USA > Indiana > Allen County > Fort Wayne > The pictorial history of Fort Wayne, Indiana : a review of two centuries of occupation of the region about the head of the Maumee River, Vol. I > Part 29
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Alexis Coquillard came from Detroit. After his residence at Fort Wayne, he established a trading station on the St. Joseph river of Lake Michigan, on the site of the city of South Bend, Indiana, as an outpost of the American Fur Company's establishment at Fort Wayne.
James Aveline and family, of Vincennes, and John E. Hill arrived in 1820 and entered actively into the affairs of the village. The family of Mr. Aveline had come to America from St. Jule, in France. He was familiarly known as "St. Jule." His son Francis was the builder of the Aveline house. In 1832, with Robert E. Flem- ing, Mr. Hill engaged in the dry goods trade in Fort Wayne. In 1846, with A. M. Orbison, the firm of Hill and Orbison, for many years prominent in the commission business, was formed.
In 1822 came the family of Colonel Alexander Ewing, of Troy, Ohio, whose members exerted a mighty influence in the affairs of the west during the two score years preceding the outbreak of the war of the rebellion.
The family consisted of Colonel Ewing (born in Pennsylvania in 1753), his wife (Charlotte, a sister of Captain William Griffith, prominent in the Fort Dearborn tragedy), four sons, Charles W., who became president judge of the circuit court and a prominent lawyer; William G., the first man to be admitted to the bar in Allen county ; George W., who, associated with William G., became one of the most widely known business men of the middle west, and Alexander H., a prosperous Cincinnati merchant; and three daugh- ters, Charlotte (Mrs. William N. Hood, later Mrs. Smalwood Noel) ; Lavina (Mrs. George B. Walker), and Louisa (Mrs. Charles E. Sturgis).
Colonel Alexander Ewing's first visit to Fort Wayne was made in 1812. He had removed from New York to Piqua, Ohio, in 1806 and there built a double log house which was used as a tavern and trading house. He became a colonel in the Miami county militia which joined General Harrison in his relief expedition to Fort
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Wayne in 1812. Colonel Ewing served with the army in a detach- ment of spies, and continued throughout the campaign to the battle of the Thames. He lived but five years after the family settled in Fort Wayne, but in that brief period he established one of the pioneer taverns and became the owner of real estate which is today of incalculable value.
In 1855, Colonel George W. Ewing prepared a history of the Ewing family. "I cherish the fond hope," said he, "that they [the Ewing descendants] will aim to emulate those who have preceded them, and to add to our family name and reputation, rather than by unworthy conduct sink down and detract from it. I wish that they would not only read and study the course and conduct of my late lamented brother, William G. Ewing, and of Alexander H. Ewing, and myself, but I want them to appreciate them, and aim to profit by our examples."
The year 1822 also gave to Fort Wayne the families of William Nesbit Hood and his brother, Robert Hood, who came from Dayton, Ohio. The former, the father of the late William Ewing Hood,
GENERAL JOHN TIPTON.
General Tipton, appointed Indian agent at Fort Wayne in 1823, was one of Indi- ana's most progressive citizens. His father was murdered by the savages, leaving him as the support of his mother while a mere boy. John Tipton was born in 1786 in Sevier county, Tennessee. While serving under General Harrison during the Tippecanoe campaign he rose to the rank of captain, and soon attained the title of brigadier general. Before coming to Fort Wayne he had served as sheriff of Harrison county and while a representative in the state legislature, he was a member of the commission chosen to select the first capital, Corydon. After the completion of his service at Fort Wayne he removed the land office to Lo- gansport. In 1831 he was the choice of the legislature as a representative of In- diana in the United States senate. Dur- ing his residence in Fort Wayne he was instrumental in the organization of the first Masonic lodge; later he was the grand master of the order in Indiana. The portrait is from the seventy-fifth an- nual report of the Indiana Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, 1896.
COLONEL THOMAS W. SWINNEY.
Colonel Swinney, who came to Fort Wayne probably in 1823, was a native of Piketon, Ohio, where he was born No- vember 18, 1803. Shortly after his ar- rival two brothers, Joseph L. and Sam- uel, located at Fort Wayne; the former was active in the earlier development of the town, but the latter died soon after his settlement here. Previous to the marriage of Thomas W. Swinney and Lucy Taber, daughter of Paul Taber, the wife had entered the tract of land which included the present Swinney park. To this tract Mr. Swinney made valuable additions, including a tract belonging to Paul Taber and a piece on the west bank of the St. Mary's river, adjoining Swin- ney park. Mr. Swinney took an active part in the development of the city and became a man of large means. His munificence, as expressed in the posses- sion by the city of Swinney park, will be appreciated by untold coming gener- ations. His death occurred January 20, 1875. The portrait is from a photograph loaned by the Misses Frances and Caro- line Swinney, daughters of Colonel Swinney.
