USA > Indiana > Harrison County > Corydon > Old Capital centennial souvenir : Corydon, Indiana's birthplace, 1816 > Part 1
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ISTORICAL COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01793 2598
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7129195
Dld Capital Centennial Souvenir
1813
محدد
1825
& hedley
OLD STATE HOUSE
CORYDON INDIANA'S BIRTHPLACE : 1816 :
OFFICIAL SOUVENIR
Allen County Public Library Ft. Wayne, Indiana
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Capital Moved to Corydon 1813
6 IIE first government of Indiana Territory was from the old terri- torial capital of Vincennes. Then Indiana Territory reached to the Mississippi River and Vincennes was about in the center of the settled portion, but when Illinois Territory was organized in 1809 the balance of power in the Indiana Assembly shifted to the east and a more convenient capital was sought. Greenville (Ohio), Mad- ison, New Harmony and Covington were the pioneer towns that rep- resented the four corners of the settled portion of the territory and naturally the point selected as a capital must be as nearly central as possible to these towns. Lawrenceburg, Vevay, Madison, Jefferson- ville and Corydon all wanted the capital, but Corydon was finally sel- ected and the officers and offices were to be there by May 1, 1813.
( Just the year before llarrison County had completed building her court house, the Old Capitol Building shown on the next page. This was proffered by the county and accepted by the territory as its capitol building and it was duly assembled in this building on the fourteenth day of December, 1815, that the General Assembly of the Territory of Indiana adopted the memorial which petitioned Congress for state- hood; and in this building on the seventh day of November, 1816, the oath of office was administered to the first Governor, Governor Jen- nings, and from this time until the capital was moved to Indianapolis, on the tenth day of January, 1825, this building served as the state capitol building.
9 Since Corydon served as the territorial capital during the last three years of our territorial government and for the first nine years of our state government, the history of the founding of the state and the men who founded it is directly connected with Corydon. Many landmarks still remain, the physical accessories of our early history as a state.
( Corydon is very proud of the fact that she is the birthplace of In- diana and still possesses the cradle. She is proud of the old land- marks that she has which are lasting monuments to Indiana's birth as a state, and on this Centennial she extends a hearty welcome to you, every Hoosier, to visit Corydon and tread the hallowed ground our forefathers trod in the attendance of Indiana's birth and have the spirit of their work fanned into a glow in your breast through contact with the real physical forms that still remain that were a contributing element in that great birth.
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The Old Capitol Building
T THE Old Capitol Building was built by Harrison County for a court house. The contract was let to Dennis Pennington in 1809. lle was to receive $1,500 for his work. The building was not completed until 1812, just a few months before it became the terri- torial capitol building.
( It is built of limestone rock which were easily picked up on the surrounding hills or easily quarried by surface quarrying. The ma- jority of the stones had been exposed to the weather for many years before they were placed in the building and were so hard that after one hundred years the walls are as solid as the day they were built.
The exposed surfaces were not dressed but only those rocks were used on the outside walls that had broken with almost a square sur- face and since rocks of almost a uniform thickness were used, the walls of the building present an even and neat surface. The building is forty feet square and the walls of the lower story were made two and one-half feet thick with a fifteen-foot ceiling, the walls of the upper story two feet thick with a ten-foot ceiling. On the north and south sides of the building, huge chimneys eight feet long and extending two feet back from the inside walls were erected. These accommo- dated four spacious fireplaces, two below and two above. The lower floor was made of stone flagging covered with sawdust, with hewn tim- bers inside the bar rail. The lower story was in one room and was used as the house chamber. The upper story was partitioned so as to make one large room on the south side which was used as the senate chamber and two smaller office rooms on the north side. The clerk of the supreme court occupied these rooms.
" The building stands today as it did when used by the first state legislators with the exception of a few minor changes. A floor has been placed in the lower room, the fireplaces closed, a door frame has been placed in the front door to replace the old stone arch, the steps leading to the upper story placed on the outside and the upper story has been partitioned into office rooms.
" The building being in the public square occupies valuable and badly needed room for modern county buildings and movements have been made at times to tear it away, but so far the patriotic citizens of Cory- don have preserved it. One time during Governor Porter's adminis- tration arrangements were being made to tear down the old building to give room for more adequate county buildings. Governor Porter heard of it and made a trip from Indianapolis to Corydon and pre- vailed upon those in authority to preserve the old historic building for posterity. Our pioneer fathers built well and with proper care the Old Capitol Building will stand for centuries as have the old castles of Europe and will ever be a monument to the beginning of our State's history.
