USA > Michigan > Hillsdale County > History of Hillsdale county. Michigan, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 72
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Section 29 .- Asa D. Reed, John Babcock, Samuel S. Brown, Ira R. Grosvenor.
Section 30 .- James H. Babcock, Green, Hubbard & Lester, Edward L. Baker, William P. Green.
EARLY SETTLEMENT.
From a historical sketch of this town by Samuel B. Brown (at present occupying a seat in the State Legisla- ture), read July 4, 1876, the following extract is made re- garding the first white settler of what is now Ransom :
" Rowland Bird, a native of Massachusetts, who had previously lived in Wayne Co., N. Y., in the year 1832, in October, moved into Michigan and located in the town of Sylvania, now in the State of Ohio. From Sylvania he came to Ransom, where he arrived March 8, 1836. With him came his wife and seven children, four daughters and three sons; also a young man by the name of Leander Candee, as a man-of-all-work. What his wages were, or for what he served, the only record we have is that, four years after, to wit, March, 1840, he took to wife Lorinda Bird, and no doubt considered himself amply repaid for all the privations and hardships he had endured."
The marriage of Mr. Candee and Miss Bird was the first which took place within the present limits of Ransom. The first death was that of Allen Bird, a sixteen-year-old son of Rowland Bird, who died March 8, 1839, just three years after the family settled in the township, and a year before his sister was married to Mr. Candee. The funeral sermon was preached by Rev. Jacob Ambler, of Osseo, and was the first sermon delivered in town. The first birth was that of a child of Mr. and Mrs. James H. Bab- cock, and occurred also in 1839.
For one or two years after his settlement Mr. Bird's family had no neighbors save the prowling beasts of the wilderness, and the only occasions when they were permitted to gaze on one of their own color were the visits of parties looking for land upon which to locate at some future time.
The second family which settled in Ransom was that of Orrin Cobb, who made a home on the western border. Mr. Cobb became prominent in town, and held numerous offices, among them that of assessor, to which position he was elected at the first town-meeting.
The first frame barn in the township was built by Row- land Bird, in 1838, and among those who were present to assist in raising it were a few Indians, and several persons from Jonesville, who had come purposely to aid in the work. This was but one of many instances of the same character, and it was often found necessary to go even farther for help. "Indeed, the settlers of the town know what hardships and privations mean. One of them, de- siring sash for the windows of his new log house, walked to Jonesville, bought five sash, paid all his money, lashed the sash to his back, and returned without having a mouth- ful to eat. Another man, desiring some seed-oats, started out, accompanied by his thirteen-year-old boy, in search of some. He bought three bushels three miles west of Hud- son. Two bushels were put in one bag, and one bushel in the other. The bags were shouldered respectively by father and son, and carried the whole distance home."*
A wonderful mortality developed itself in the Bird family in the year 1840. Mrs. Candee, the bride of only a month, sickened and died on the 9th day of April, and the grave which was dug to receive her remains was the
* Hogaboam's History of the Bean Creek Valley.
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HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
second for a white person in the township. Mrs. Candee's youngest sister, Eunice Bird, died the same day, and on the 18th of September following, the youngest son of Mr. Bird died, aged six years. Four days later, September 22, Mr. Bird himself succumbed to the great destroyer of all things earthly, and at the age of forty-seven was laid to his long rest in the forest where he had made his home for four short years. A daughter of Mr. Bird became the wife of Nelson Doty, and is yet residing on the old farm taken up by the latter. Another daughter resides in Sylvania, Ohio.
The year 1839 witnessed the arrival of the three brothers, Orsamus, Nelson, and Aaron Doty, who came from the town of Wallingford, Rutland Co., Vt. They reached the house of Rowland Bird in the month of November. Orsa- mus and Nelson located land on the southeast quarter of section 8, west of the present residence of the former. Aaron did not at that time purchase, and after about a year in Michigan returned to Vermont, where he remained until after the death of his parents, when he removed to Ransom and bought the farm on section 16, now owned by A. J. Emmons and Truman Ramsey.