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THE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FORT WAYNE
became one of the earliest associate justices of the Allen county circuit court, and was one of the founders of the city of Peru, Indiana.
"My father and mother were married in Fort Wayne in 1827," said the late William Ewing Hood, who died in Fort Wayne in 1915, "my mother [Charlotte Ewing] being a daughter of Alex- ander Ewing. In 1829, my father bought, for $500, two hundred and ten acres of land on which he, in connection with Jesse L. Williams and Richard L. Britton, Fort Wayne friends to whom he sold an interest, located the town of Peru, Indiana, in 1834. My father had removed his family to Miamisport, which is now a part of Peru, in 1833. He died in 1838. In 1843, my mother was united in marriage with Smalwood Noel, and we returned to Fort Wayne."
Notable visitors, too, were attracted to the village on the Mau- mee. Among these, in 1822, were General Lewis Cass, of Michigan, and Henry Schoolcraft, the explorer and geologist, who were follow- ing the old waterway route from Lake Erie to the Mississippi region.
We have noted the first attempt, on the part of Rev. Isaac McCoy, the Baptist missionary, to establish a denominational church at the settlement. In this connection it is fitting to note the visit of another representative of the church, Rev. John Ross, affection- ately called "Father" Ross, a native of Ireland, who came first to the village in 1822, and spent a considerable period as a missionary representative of the Presbyterian church. Coming from Franklin, Ohio, in the winter season, Rev. Mr. Ross "took passage in a light two-horse wagon, with Matthew Griggs, visiting Fort Wayne on a trading expedition with hats and dried fruit." The journey was filled with perils. Threatened with death in a severe snowstorm and by the wolves which roamed the prairie, Mr. Griggs and Rev. Mr. Ross left the vehicle under the guard of a faithful dog and led the horses to the village, where they were entertained at the home of Samuel Hanna. (See Jesse L. Williams's "History of the First Presbyterian Church.")
The story of the beginnings of Allen county introduces the names of many who, at later periods, gave of their services to the advancement of many public interests.
William Rockhill, who came to Fort Wayne in 1823, was a prominent figure in the development of the town until civil war times. Born at Burlington, New Jersey, in 1793, Mr. Rockhill chose to settle at Fort Wayne at the time of the opening of the land sales, at which time he purchased by entry a large tract, the eastern boundary of which is the present Broadway. From the beginning, Mr. Rockhill was identified with the development of the town along political, educational and commercial lines.
Probably in 1823, Colonel Thomas W. Swinney (born at Piketon, Ohio, in 1803) came to Fort Wayne. He became an extensive owner of lands now comprising Swinney park and a large tract on both sides of the St. Mary's river in that locality. Upon this extensive piece of ground Colonel Swinney commenced the raising of farm products, and through his persistent activity he laid the foundation of his large means, which, in later years was augmented by the increasing value of his land holdings. A short time after Colonel
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Swinney came to Fort Wayne, he was joined by two brothers, Joseph L. and Samuel. The latter died soon afterward.
Another family of prominence of the period was that of Paul Taber, who had come from the east in 1819, accompanied by his sons, Cyrus and Samuel, and his daughter, Lucy. The elder Taber became active in the affairs of the town, but his efforts were brought to a close by his death in 1826. Cyrus Taber, the owner of Taber's addition, removed to Logansport in an early year. Samuel Taber removed to Marshall county, Indiana. Lucy Taber became the wife of Colonel Thomas L. Swinney. Paul Taber had entered a considerable tract of ground west of the town, which was later purchased by Colonel Swinney. A tract entered by Samuel Taber was purchased by William Rockhill. Lucy Taber's ownership in-
JAMES
B. RAY,
GOVERNOR OF THE
STATE OF INDIANA,
TO ALL WHO SHALL SEE THESE PRESENTS, GREETING:
-
ETTOW TE, That in the name and by the authority of the state of Indiane, I do hereby commission William, A. Hood an af. ociate fudge of the Circuit bout
for the county of Aller. from the date hereet for the; Term of seven years from the 15. day of June 1524 in the room? of Danneels Ad ania designed
IN TESTIMONY whereof, I have hercunto set my band and caused to be affixed the seal of the state of Indiana, at In. dianapolis, the third day of Africa in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty seven, year of the state. and of the independence of the United States. the
BY THE. GOVERNOL.
