USA > Michigan > Hillsdale County > History of Hillsdale county. Michigan, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 67
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MRS. L. P. ROODE.
G. Archer, of Branch County; is in the mercantile busi- ness at Quincy, that county. He is the son of Gardner Archer, a pioneer of this county.
ROSCIUS SOUTHWORTH.
The Southworth family dates its settlement in the United States to the arrival of the " Mayflower" at Plymouth, Mass., in December, 1620, a female member being a passenger on that vessel, and afterwards becoming the wife of Governor Bradford, of the colony then formed. Roscius Southworth was born in Windham Co., Conn. (town of Thompson), Aug. 27, 1815, his parents, Royal and Phebe South worth, having resided there many years. The elder Southworth was a machinist by trade, and is said to have aided in con- structing the first spinning-machine made in the United States. In 1820 he removed with his family to Mendon, Worcester Co., Mass., and in 1828 to Oswego Co., N. Y. When nineteen years of age, Roscius Southworth emigrated to Michigan and settled in the town of Litchfield. He pur- chased of Deacon Harvey Smith forty acres of land, and made shingles to pay for it. In 1838 he was married to Miss Lucinda Murdock, who died in 1839, leaving one child, John Southworth, now a prominent lawyer of Henrietta, Texas. In 1841 he was married to Miss Lucinda L. Wight, daughter of Thaddeus Wight, who settled in Jonesville in April, 1830. By this union Mr. Southworth is the father of four children, three sons and one daughter,-the latter now Mrs. John H. Parish, of Allen. The elder son, Thad- deus M., is managing the old farm, and takes especial pride in his fancy stock,-short-horned cattle and fine-wooled sheep. During the Rebellion he served with distinction in Company M, 2d Michigan Cavalry. Royal A. is an extensive stock- raiser in Colorado, and at present occupies a seat in the Legislature of that State. William R. Southworth is a farmer, residing near Kalamazoo, Mich.
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HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
Mr. Southworth is emphatically a self-made man. He arrived in Michigan without a dollar in his pocket, and by industry and shrewdness has worked his way onward and upward, until he occupies a position as one of the most prominent farmers in the township of Allen. Has a large and finely-improved farm. For many years he was a rail- road contractor, building portions on the Detroit and Toledo, Michigan Southern, Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific, and Jackson branch of the Michigan Southern Railways. The second horse he purchased in Michigan cost him ninety-five dollars, and he drew flour from Litchfield to Hillsdale at a shilling per barrel to pay for it.
The father of Mrs. Southworth, Thaddeus Wight, was one of the earliest pioneers of the county, and when he arrived with his wife and eight children, had but twelve shillings in money left, with no shelter and no means of supporting them. But the ingenuity and perseverance of the " dweller in the wilderness" triumphed, and in a short time he was one of the wealthiest farmers in the county, and was surrounded with every comfort attainable in that day. Mr. and Mrs. Southworth have witnessed the growth of their adopted land, and its development into one of the most powerful members of the sisterhood of States. Forty-four years' residence on the part of the husband, and forty-eight on that of the wife, have had their varied experiences,-their trials, hardships, privations, reverses, and successes,-and in their age they may rest content amid the blessings their hands have provided, while their children enjoy the noble inheritance built up for them since the pioneer days of long ago.
JONATHAN W. WHITNEY.
Among the early pioneers to Hillsdale County was Jona- than Whitney, a descendant of John Whitney, who was born in Whitney Street, Liverpool, England, in the year 1599. Having determined to emigrate to the colonies, with his wife and family he embarked on the vessel " Elizabeth and Ann," April, 1634, and arrived in Water- town, Mass., in June of the same year. Jonathan, whose name stands at the head of this sketch, was born in Ontario Co., N. Y., Nov. 3, 1816. His grandfather, Jonathan Whitney, was a volunteer in the French and Indian war, and was captain in the war for independence. His father bore the commission of lieutenant in the war of 1812.