After Orsamus and Nelson Doty had located their land they went as far east as Tecumseh, where the latter remained one year and the former two, both returning to Ransom at the expiration of those periods. Nelson Doty's farm is widely noted for its excellence as a wheat-growing tract, having produced in a single year 3500 bushels.
Nelson Doty died in January, 1859, and his widow yet occupies the place. Aaron removed to Edgewood, Effing- ham Co., Ill., where his death occurred.
When the Dotys arrived in town the residents in its northern portion were Rowland Bird, William and Joseph Phillips (father and son), Israel Hodges, Matthew Arm- strong,-now all deceased,-and Alexander Palmer, who still resides north of Tamarack Corners. Leander Candee lived with Mr. Bird, as stated, and Cornelius Deuel, Henry Cornell, and the Burts were living in the eastern part of town. Joseph Webster and Danforth Bugbee came a few years later. The latter at present resides a short distance south of Ransom village.
. John J. Andridge, a Methodist preacher, was also a later arrival; he purchased the place in the northwest part of town, which had been entered by Israel S. Hodges, now of Ogden, Lenawee Co.
The brothers Thomas and Charles Burt are natives of " Merrie England," from whose wave-washed shores the former emigrated to the United States in February, 1833, and the latter at a subsequent date. They came together to Michigan in 1838, arriving in Ransom in the month of . December. Charles Burt was unmarried and not yet of age. His brother was accompanied by his wife and four children,-one of them having been born on a place near Toledo, Ohio, upon which Mr. Burt lived during the five years of his residence in the country previous to removing to Ransom. Arriving on his place in the latter town (he had left his family at a place near the northwest corner of Pittsford until he could prepare shelter for them), he built a small shanty on the site of his present cheese-factory, and moving into it on Christmas-day, occupied it two years, when a second log. house was built on ground where the
east part of his present residence stands. Mr. Burt's first purchase in Ransom included the northeast quarter of sec- tion 23, upon which he still resides.
When the Burts settled the only family living in their neighborhood was that of Cornelius Deuel, a mile north. Among the first who came later were Henry Cornell and Harvey Higley. William Allen located still later; Giles Taylor lived a short time in the vicinity, but owned no land ; Richard Kelley, and Thaddeus Bailey were among the early settlers of this portion of the town,-the former is now a resident of Pittsford.
Morris M. Laird came in about 1841-42, and for a few weeks stayed with Thomas Burt, locating soon on his own place. Mr. Laird in a few years was seized with a desire to try his fortune in the newly-developed land of Ophir, and removed with his chattels to California, where he amassed a respectable fortune. The charms of a life in Michigan proved too tempting for him, and he was ere long back to his home in Ransom. His speculative and roving disposition, however, refused to content itself here, and nu- merous other ventures made and lost fortunes for him. He is at present residing probably in the city of Utica, N. Y.
The settlement of the eastern part of town was quite slow, and when Mr. Burt came he was surrounded entirely by non-resident land. For about fifteen years he was obliged to keep in good condition a half-mile of road alone.
John Crommer settled quite early north of the Burt place, and Gilbert Howland located still farther north about 1842. One of the most prominent residents of the township of Ransom, although not an early settler, was Oliver T. Powers, who removed here from Buffalo, N. Y., in 1851. His widow is yet occupying the farm, her husband's death having taken place in March, 1875.
A remarkable and somewhat amusing incident is related by Thomas Burt. His wife gave birth to twin daughters in September, 1839. The only person in the neighborhood who could render aid was Mrs. Deuel, and she was promptly on hand. In some manner, during the excitement, the babes were changed around so that the matter of their age has ever since been a problem with no solution,-their parents being utterly unable to say which is the elder of the two. They are both living, -- having families of their own, -one in this township and the other in Hillsdale. The veteran hunter and woodsman, Jesse Smith, who called at Mr. Burt's a few days after the twins were born, is said to have stated that " the prettiest sight he ever saw" was Mrs. Burt and her babies, one on each arm, dressed neat and clean in observance of the Sabbath; and it is further known that Mrs. Burt was a remarkably handsome woman in those days, while many traces of her beauty are still retained.