SECRETARY
JUDGE WILLIAM N. HOOD'S COMMISSION.
Samuel Hanna and Benjamin Cushman were elected in 1823 by the voters of Allen county to serve as the first associate judges of the circuit court. When Judge Hanna was elected a member of the state legislature, Governor James B. Ray appointed William N. Hood to fill the vacancy on the circuit court bench, "for the term of seven years from the 15th day of June, 1824, in the room of Samuel Hanna, resigned." Judge Hood's period of service commenced in April, 1827. The original commission from which the engraving was photographed is among the effects of the late William Ewing Hood, son of Judge Hood. It bears the certificate of Anthony L. Davis, clerk of the circuit court, dated July 14, 1827.
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THE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FORT WAYNE
cluded the present Swinney park.
Jean Baptiste ("Father") Bequette, a French silversmith, estab- lished a manufactory of jewelry and "ear-bobs for Miami belles," in which was employed at times as many as forty persons. Hugh B. McKeen opened a school in the old fort.
In 1823, came General John Tipton, appointed by President Monroe to succeed Benjamin B. Kercheval, Indian agent at Fort Wayne. General Tipton was of the type of unlettered pioneer whose power lies in native strength of character. He had served with Harrison at Tippecanoe, and it is said he was spurred to give his best service there by the memory of the death of his father at the hands of a murderous savage. General Tipton's account of the battle, in his own handwriting, forms a part of the John Holiday collection at Indianapolis.
ORGANIZATION OF WAYNE LODGE OF MASONS.
The year 1823 marks the beginning of fraternal societies in Fort Wayne, with the organization of Wayne Lodge, No. 25, Free and Accepted Masons. General John Tipton appears to have been the moving spirit in the matter. On March 22 John Sheets, grand master of Masons in Indiana, granted a dispensation to Alexander Ewing, worshipful master; John P. Hedges, senior warden; Ben- jamin Cushman, junior warden, and others, to form a lodge to be known as "Wayne lodge, of Fort Wayne, County of Randolph, Indiana." At the first meeting, held in May, there were present, in addition to those already mentioned, Captain James Hackley and Benjamin B. Kercheval, together with the following-named visitors : General Tipton, of Pisgah lodge, of Corydon, Indiana; Anthony L. Davis, of Franklin lodge, Kentucky; Richard L. Britton, of St. John's lodge, of Ohio; John McCorkle, of lodge No. 14, Ohio, and Robert A. Forsythe. The lodge was opened with John P. Hedges, senior warden and secretary pro tem; Benjamin Cushman, junior warden ; James Hackley, treasurer, and Benjamin B. Kercheval, steward and tyler pro tem. At the June meeting Mr. Kercheval was elected treasurer; Charles W. Ewing, secretary; James Hackley, senior deacon; Robert Hars, junior deacon, and John P. Hedges, steward and tyler. On the 10th of November the charter was granted. On the evening of November 17, in the rooms of General Tipton, enclosed within the palisades of the fort, the following officers were installed : Worshipful master, Alexander Ewing ; senior warden, John Tipton; junior warden, Benjamin B. Kercheval; secretary, Charles W. Ewing; treasurer, Anthony L. Davis; senior deacon, James Hackley ; junior deacon, Hugh B. MeKeen; steward and tyler, James Wyman. On the occasion of the meeting on Christmas night, General Tipton was elected to the office of wor- shipful master, a position which he held for five years.
Although Wayne lodge is today a most substantial organization, the story of its earlier years is one of heartaches and difficulties. During the first five years, the order continued to meet in one of the buildings of the old fort, and in Washington hall, the County Seminary and the court house, although efforts were begun in 1825 to establish a lodge hall owned by the organization. Because of
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financial and other difficulties, the work of building was delayed. At length, in 1829, the lodge purchased from John McCorkle, John T. Barr and Joseph Holman a lot near the northeast corner of Columbia and Harrison streets, the site of the establishment of S. Bash and Company, and there erected a brick building. On June 3, 1833, the lodge found it necessary to sell the lot and building to the highest bidders-Joseph Holman, Richard L. Britton, Francis Comparet, Alexis Coquillard and Hugh Hanna-for $1,328.