Mr. Whitney came in the year 1837 to Michigan on a prospecting tour, and returning in the fall of the same year to his native State, engaged in farming occupations until the year 1839, when he married Ann Jane Garrett, of Niagara, N. Y., who was born on the Isle of Man. They
came to Allen, Hillsdale Co., after their marriage, and on the 21st of June of the same year moved into the house known in after-years as the Still house.
In February of 1840 they removed to a house of their own. This dwelling was destitute of many comforts, hav- ing no doors or floor, for the reason that no lumber was to be had for the purpose. Mr. Whitney made good use of his axe, and in a short time had cut a puncheon floor, and having hauled a saw-log to the nearest mill, ten miles away, he hoped soon to complete his house, and make it attractive. On going for the lumber, a week later, he was dismayed to find neither lumber nor log. It had disappeared in a man- ner not unfamiliar to pioneer lumbermen. Mr. and Mrs. Whitney have had four children. The first, William G. Whitney, was born Dec. 13, 1840, and enlisted as a private soldier in the 11th Regiment Michigan Volunteer Infantry Aug. 24, 1861, and was with one exception in every engage- ment in which his regiment participated. He was slightly wounded at the battle of Chickamauga, and afterwards pro- moted to a captaincy. He was provost-marshal, military conductor, and railroad inspector, and was mustered out of the service Sept. 30, 1865. In 1874 he married Bessie Kay, and now resides on his farm in Allen. Anna E. was born Dec. 26, 1842, and was married to John M. Watkins in 1868, and died Jan. 2, 1878.
Jonathan C. was born Aug. 19, 1852, and Jennie S. Oct. 10, 1859. They are both living at home with their parents. Mr. Whitney and his family are regular attend- ants of the Methodist Church, and their house has often been the home of the itinerant minister. Hospitality and good cheer have always been extended to the deserving, and the poor and sick alike find a welcome at their door. Many places of honor and trust have been filled by Mr. Whitney, among them the offices of supervisor, town treasurer, justice of the peace, etc. In politics he is a Republican, and was in early years a Whig.
WILLIAM McCONNELL
was born on the Isle of Barbadoes, Nov. 19, 1818. His father was a soldier in the British army. William came to America when he was fifteen years of age; learned the cooper's trade. Carried on that and the mercantile busi- ness in Ceresco, Calhoun Co., Mich., until 1864, when he purchased the farm where he now lives. Aug. 17, 1848, he married Miss Elvira Cunningham. By this union five children have been born, four of whom are now living,- two sons and two daughters. Mrs. McConnell was the daughter of James Cunningham, who came from Cortland, N. Y. Settled in Marshall, 1837.
34
CAMBRIA.
THE township of Cambria, which lies south and west of the centre of the county of Hillsdale, was originally a part of the township of Fayette. In the year 1840, the terri- tory now covered by the present townships of Woodbridge and Cambria was set apart, and called Woodbridge. This apportionment of the territory extended, however, over a period of but one year, for the year following the present township of Cambria was formed, comprising an area of surface six miles square, and may be described as township No. 7, south of range No. 3 west.
The surface of the land is undulating, being diversified with hills and several small lakes, named successively Bear Lake, Hog Lake, Cub Lake, and a portion of Baw Beese Lake, and having no continuous stretches of level land. The soil comprises a mixture of sand, clay, and gravel, with oc- casionally some pieces of clay and tracts of sandy loam. It is regarded as one of the most productive towns in the county, and the average yield of its broad acres of cultivated land compares favorably with that of any other township of the same area.
The following list of entries of land will indicate the early settlers in the township previous to 1838, and the section on which they located :
Section 1 .- Theron Taylor, Samuel Ford, Center Lamb, J. Ford, Ingham Roberts.
Section 2 .- William C. Swift, Louson G. Budlong, Theron Taylor, H. S. Platt, and G. W. Miller.
Section 3 .- Julius O. Swift, Beverly Robinson, Caleb N. Ormsbee, A. Wilcox, H. Philips, B. Fowler, and H. J. Olds.
Section 4 .- Otho Beall, Caleb N. Ormsbee, Cyrus Whitney.
Section 5 .- Otho Beall, E. Banker, Reuben Hoar, John Morgan, John Logan.