E. H. Goodrich, a native of Morris township, Washing- ton Co., Pa., removed to Marion Co., Ohio, in 1833, and to Michigan, in February, 1848. He settled on sec- tion 20, in Ransom, where he still resides. Even at as late a period as 1848 the township was sparsely settled, especially in the southern portion, and Mr. Goodrich encountered many of the difficulties of a pioneer life.
George Coppins, originally from England and for some time a resident of Vernon, Oneida Co., N. Y., came from the latter place to Ransom in 1842, and located on his pres-
THOMAS BURT, SR.
MRS. THOMAS BURT, SR.
****
RESIDENCE OF THOMAS BURT, RANSOM, HILLSDALE CO., MICH.
PHOTOS. BY CARSON & CRAHAM.
THOMAS BURT , JR.
MRS. THOMAS BURT , JR :
RESIDENCE OF THOMAS BURT, JR., RANSOM, HILLSDALE CO ., MICH .
1
287
HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
ent farm, having purchased it at the earnest solicitation of Thomas Burt. He was fearful that he never could pay for the place, but through Mr. Burt's efforts he was induced to take the risk, and his present improvements and the order in which his farm is kept tell of his success.
For thirteen years Mr. Coppins has been sexton of the township cemetery on section 23, opposite his residence, and has spared no pains to make it the most beautiful of the three cemeteries the town contains. Evergreens have been set out and walks and drives arranged to the best advantage, and Mr. Coppins takes just pride in the appearance of the grounds. The first person buried here was Betsey Giar, wife of Henry Giar, whose interment dates Oct. 11, 1864. The other two cemeteries are known respectively as the Doty and Andridge burying-grounds, the former on section 5, and the latter on section 7. The Doty ground is the oldest in the township, the first person buried in it having been Rowland Bird's son, Allen, who died, as mentioned, March 8, 1839.
The first fire in the township occurred in the fall of the year 1841. Caleb B. Shepard, then living in Adams, was preparing to move to Ransom. He had built and covered a house, and the lumber was on the ground for the floors and doors thereto. He occupied a small, temporary shanty near by while at work. One Saturday afternoon he went to Adams to stay over Sunday, intending to bring a load of household goods back with him. Monday, upon returning, his surprise was great at finding his house and lumber pile in ashes. A clue was obtained to the cause of the fire when Mr. Shepard remembered leaving some gunpowder in the bottom of a boiler which was filled with tin pans and cooking utensils. Scraps of torn and twisted and blackened tin confirmed his suspicions, and people living five or six miles away claimed to have heard an explosion in that di- rection about sundown Saturday. Mr. Shepard set about rebuilding at once, and on the 14th of December, 1841, moved his family into his new house. For want of lower floor, doors, and windows they were obliged to live up-stairs through that winter.
Several fatal accidents have occurred in Ransom. A Mr. Featherly was killed, in 1851, by a falling limb, while in the woods east of Bugbee's Corners. In 1860, Mr. Joles was killed by lightning, and about the same time old Mr. Siddall (or Siddle) met his death while felling a tree, in the southwest part of the town. A young man named Ward fell upon the tines of a pitchfork, causing his death ; and in 1872 the boiler of a steam saw-mill, on the farm of Charles Burt, exploded, killing four persons and wounding several others. Once only has the crime of murder been perpetrated in the town ; this was on the 6th of February, 1876, when Jacob Stevick assaulted and killed Horace A. Burnett.
The first physician who settled in what is now Ransom was Dr. Baldwin, who came here about 1841-42. He had previously practiced in Hudson, Lenawee Co., and was an excellent physician for that time. The next medical professor who located was Dr. Lee, who, in 1851, established the first store in the township. Dr. Wilford Bates, now a resident of Ransom village, has prac- ticed here with great success for over twenty years, and
beside accumulating considerable property, has won an en- viable place in the esteem of his neighbors, and a reputation for thoroughness and reliability not possessed in all cases by physicians. He is spoken of as an earnest, hard worker.