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by 4 medley Sryden ton
OLD STATE CAPITOL
This building which is still well preserved, was the Territorial Capitol build- ing of Indiana from 1813 to 1816, and the State Capitol building from 1816 to 1825. It was the cradle in which Indiana was rocked as an infant,
The Constitutional Elm
A BOUT two hundred yards northwest of the Old Capitol Building near the banks of Big Indian Creek stands the mammoth elm known as The Constitutional Elm. This old tree measures one hundred and twenty-four feet from tip to tip of its branches. It is five feet in diameter and about fifty feet high. Through the best scientific care known the old tree which was a giant with its growth a century ago is still in a good state of preservation, and although even now is it no doubt the oldest living thing in Indiana, it bids fair to live actively in Indiana's history for many years.
g It was under this tree that Indiana's first constitution was drafted. In conformity with the provisions of the act of Congress to enable the people of Indiana Territory to form a constitution and state govern- ment, an election of members of a convention to form a state consti- tution was held in the thirteen counties that then comprised the State on the thirteenth day of May, 1816. When the forty-three members elected had assembled at Corydon on the tenth day of June, 1816, the weather was very warm and the most of them had left their open log cabins and traveled many miles through an unbroken wilder- ness infested with Indians and wild animals. These pioneers were accustomed to a rough and ready outdoor life and to be confined within the tight walls of the Old Capitol Building during the hot days of June was very irksome to them, so they betook themselves to the inviting shade of the wide-spreading boughs of the Old Constitutional EIm. IIere, sitting on nature's cool, green carpet, with the songs of the birds and the rustle of the leaves overhead, and by the rippling waters of Big Indian Creek, those men of the forest whose lives were ever close to nature worked for twenty continuous days drafting Indiana's first constitution. With such an environment is it any won- der that they did their work so well?
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ISTITUTIOM
Under this tree the forty-three members of the Constitutional Convention drafted the first Constitution of Indiana. Jonathan Jennings presided over the deliberations and William Hendricks was Secretary. The tree is still in a good state of preservation.
Old Capitol Hotel
D URING the time that the early history of the State was being made, Corydon was but a small town consisting of several log houses and a few stone and brick buildings. The constitutional convention and every session of the Legislature taxed heavily the tav- ern accommodations. The principal hotel, and it seems the most popular one used during these times, is still standing. It is situated about two miles east of the Old Capitol Building on the Corydon and New Albany pike. The hotel was built in 1807 by Jacob Conrad, who immigrated to Corydon from Pennsylvania.
( This old tavern or hotel, which necessitated a two-mile walk to and from each meal, was very popular with our hardy, pioneer fathers, but very few of our present visitors to the old, historic spots would see it if they had to walk out the two miles to view it. There were, how- ever, other things which made the taverns opopular with our pioneer statesmen. A very fine spring gurgles from a cave near the back corner of the house. It was a common saying among the early states- men that this water mixed with a reasonable amount of peach or apple brandy was a sure preventive of malaria, chills and ague. Excellent blue grass pastures also surrounded the tavern and the good proprie- tor furnished free of charge pasture and care for the horses of those who stopped with him. Many places of amusement were also main- tained upon the spacious, grassy grounds that surrounded the hotel, and Sundays and the evenings were spent in running, jumping, pitch- ing horseshoes and wrestling.
( The walls of the building are twenty feet high and eighteen inches thick. Each L is about twenty feet long. It is constructed of hard blue limestone taken from a nearby quarry. The masonry of this building is estimated to weigh 618,790 tons and it contains 3,412 feet of blue ash flooring. The wood work was prepared with the broad-axe and whip-saw. In those days of log cabins the building of this hotel was as magnificent a piece of work as is the erection of a sky-scraper today.
Photo by Friendly Corydon Ind
OLD CAPITOL HOTEL
This hotel was built in 1809. It is still standing in a good state of preservation. it was the favorite hotel of the early statesmen and legislators.
The Governor's Mansion
D URING the time that Corydon was the capital there was but one Governor who took up his permanent residence at the capital. This was Governor Jennings and his home has always been known as the Governor's Mansion. Governor Posey resided in Cory- don for a short time but was forced to remove to Jeffersonville on account of his ill health. In an official communication addressed to the president of the legislative council on the twenty-seventh day of December, 1813, he wrote: "1 wish to communicate to your hon- orable body, that the delicate state of my health will not permit of my longer continuance at this place (Corydon). I find myself badly situated on account of medical aid. My physician is at Louisville, and I have taken all the medicine brought with me." On the follow- ing January the Legislative Council issued a stern rebuke to the Gov- ernor for absenting himself from the capital and incurring for the people of the territory a needless expense of fifty dollars a day.