Section 6 .- H. G. Hubbard, Ira Ingalls, Jesse F. Bangs, Daniel Bangs, Gilbert Bloomer, John W. Talbott.
Section 7 .- Ebenezer Raymond, Bowen Whiting, Hiram V. Weaver, Lorenzo D. Weaver, Abel Bailey, John P. Freeman.
Section 8 .- Peter Gates, A. Owen, Alfred Brown, Eli- phalet Gilbert, John W. Talbott, David Thompson.
Section 9 .- Lyman Allyn, Noys and Wm. W. Billings, John Flint, Charles H. Carroll, Epenetus A. Reed, Henry Swisher, Ely and Harvey Hanford.
Section 11 .- William Plympton, Daniel Putnam, Sam- uel F. Hoper, Nicholas Van Alstine, Ralph Pratt, Samuel Chandler, Charles Laumon, Warren Chaffee.
Section 13 .- Silas Doty, Wilder D. Hastings, Samuel Chandler, Benjamin J. Kinyon, Charles J. Manning, Sam- uel Baldwin, William Dixon.
Section 14 .- Benjamin Johnson, Charles H. Carroll,
Epenetus A. Reed, Edwin Comstock, William Kirbey, William Taylor.
Section 15 .- Ebenezer Parker, Charles H. Carroll, Epe- netus A. Reed, Samuel Baldwin.
Section 16 .- School lands.
Section 17 .- Samuel M. Bartlett, Z. M. P. Spalding, Hiram A. Weaver, Hiram Owen, Abel Bailey.
Section 18 .- Philip Day, H. H. and George C. Seelye, Pasqua P. Weaver, Charles D. Wilcox, Ira Grosvenor.
Section 19 .- Susannah Comstock, Moses Willetts, H. H. and George C. Seelye, Alfred Brown, Jacob Clark.
Section 20 .- Susannah Comstock, Barron B. Willits, James Ingersoll, Samuel M. Bartlett, Joseph R. Williams. Section 21 .- James Ingersoll, Samuel M. Bartlett, Jo- seph R. Williams, Wait Chapin, Isaac Merritt, Epenetus A. Reed.
Section 22 .- Samuel M. Bartlett, Moses Brigham, Epen- etus A. Reed, Ralph Pratt.
Section 23 .- David Hudson, I. Berry, William C. Kelly, Tolbert Sparks.
Section 24 .- Lewis M. Gates, Chester Stuart, Charles I. Manning, Warren Chaffee, E. G. and H. Hanford.
Section 25 .- William A. Codding, George W. Jermain, B. J. Kinyon, Sally Ann Falkner.
Section 26 .- Silas Doty, Dwight Woodbury, W. P. Green, Irvin Camp, E. G. and H. Hanford.
Section 27 .- Samuel M. Bartlett, John De Mott, Andrew Palmer, Samuel Baldwin, C. G. and H. Hanford.
Section 28 .- John McDermid, Samuel M. Bartlett, Joseph R. Williams, Rollin Brigham, C. C. Jackson.
Section 29 .- David Seeley, Melvin Barrett, S. M. Bartlett, Andrew F. Oliver, Gilbert Bloomer, Joseph R. Williams, Chester Stuart.
Section 30 .- Lester C. Bennett, Henry P. Sartwell, Samuel Orr, Gilbert Bloomer, Jacob Clark.
Section 31 .- William Duffield and W. R. Smith, Wilder D. Hastings, John W. Johnson, Ralph Pratt, H. S. Platt, John W. Miller.
Section 32 .- Lester C. Bennett, William Duffield and W. R. Smith, Charles H. Carroll.
Section 33 .- John McDermid, Samuel M. Bartlett, Norman C. Baldwin, Center Lamb.
Section 34 .- T. B. Van Brunt, Dwight Woodbury, A. S. and Stephen Clark, Center Lamb, John R. Willis.
Section 35 .- Anthony Silsbee, Dwight Woodbury, H. S. Platt, Sarah Douglas, Joseph True.
Section 36 .- Lewis M. Gates, George W. Jermain, Sally Ann Falkner, Leander Candee, Samuel Lathrop.