The suicide of James Hackley, husband of Rebekah, daughter of Captain William Wells, presented a troublesome problem to the Wayne lodge of Masons in 1826. Hackley's death was the first in the lodge since its organization. Some objection was made to conduct- ing the funeral because of the nature of the death, but, accord-
WILLIAM G. EWING.
Judge William G. Ewing, the first man to be admitted to the bar in Allen coun- ty, held also the honor of serving as the first judge of the probate court, from 1830 to 1836, when he resigned to en- gage, with his brother, George W. Ew- ing, in extensive trading operations, with many branch houses in the central states. At the time of his death on Lake Superior in 1854, he was one of the wealthiest men in the middle west. The portrait is from a photograph loaned by the late Mrs. Cynthia A. Hill.
ALLEN HAMILTON.
Mr. Hamilton, who came to Fort Wayne in 1823, rose to a most prominent place among the men of wealth and in- fluence of his period. In 1824, at the time of the organization of Allen county, he was appointed by the governor to serve as sheriff. Subsequently, he held various important public offices. His connection with the early banking inter- ests is commemorated in the name of the First and Hamilton National bank of today. He died in 1864 at Saratoga, New York.
ing to the records, the members "turned out to gratify Mrs. Hackley." Hackley had taken his own life, by hanging, after a vain attempt to murder his sister-in-law, Mrs. Turner, against whom he had become enraged because of a dispute over the partition of their property in Spy Run. Mrs. Turner escaped by leaping from an upper window of her home. The details of the incident are given by John W. Dawson in his "Charcoal Sketches," and these agree in all respects with the story as repeated by the late Mrs. Lucien P. Ferry, who was then a girl of twelve years.
Attention seemed now to turn instinctively to the formation of a town of commercial importance at the head of the Maumee. The residents and visitors alike were unsparing in their expressions of favorable opinion of the site of Fort Wayne as an ideal spot for
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THE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FORT WAYNE
the upbuilding of a place of importance. Like Captain Riley, they believed that once the land were offered for sale, it would be pur- chased eagerly by the pioneers who, up to that time, were mere "squatters."
The government in 1822 took active steps which opened the way for the sale of the ground in 1823. It is probable that this action would have taken place thirteen years earlier but for the words of protest of Governor William Henry Harrison. In 1805 a report of the proposed action of congress reached the ears of the governor of Indiana territory, and he hastened to report his opinion to Henry Dearborn, secretary of war, as follows:
"I have understood that it was intended to sell immediately the United States land around Fort Wayne. I am very certain, however, that the money which would be put into the treasury by the sale of it would not counterbalance the inconvenience that would arise from having it settled with the description of people who will naturally buy it. It is too far removed from our other settlements to entice American farmers to go there, but the few sections that are sold will be purchased by the Indian traders, and we shall thus have, in the heart of the Indian country, a number of unprincipled people who will be entirely out of reach of the laws of the United States regulating the trade and intercourse with the Indian tribes. If the immediate settlement of it is an object, I think it would be better to sell it by contract, upon the condition that there should be, within a given time, a certain number of American farmers on it."
THE UNITED ST.
SCertificate NÂș 10. To all to whom these Whereas John J. Barr and John Mccorkle howdeposited in the General Land Office of the United States a certificate
By the President (DEC. IS.)
(MAYI.
James Monroe
YBy the President 1826)
J. 2. Adams.
Whereas James Daniels & Samuel Hanna of Aller Por
Andrew Jackson 2
(MAR. 1. 1831)
PRESIDENTS' SIGNATURES TO FORT WAYNE LAND PATENTS.
The above reproductions of parts of the government land patents for portions of the land on which the city of Fort Wayne is situated were made from tracings of the originals in the possession of Oliver S. Hanna, grandson of Samuel Hanna. The grant to John T. Barr and John McCorkle, bearing President Monroe's signature, is for ground in the heart of the present city, including the original plat of Fort Wayne. The Daniels and Hanna tract was southwest of the town. These grants, bearing the signatures of Presidents James Monroe, John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson, are framed and on display in the Nuttman bank, of Fort Wayne.
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PLATTING FORT WAYNE-COUNTY ORGANIZED
Following the memorable treaty of St. Mary's, congress passed an act, signed by President Monroe on the 8th of May, 1822, author- izing the sale of the lands about the old fort. This act defined the boundary of the land district, based upon the surveys of Captain Riley, and permitted the disposal of all the unappropriated and unreserved lands within it to which the Indian titles had been extinguished.