Governor Hendricks did not remove his family from his home at Madison but spent a greater part of his time at the capital. He had his rooms in the Porter homestead, the large brick building shown in the last part of this book.
{ The Governor's Mansion was built by Hardin H. Moore, a noted lawyer, who was defeated by James Brown Ray in 1828 for Governor of Indiana. The mansion was built of brick which were made on the lot where it stood. Unfortunately it was torn down about twenty- five years ago to make room for a modern building. The building was substantially built and nicely finished. The interior was fin- ished in hand-carved hardwood.
§ A good photograph taken of the building in a well preserved state cannot be found. The cut was made from a pen drawing made by one of our prominent lawyers, T. J. Wilson, when he was a school boy.
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GOVERNOR'S MANSION
This was the home of Governor Jennings during the six years that he resided at the capital. It was torn down about twenty-five years ago.
The Fair Ground Spring
THE Fair Ground Spring is located in the southwest corner of the Fair Grounds adjoining Corydon. It is one of the finest springs in Indiana and is historie in that it marks the spot of the first settlement in the neighborhood of Corydon and that its water was a favorite drink of Wm. Henry Harrison.
9 In 1806 Edward Smith, who was a deserter from the British army in 1776, built a log cabin just below the mouth of this spring. Ils family consisted of three boys and six girls. In 1804 General Wm. Harrison had entered the adjoining ground on which Corydon now stands. He also owned and operated a large farm on Blue River, eight miles west of Corydon. The General became a fast friend of these early settlers in this neighborhood and for many years made their home a stopping place on his trips to and from his farm to the government office at Jeffersonville.
[ At the time the Smith home was built, it was impossible to secure lumber. Mother earth therefore formed the floor of the home. In one side of the cabin a platform was constructed by planting two forked poles in the ground and laying poles from one to the other, and then laying cross poles from this to the logs on the wall. This platform, which was reached by means of a ladder, was the sleeping quarters of the home and it was here that General Harrison slept during his stops at the Smith home.
" Miss Jennie Smith was the General's favorite. She was an ex- cellent singer and the proud possessor of an old "Missouri Harmony" song book. Vocal music was rare in the wilds of Harrison County, and Miss Jennie was always requested by the General to sing from her song book. His favorite song which he never failed to request to be sung was "The Pastoral Elegy." This song was a plaintive lament for the death of a young shepherd by the name of CORYDON. There- fore when a town was laid out near the Smith home General Harrison lost no time in naming it after his favorite song sung so often by Miss Jennie, "CORYDON."
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FAIR GROUND SPRING
This spring which adjoins Corydon marks the site of the Smith home built in 1806. It was the first settlement near Corydon and was the stopping place of Gen. Harrison when on his way to and from his farm to the government station at Jeffersonville.
Wm. Henry Harrison
W M. HENRY HARRISON, who was the father of Harrison County, was born in Berkley, Va., February 9, 1773. At a very early age he entered the army and because of his sterling qualities was soon appointed secretary of the Northwest Territory. He was appointed Governor of Indiana Territory on May 13, 1800, and entered upon his duties at Vincennes on January 10, 1801. lle remained the Territorial Governor until September, 1812, when he was appointed a Brigadier General and assigned to the command of the northwest frontier. In 1840 he was elected President of the United States and died one month after his inauguration.
@ General Harrison was always interested in Corydon and Harrison County and at one time was personally known to every citizen of the county. He was a man of the people and was loved by all of the early settlers of the county. Ilow well he was known is illustrated in the fact that all of the early settlers fondly referred to him as "Bill" Ilarrison. In 1804 he entered the ground on which Corydon now stands and held a certificate of purchase for it. In 1807 he entered a large tract of land on Blue River at Wilson's Spring upon which he built a log house and for a while lived there. At Wilson's Spring he built one of the first water power mills in the county. It was there- fore inevitable that when Harrison County in 1809 was carved from a portion of the territory that had been included in Knox County that it should be named after General Harrison. In the same year General Wm. H. Harrison with Harvey Ileth sold to the commissioners of the new county one acre and four perches of ground for a Public Square. This purchase included the square upon which the Old Cap- itol Building now stands and the square just west of it. He also named the town of Corydon.