The first settlers on the west side were Hiram Weaver and Abel Bailey, who came in 1835. The former located 100 acres on section 7 and the same number of acres on
266
267
HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
section 17. The latter located 80 acres on section 7 and 80 acres on section 17. Moses Willets also located 100 acres on section 19 in 1837. With him also came his brothers, Barron B. Willets and Jonathan Willets. The former located 160 acres on section 20. These brothers came from Cambria, in New York State, and named their adopted home Cambria township, in memory of their early associations at the East.
Gaylor Dowd came to this township in the year 1836. The same year Warren Smith emigrated to Tecumseh, from Franklin Co., N. Y., and after remaining three years, pur- chased 160 acres on section 30, where he now resides. Mr. Smith retains a very vivid recollection of his pioneer ex- periences. Bears and wolves were abundant at that time, and it was not unusual to see the latter playing in the fields and even approaching the houses of the settlers. Later a bounty of $3 was offered for every wolf's skin, which was afterwards increased to five dollars. Deer were also plenti- ful, and would frequently eat with the cattle, showing no signs of timidity. They soon became pets with the family, and very seldom were any of them harmed. Wild turkeys were also occasionally seen feeding with the domestic fowls, and they also enjoyed the same immunity from the bullets of the hunter. Mr. Smith remembers traveling three days to reach and return from the nearest point where the grists were ground, and as an evidence of the "hard times" of early days, which were less a fiction than at present, he remarked that he worked three days for a bushel of pota- toes, and occasionally indulged in the luxury of a dish of oysters when in Detroit, for which he paid one dollar and a half. He also paid the same price for a bushel of very poor apples.
The first frame house built in the south portion of the township was erected by Lorenzo Rice, of Cambria Mills, and the second by Warren Smith, in 1842. As late as 1839 no roads had been cut, the country being one vast wilderness, and not more than 100 acres having been cleared in the whole township. The settlers lived far apart, and frequently no white inhabitant was to be seen from one week's end to another.
In 1841 the neighborhood was visited with a calamity that caused profound sorrow, in the sudden death by accident of Hiram Weaver, whose name heads this record as the earliest settler. While digging a well upon the land which he had located, the earth caved in and buried him several feet under the surface. Some hours elapsed before the débris could be removed, and long ere this life had become extinct.
The first log house south of the Willets' location was built by Samuel Orr, who came in 1837, and was the hospi- table abode of many early settlers until their own simple houses were constructed. The log houses of that period were small and inconvenient, and frequently two and three families occupied them at the same time. The first barn was built by Lyman Rhodes in 1838, on land at present occupied by Bani Bishop.
Jacob Hancock, who reviews with much satisfaction his pioneer reminiscences and whose memory of early scenes in which he participated is still very acute, came from Genesee Co., N. Y., Oct. 10, 1839, and located in the south-
west quarter of the township. He remembers the first town- ship election, held April 5, 1841, at which the electors were very few in number, and was about casting the first vote on this occasion, when Potter G. Card, one of the early settlers who came in the spring of 1839, from Gates Co., N. Y., and purchased 160 acres on section 8, stepped for- ward and claimed the privilege on account of his superior years, which was very gracefully conceded him by Mr. Hancock.
The following are the names of voters at that time: Barton Aldrich, John Fogerson, John Ferdig, Ebenezer Banker, Isaac S. Climer, Potter G. Card, Linus A. Carner, Hiram V. Weaver, Job A. Smith, Abel Bailey, Gaylor Dowd, Charles Dowd, Silas Doty, Barron B. Willets, Jona- than Willets, Andrew Westcott, Ira Mead, Jacob S. Han- cock, James Wilson, Ira Brown, Alanson Van Vlack, Dan- iel Weaver, Samuel Orr, Warren Smith, Isaac Wheeler, Albert Dresser, Moses Willets, John I. Van Vlack, Nathan Frink, Lorenzo Rice, John Smith, B. Willard, O. Oliver, Henry Sanford, Rowland Lewis, Alex. Vinicore, William Metcalf.