RECORD OF TOWNSHIP OFFICERS, ETC.
" At the first meeting of the electors of the township of Rowland, holden at the house of A. Palmer, on the 6th day of April, 1840, James H. Babcock was chosen Moder- ator, and Israel S. Hodges, Secretary ; Roland Bird, Orrin Cobb, Rufus H. Rathbun, and Joseph Howe, Inspectors of Election ; and Thomas Burt, Poll Clerk .* The number of officers to be elected was twenty-three, f and the number of electors was but eighteen, yet the difficulty was obviated by giving several offices to one man. Those elected were the following : Supervisor, Leander Candee; Town Clerk, Is- rael S. Hodges; Treasurer, Rowland Bird ; Assessors, Matthew Armstrong, Rowland Bird, Orrin Cobb; Col- lector, Alexander Palmer; School Inspectors, Matthew Armstrong, Israel S. Hodges, James H. Babcock; Direc- tors of the Poor, Joseph Howe, William Phillips; Com- missioners of Highways, James H. Babcock, Alexander Palmer, Henry Cornell; Justices of the Peace, Rowland Bird, James H. Babcock, Matthew Armstrong, Henry Cornell; Constables, Alexander Palmer, Joseph Phillips, Amos S. Drake, Alexander Findley
" At this meeting it was " Voted, That there be paid five dollars for each and every full-grown wolf that is killed by the residents of the township, and two dollars and fifty cents for each and every wolf's whelp.
" Voted, That there be twenty-five dollars raised for the purpose of destroying bear.
" Voted, That there be paid five dollars for every full- grown bear that is killed within the township by actual res- idents, and two dollars and fifty cents for each and every cub that is killed by the residents of this township."
The township was divided into five road districts, and the following persons appointed their respective overseers : William Phillips, Leander Candee, James H. Babcock, Amos S. Drake, Alexander Findley.
After the death of Rowland Bird, in the fall of 1840, Leander Candee was chosen at a special meeting to fill his place as treasurer, and Israel S. Hodges was selected to the position of justice of the peace to take his place. This meeting was held Nov. 4, 1840; at the same time it was " Voted, that there be a set of measures and weights pro- vided for the township; that there be a set of measures of wood for dry measure; and that there be a set of measures of tin to measure liquids ; and that there be a set of scales of iron and tin." Matthew Armstrong was appointed town sealer.
The list of jurors appointed from Ransom in 1840 in- cluded James H. Babcock, Rowland Bird, Matthew Arm- strong, Henry Cornell, Orrin Cobb, Israel S. Hodges, Leander Candee, and Nelson Doty.
On the 29th of January, 1841, Nathaniel S. Dewey was licensed to keep a tavern in the dwelling-house where he was then living, on the east half of the southwest quarter
* Township records.
t Twenty-eight, including pathmasters.
288
HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
of section 5, township 9 south, range 2 west. This was in what is now Amboy, and he was not allowed under the license to sell " ardent spirits, beer, ale, cider, or wine."
The principal officers of the township from 1841 to 1877, inclusive, will be found in the following list :
SUPERVISORS.
1841. Nelson Doty.
1842. Thomas Burt.
1843-44. Nelson Doty.
1858. Lemuel J. Squier.
1845. Israel S. Hodges.
1859. Ephraim C. Turner.
1846-47. Thomas Burt.
1860. Warren Mccutcheon.
1848. Leander Candee.
1861. Henry W. Russell.
1849. William Burnham, Jr.
1862-68. Warren Mccutcheon.
1850. Thomas Burt.
1869-70. Miles G. Teachout.
1851. John J. Andridge.
1871-72. Warren Mccutcheon.
1852. William E. Warner.
1873-74. Samuel B. Brown.
1853. Thomas Burt. 1875-77. William H. H. Pettit.
TOWN CLERKS.
1841-45. Henry Cornell.
1846. William Burnham, Jr.
1847. William D. Stout.
1861-63. Ira W. Bell.