( The first settlers of the county called him "Bill" Harrison, their grandchildren and their posterity know him as President Harrison, but nevertheless they still fondly cherish the old tales concerning "Bill" Harrison that have been handed down to them by their fore- fathers. Many anecdotes are told of his kindness of heart, the homely traits of his character and the simplicity of his tastes. One story has been handed down of a friend who lived quite a distance from his mill on Blue River bringing in his grist to grind. Quite a number were waiting ahead of him and many days would elapse before his turn came. General Harrison was loath to see his friend travel back over the weary miles with his unground grist. So he quietly told him to go upstairs to bed and come down at three o'clock prepared to start home. Without letting the other waiting customers know it, "Bill" Harrison in the night ground the man's grist and sent him away before daylight.
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WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON
Wm. Henry Harrison, the father of Harrison County, entered the ground on which Corydon stands 1804. sold the ground to the county on which to build the old Capitol Building; plotted and named the town of Corydon; built one of the first water power mills in the county and spent much time in and about Corydon in the early days looking after his business interests.
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Harrison's Orchard
0 NE of the first things that General Harrison did on his farm on Blue River was to set out a large orchard of Pippin and Romanite apples. Until a very few years ago, it was possible to gather a . few apples from some of the old trees. As late as the campaign of 1876 cider made from the apples gathered from President Harrison's or- chard was exhibited and used in the Republican rallies. There also used to be in the possession of the party leaders of the county, a min- iature log cabin made from the logs from the Harrison home on Blue River, that was a factor in every rally.
[ When the tree in the picture has reverted back to dust, the last of the orchard set out so long ago by Harrison's own hands will be gone. With the passing of a few old shrubs and trees on the homestead the last of the living forms and physical accessories of General Harrison's work in Harrison County will have passed away. Nothing will remain but the hallowed spots he so often trod and the cool, gurgling waters of the Wilson and Fairground springs that he relished so well.
But so long as there is a Corydon his favorite song which was sung to him so often by Miss Jennie Smith will be sung to his remembrance. And no doubt but what upon every centennial that Corydon has, she will select her sweetest singer to stand upon the hallowed spot of the Smith's cabin and sing to the accompaniment of the gurgling waters of the Old Fairground Spring those plaintive strains that inspired General Harrison to name Corydon. The song is given in full on the next page.
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GEN. HARRISON'S ORCHARD
Ono of the trees which is still standing in the orchard which was planted by Gen. Harrison one hundred years ago. This orchard was planted by Harrison himself on his large farm on Blue River. twelve miles west of Corydon.
"The Pastoral Elegy"
The song that inspired Gen. Harrison to name his town "CORYDON"
What sorrowful sounds do i hear, Move slowly nlong in the gale; How solemn they fall on my ear, As softly they pass through the vale. Sweet Corydon's notes are all o'er, Now lonely he sleeps in the clay, Ilis cheeks bloom with roses no more, Since death called his spirit away.
Sweet woodbines will rise round his feet, And willows their sorrowing wave; Young hyacinths freshen and bloom While hawthorns encircle his grave. Each morn when the sun gilds the east, (The green grass bespangled with dew,) lle'll cast his bright beams on the West, To charm the sad Caroline's view.
O Corydon! hear the sad cries Of Caroline, plaintive and slow; O spirit! look down from the skies, And pity thy mourner below. 'Tis Caroline's voice in the grove, Which Philomel hears on the plain, Then striving the mourner to soothe, With Sympathy joins in her strain.
Ye shepherds so blithesome and young, Retire from your sports on the green, Since Corydon's deaf to my song, The wolves tear the lambs on the plain. Each swain round the forest will stray, And sorrowing hang down his head, His pipe then in symphony play
Some dirge to sweet Corydon's shade.
And when the still night has unfurl'd Iler robes o'er the hamlet around, Gray twilight retires from the world, And darkness encumbers the ground. I'll leave my own gloomy abode, To Corydon's urn will I fly, There kneeling will bless the just God Who dwells in bright mansions on high.
Since Corydon hears me no more, In gloom let the woodlands appear, Ye oceans be still of your roar, Let Autumn extend around the year; I'll hie me through meadow and lawn, There cull the bright flow'rets of May, Then rise on the wings of the morn, And waft my young spirit away.
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DENNIS PENNINGTON
The contractor who built the Old State House. Ile emigrated from Virginia to Kentucky on horse-back with Henry ('lay 1799. Emigrated to Indiana 1804. He was a Territorial and State Legislator for 29 years; Speaker of the Body in 1816; a member of the Constitutional Convention and a member of the first Senatorial Body.