The following was the valuation of property in 1841 : valuation of personal property, $1635 ; real estate owned by residents, $10,002.80; real estate owned by non-resi- dents, $58,103.11 ; total valuation of real estate and per- sonal property in the township, $78,640.97; total valua- tion of the same in 1875, $400,290.
Jacob Clark came early and located on the east side of the township. He made much progress in clearing the wild land and making a comfortable habitation for his family, as, previous to 1836, he had thirty acres cleared and had erected a comfortable frame residence. Among the early settlers on the east side were Samuel Paylor, William French, William Plympton, who located forty acres on section 12; Samuel Chandler, who located 160 acres on the same section, but did not reside upon it; Warren Chaffee, who located eighty acres on section 24; Wesley Burgoyne, Levi Lane, E. G. Salisbury, John Swift, Har- vey Southworth, and Peter Beam.
The first sermon was preached at the house of Ira Mead, in 1839, by Rev. Mr. Burroughs. The first school-house was built in 1840, and first taught by Miss D. A. Gload, in District No. 4, on section 19. This lady died in the township in 1878, at Banker's Station. The first marriage was that of Ira Brown to Sarah Wilson, which occurred at the house of James Wilson, Jan. 11, 1842. The cere- mony was performed by Ira Mead, Esq., then justice of the peace. The first male child born was Noalee Bailey, Aug. 28, 1839. The first female child born was Rabie O. Weaver, Sept. 2, 1836, who lost her life in the great Chicago fire, in 1871.
The first death in the township was that of Luceene Bailey, wife of Abel Bailey, who died February 22, 1837. This was a very sad and impressive event in the neighbor- hood.
In February, 1841, the government established a post- office, and appointed Jacob Hancock postmaster. The fol- lowing is a summary of the amounts paid the mail-carrier for the first four years, when the rates were 6} cents, 12} cents, 182 cents, and 25 cents for each piece of paper :
268
HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
March 31, 1841
$2.84
March 31, 1843. $2.56
June 30, 1841.
1.29
June 30, 1843
2.52
Sept. 30, 1841 2.62}
Sept. 30, 1843 1.95
Dec. 31, 1841. 2.32}
Dec. 31, 1843 2.01}
March 31, 1842.
3.98
March 31, 1844.
1.62
June 30, 1842
2.48
June 30, 1844.
1.79
Sept. 30, 1842
2.53
Sept. 30, 1844
1.45
Dec. 31, 1842
2.06
Dec. 31, 1844. 2.05
The mail matter was at this early date so limited that the postmaster frequently carried it in his pocket.
The most considerable village of the township of Cam- bria is
CAMBRIA MILLS,
which was founded by John McDermid, and takes its name from the mills which were built by him. He located 120 acres on section 28 and 40 acres on section 33, June 16, 1835, and immediately began the construction of a saw- mill. He was followed soon after by his brother, Andrew Jackson McDermid, who built a grist-mill. These mills have, during a series of years, undergone many improve- ments, but the original structures still exist as landmarks of the period when Cambria Mills was little more than a vast forest. When John McDermid first settled here there were no traces of civilization to be found, wood and thick underbrush covering the territory now embraced in the little village. The mills since their erection have had successive proprietors. The McDermids sold them to Lorenzo Rice, who again sold them to Wilbur & Wheeler. They passed again into the hands of the McDermids, and were afterwards controlled by one Russell and John Mangold, who sold them to James Hollingshead. Jacob Bush then purchased a half-interest, and Hollingshead sold his interest to Henry Gilbert, who purchased Bush's interest and became sole owner. After conducting them for some length of time he disposed of the property to Western Ramiley, who re-sold them again to Gilbert, who is the present owner.
Cambria Mills was platted in 1878, but has never been incorporated. Among the most imposing structures is the school building, built of brick, and admirably adapted, by its arrangements for ventilation and comfort as well as its spacious apartments, for the purpose to which it is devoted. It is the intention of the trustees during the present year to introduce the graded-school system and give instruction in the higher branches, when the corps of teachers will also be increased in numbers. It is at present conducted by Mr. Samuel Morris and Miss Huldah Chapel.
