HAMILTON - Twenty people and three groups will be honored as Bicentennial Historians of the Year at the Butler County Historical Society's annual dinner meeting Monday.

Customarily, the award is given to one person each year, spokeswoman Betty Maham said. Because of the bicentennial, the group decided to recognize the works of many local historians.

Twenty people will receive the award:

Ann and Jay Antenen, Sam Ashworth, Beverly Bach, Dave Belew, Jim Blount, George Crout, Marilyn Edwards, David Endres, Jill W. Evans, Marna Evans, Dan Finfrock, Pat Hoelscher, Susan Cummins Myers, Doris Page, Randy Rogers, Philip Shriver, Dr. John A. Stewart, Joyce Thall and Robert Wessel.

The meeting is 7 p.m. Monday at Symmes Tavern on the Green in Fairfield. Blount, a Hamilton author and retired history teacher, will speak on "Butler Countians in Columbus: Governors Bebb, Harris and Cox."

The event is co-hosted by the Butler County Bicentennial Commission.

Since 1996, Beverly Bach has been involved in restoring the William McGuffey house on campus. He was the compiler of the McGuffey Readers.

On Saturday, she will attend a luncheon in Columbus to accept a merit award from the Ohio Historic Preservation Office to recognize her for her work on the restoration project.

Recently the museum was also listed in a national databank, "Success Stories," maintained by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

MONROE TWP. - This Clermont County community has a new history, written for the bicentennial.

The Times and Tales of Monroe Township, 1803-2003, may be ordered from the township bicentennial committee for $25, postage included.

It will also be sold at the Ohio bicentennial marker dedication 2 p.m. Nov. 9 at Mount Zion Church on Clermont-Laurel Road, said Libbie Bennett, committee chairwoman.

To order the book, write to Linda McKinley, 1590 Frank Willis Memorial Road, New Richmond, OH 45157. Information: 553-2723.

HAMILTON - The Butler County Courthouse this week received a historical marker from the Ohio Bicentennial Commission.

The sandstone building, one of the more historic courthouses of the region, now has a marker in front, along a brick path.

The High Street property has been the site of a Butler County courthouse since 1810. The original contained a jail and courtroom.

The second courthouse, two stories with a four-sided clock, was built in 1837. It was demolished in 1885 to make way for the present courthouse, which was built for $305,000 and included a similar clock.

In 1912, a fire there killed three firefighters. The courthouse was used as a temporary morgue during the flood of 1913 , in which 200 died.

Bicentennial Notebook appears periodically. Send items to Randy McNutt, The Enquirer, 7700 Service Center Drive, West Chester OH 45069. Telephone: 755-4158. Fax: 755-4150. E-mail rcmnutt@enquirer.com.