Michael Baker, Jr. Famous for bridge and highway construction projects the world over, the Baker firm has designed three bridges over the Ohio River in Beaver County in the last 20 years. The 100 ft. high twin bridges which carry the Beaver Valley Expressway over Brady's Run Park are typical of Baker's advanced designs.
The Beaver County Geriatric Center opened its present facility in Brighton Township in 1959, closing the former hospital in Potter Township. Since then, other agencies have opened new buildings in the growing complex: Allencrest Juvenile Detention Center, New Horizon School, and, now under construction nearby, the Medical Center Of Beaver County. A shopping center is located on Tuscarawas Road, near the Dawson Ridge plan of homes and the "TUSCA" drive-in theatre.
Continual growth seems likely for Brighton Township, as the trend to decentralized population persists. Completion of the Beaver Valley Expressway and its Brighton Township exit has created new opportunities for development.