Historical Buildings
T Y11E many springs about Corydon were no doubt responsible for its choice as a good town site by General Harrison. Soon after Mr. Smith had settled near the Fair Grounds Spring, a Mr. Westfall located near the line spring and cave just across from the Old Constitutional Elm. He started a tan yard here in 1807, and built what was probably the first house In the town of Corydon. This house is still standing as is shown in the picture. The weather- boarding and additions of course have been added to It in recent years.
Mr. Westfall sold the tannery and bulldings to a Mr. Kirkpatrick, who in turn sold them to Colonel Lewis Jordan. Mr. Jordan run the tannery for many years and the house was in the possession of the Jordan family for eighty years. It then passed into the hands of the Fried family in whose possession it still remains. It is the old home of Mrs. Julia Fried Walker who is widely known in educational circles throughout the United States.
q The building on the next page stood adjoining the old Westfall house. It was the home of Daniel C. Lane, first State Treasurer of Indiana. It was the home of the Lane family for many years. In 1912 the building was torn away to make room for the new modern home that now occupies its place.
§ Another old, historic building not shown in this souvenir still stands on Oak Street. It is a large brick building for its day, as it was built about 1810. It was used as a general store by Colonel Thomas Posey, who emigrated to Corydon from Virginia. Colonel Posey was the natural son of George Washington and locally was one of the prom- inent factors in the early history of the State.
§ A few yards east of the Old Governor's Mansion there stood until a few years ago an old stone building that was of especial interest to all Masons. In this house on the third day of December, 1817, del- egates from the various Masonic Lodges of the State met to make arrangements for organizing a Grand Lodge for the State of Indiana.
THE WESTFALL HOUSE
This house, which was built in 1807, was the first house built on the town site of Corydon. It is still standing in the shade of Constitutional Elm. It is also the old home of Julia Fried Walker.
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STATE TREASURER'S HOME
This was the home of Daniel C. Lane, first Treasurer of State. It stood in the shade of the old Constitu- tional Elm and was torn down in 1912.
Photo by strulley Corydon Chris
GOV. HENDRICK'S HEADQUARTERS
A recent picture of the Griffin home. Gov. Hendricks had rooms in this building while serving in the capacity of Indiana's second Governer.
The Brewster House
T THIS old brick house was built in 1817 on a cliff which has since been terraced. It originally consisted of two large rooms with a narrow hall between.
9 It was built by Davis Floyd, who, at that time, was a practicing attorney, and afterwards Judge of the Circuit Court. He was granted a license to burn a brick kiln and began the construction of two houses, this house being one of them. .lames Hughes of Louisville, assisted Mr. Floyd financially and eventually came into possession of the property. It was first rented to the State for public offices while Corydon was the capital. The east room was used by Daniel C. Lane, Secretary of State, and the west room by Samuel Merrill, Treasurer of State. The cellar under the west room was used as the Treasury vault. The money, in silver, was kept in strong boxes and moved with all the State and household effects to Indianapolis at a cost of $65.55. Another building a few yards west of the house forming an L, also of brick, was the dwelling house of Mr. Merrill. It was after- wards torn down. In it the State balls were held, the furniture being moved out into the yard for the occasion.
q On June 10, 1829, James Hughes sold the property to Thomas Posey, Peter Kintner, John W. Payne, Daniel C. Lane and Henry W. Heth, Trustees of Harrison County Seminary for $500. Here William A. Porter, who was afterwards Speaker of the House of Indiana Legis- lature, taught school and was followed by others of note until the arrival of James G. May, a famous teacher in his day.
9 March 24, 1851, Henry W. Heth, President of the Board of Trustees of Harrison County Seminary, deeded this property to James G. May for a consideration of $300 paid by services rendered as teacher. When Mr. May left Corydon he sold the place and it afterward had many owners until finally sold by Rebecca M. Littell to Amzie W. Brewster on November 17, 1871. It has ever since been in possession of the Brewster family.
Amelia Porter Brewster.
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Photo by Friday
FIRST OFFICE BUILDING
This building was used as an office building by all of the State officers except the Auditor of State. The State funds were kept in the cellar. The above is a recent picture of the building.
PRESS OF ACME PRINTING CO., INCORPORATED LOUISVILLE, KY,
CONSTITUTIONAL
GENEALOGY COLLECTION PUBLIC LIBRARY FORT WAYNE & ALLEN CO.,IND.
HECKMAN BINDERY INC.
JUL 85 N. MANCHESTER, INDIANA 46962
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