The village also boasts 1 hardware-store, 2 drug-stores, 2 dry-goods-stores, 1 boot- and shoe-store, 2 harness-shops, 2 blacksmith-shops, 1 cabinet-shop, 1 milliner-shop, 1 mar- ket, and a planing-mill, owned by Geo. F. Drake. There are 3 physicians in the place,-James W. Niblack, Charles E. Payne, and Mrs. E. S. Aber.
Among the representative men of the village is George F. Houghtby, who has for the past twenty-two years held the appointment of postmaster. He is also proprietor of the Houghtby House, which was built in the summer of 1875, and is strictly a temperance house. In fact, the temperance sentiment meets a warm indorsement from the residents of Cambria Mills, the only license in the place having been granted to one of the druggists to sell liquors for medicinal purposes. The citizens confess with chagrin that for a brief period a whisky-shop flourished in the vil-
lage, " but one pleasant day the institution collapsed." While the proprietor thereof-a gentleman standing, we judge, near seven feet in his stockings-had gone to sup- per, or somewhere else, the outside of this establishment, or at least a part of it, " went in," and the inside-bottles, benches, and casks-" went out," and, strange to say, in such ceremonious haste that not a bottle or cask but was so buried and broken as to lose its precious contents on the ground. Cambria now breathes pure air, thank God ! and, with her enterprising, moral, and intelligent citizenship, may look forward to certain prosperity and wealth.
The Methodist Episcopal Church in the village has been in existence since 1866. In that year the classes of the township desiring to have a stated place of worship within their own limits, united their forces with those of Cambria Centre and formed an organization. Soon after recognizing the necessity for a suitable house of worship, they began the erection of the present edifice, under the pastorate of Rev. Mr. Fanner. The building is of brick, convenient and comfortable, with ample room for a congregation of 300. Cambria Circuit includes the society at Cambria Mills, and a society four miles south, at Woodbridge. In the class at the former place are 57 members, the latter numbering 35 in its present membership. Its present pastor is Rev. Marcellus Darling.
CAMBRIA LODGE, NO. 259, OF FREE AND ACCEPTED MASONS,
was organized Dec. 4, 1868. The members who first ap- plied for a charter were S. L. Dart, B. W. Dodge, Christian Fink, James Hollingshead, James Fink, C. T. Gilbert, Jacob Bust, Perry Oderkirk, Lauson Fink, Elkana Brower, Jesse Hilliard, Warren Merritt, and George Farmer. The pres- ent membership of the lodge, which is in a flourishing con- dition, is 56. Its first officers were S. L. Dart, Worthy Master ; B. W. Dodge, Senior Warden ; C. Fink, Junior Warden ; James Hollingshead, Treas .; James Fink, Sec. ; C. T. Gilbert, S. D .; Jacob Bush, J. D. ; Perry Oderkirk, Tyler. Its present officers are P. H. Oderkirk, Worthy Master; E. Brower, Senior Warden ; Charles Marsh, Ju- nior Warden ; Judson Chapel, Sec. ; Christian Fink, Treas.
This township is the site of the county-house, which is located on section 4, the farm covering portions of sections 3 and 4. Three railroads traverse the soil of Cambria,- the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad passing through the extreme northeastern point of the township; the Fort Wayne, Jackson and Saginaw Railroad running through the northwestern portion and forming a junction with the Detroit, Hillsdale and Indiana Railroad at
BANKERS' STATION.
This little hamlet, located in the northwestern corner of Cambria, was founded by Horace and George Banker, who located there in 1838, and has derived some importance since 1873 from its railroad connections. It has a hotel, kept by John Burgess, blacksmith-shop, store, post-office,- W. A. Carpenter being postmaster, -saw-mill, and a restau- rant connected with the depot. There is also a repair-shop for the use of the railways. The church, which is con- nected with the Free-Will Baptist denomination, and is also
269
HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
used as a school-building, is an unpretentious wooden struc- ture, with nearly 200 sittings, which has been erected about four years. Its present pastor is Miss Mary Garard, who resides in Hillsdale while pursuing her studies and preaches at Bankers' on Sabbath.
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