The area presented an interesting appearance at this time. A few unpretentious log buildings collected about the region of the present Clinton, Barr, Columbia, Lafayette and Superior streets, constituted the settlement. Away to the southwest, where now are located the Wabash railroad shops and the Fort Wayne plant of the General Electric Company, was a broad swamp, fed by springs. The outlet of this swamp was a creek called Bloody run, which coursed northward. This creek was joined by another which flowed from the east and had its source near the present Bass foundry. This latter stream crossed Calhoun street at the present Baker street. It ran west on Baker street until it joined Bloody run, which then coursed to the northward and emptied into the St. Mary's river near the Wells street bridge. In its meandering, it crossed all of the principal east-and-west streets. At Wayne street, a bridge spanned the stream just west of Harrison street. A. G. Barnett stated, in 1917, that he remembered catching fish from this stream which coursed through the town even after the canal was in use. In times of freshet, the flood could not find an outlet through the opening beneath the canal to allow of an outflow sufficient to avoid inundating surrounding property. Finally, the springs near the Wabash shops were choked, though the place has remained swampy in a section between the shops and McCulloch park. Mr. Barnett states that the foundation. of the Spencer house, which occupied a site on Calhoun street between Main and Berry streets, was made of stones taken from the bed of Bloody run.
At this time, a swamp occupied the region of which the present Lincoln Life building on East Berry street is the center. The late Louis Peltier related the story of a man who shot a deer and then chased it into this swamp. He waded out to the animal which attacked him and killed him before the eyes of a number of persons who had been attracted to the spot.
Scattered trees, grown since the siege of 1812, dotted the land- scape, while here and there were the sites of Indian camps chosen by the red men for their long sojourn while awaiting the distribu- tion of their annual payments from the government.
The coming of Joseph Holman, of Wayne county, appointed by President Monroe to serve as the first register of the land office, and Captain Samuel C. Vance, of Dearborn county, as the receiver of public moneys, was the signal for activity in securing the choicest sites when the sale should open in the fall of 1823. Register Holman and Captain Vance established their office in the old fort, where much of the clerical work of the business came under the direct supervision of a young man who accompanied Captain Vance as his assistant-Allen Hamilton-a citizen who was soon to become one of the foremost among Fort Wayne's enterprising men.
The arrival of the memorable 22d of October, 1823-the twenty-
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THE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FORT WAYNE
ninth anniversary of the dedication of Wayne's fort and the thirty- third anniversary of Harmar's battle- found the village alive with visitors who vied with the citizens to secure an advantage in the purchase of the available grounds nearest the fort. The lands directly adjoining the stockade were not offered for sale-they were later to become platted as Taber's addition-but that portion which forms the downtown district of the present city was the choice piece which all who possessed the means sought to purchase.
COL. GEORGE WASHINGTON EWING. Colonel Ewing, son of Alexander Ew- ing, who, with his brother, William G. Ewing, became widely known throughout the west because of his large and wide- spread commercial interests, began his business career at Wapakoneta, Ohio. The branches of the trading business were located in Michigan, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, Indiana and Wisconsin; indeed, "the name of the Ewings was familiar from the Alleghen- ies to the Rocky mountains." In 1839 George W. Ewing removed from Fort Wayne to Logansport, and later located at Peru, going from there to St. Louis, where he resided until the death of Wil- liam G. Ewing in 1854. From this time until his death in 1865 Colonel Ewing lived in Fort Wayne. The portrait is from a photograph loaned by the late William Ewing Hood.
SIGNATURE OF JOHN M'CORKLE.
Mr. McCorkle was one of the proprie- tors of the land comprising the original plat of Fort Wayne. The signature is from articles of agreement between Mr. MeCorkle, on the one side, and the gov- ernment representatives, on the other, to supply meat and bread for the Indians while waiting at Fort Wayne for the dis- tribution of their annuities. (Burton Historical Collection, Detroit).
JUDGE CHARLES WAYNE EWING
Charles W. Ewing was the eldest of the sons of Alexander Ewing, strong fig- ures in the early history of Fort Wayne. He had been admitted to the practice of the law before coming to Fort Wayne in 1822, and was the first lawyer to settle here. The portrait is from a photograph of a painting loaned by Mrs. G. W. Mc- Caskey, a niece.
RIVER
ST. MARY'S
10 CNs
ST. JOSEPH'S RIVER
Press
FORT WAYNE
MAUMEE RIVER
ACRES 40
RILEY'S MAP OF THE MILITARY TRACT.
In 1822 Captain James Riley was sent by the government to survey the mili- tary tract about the old fort. It con- sisted of forty acres, which later formed a large part of Taber's addition.
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