1848-49. Albert T. Kimball.
1864-67. Lemuel J. Squier.
1850. George A. King.
1868. Samuel D. Proctor.
1851-54. Lemuel J. Squier.
1869-70. Charles Fitzgerald.
1855. Cyrus Lee.
1871-72. Chas. D. Schermerhorn.
1856-57. George A. Brown.
1873. M. A. Thompson.
1858. Henry Cornell.
1874-77. Lewis Thompson.
JUSTICES OF THE PEACE.
1841. Joseph G. Howe.
1842. Joseph Phillips.
John Sloan.
1861. William Siddall.
1843. Thomas Stetson. Orsamus Doty.
1844. William Gay. 1845. -
1846. James H. Babcock.
1847. Caleb B. Shepard.
1848. Amos S. Drake.
William Siddall.
1849. William Palmer.
1850. Z. D. Hammond.
1851. Andrew Hermance.
Orsamus Doty. William E. Warner.
1867. Samuel B. Brown. 1868. Ephraim C. Turner.
1869. William R. Peck.
Phineas Perham.
1854. Orsamus Doty. James D. Salisbury.
1855. Alden Siddall.
1856. E. C. Turner. C. B. Shepard.
1857. Ferris Hill.
1858. Jared B. Norris.
1859. Jonathan E. Ingersoll. George A. Brown.
TREASURERS.
1841. Alexander Palmer. 1842.
1843-45. Caleb B. Shepard.
1846-47. Leander Candee.
1848. Zopher D. Hammond. 1849. C. B. Shepard. 1850-51. Henry Cornell. 1852. James Denney.
1853. Oliver T. Powers.
1854. James Denney.
1855. John L. Andridge.
1856. Harvey Higley. 1857. Caleb B. Shepard. 1858. Moses E. Bailey. 1859. Ferris Hill.
1860. Gordon H. Wilcox. 1861-62. William W. Haviland. 1863-64. Wilford Bates. 1865-68. Jonathan W. Harrison. 1869. James D. Cornell. 1870-71. Jehu W. Pennock. 1872-77. Jacob Pettit.
ASSESSORS.
1841. Amos S. Drake.
Orsamus Doty. Joseph Phillips.
1842. Caleb B. Shepard. G. Cramton.
1843. G. Cramton. Sidney S. Drake.
1844. A. Palmer. S. S. Drake. 1845. Alexander Palmer. William Sloan.
1846. G. Cramton. Solomon Fenton .**
COLLECTORS.
1841. Daniel Saxton .*
COMMISSIONERS OF HIGHWAYS.
1841. Hiram Howe. 1852. William Palmer.
Nelson Doty. 1853. Nelson Doty.
Joseph Phillips. 1854. Danforth Bugbee.
1842. Caleb B. Shepard. George W. Densmore. Gurdon Cramton.
1856. William R. Peck. E. H. Goodrich.
1843. Gurdon Cramton.
1857. Orsamus Doty.
Amos S. Drake. 1858. Jacob Pettit.
Leander Candee.
1859. Moses E. Bailey.
1844. Amos S. Drake.
1860. James Cooper. Chauncey Casterline.
John Perkins. Daniel Saxton.
1861. George Camp.
1845. S. S. Drake.
1862. Elijah S. Field.
John Hammond.
1863. Jacob Pettit.
John Carter.
1864. George Coppins.
1846. Christopher Perkins. Uri Cramton. Daniel Saxton.
1867. George Coppins.
1868. Oliver T. Powers.
1869. Orsamus Doty.
1870. Richard Hart.
1848. Gilbert Howland. Joseph Webster.
1872. David Crommer.
1849. Daniel Saxton.
1873. Richard Hart.
1850. Nelson Doty.
1874. Gardner Vincent.
1851. Lemuel Howe.
1852. Thomas Burt.
The following are the officers of Ransom chosen at the annual town-meeting for 1878, viz. : Supervisor, William H. H. Pettit; Town Clerk, John Squier; Treasurer, Jacob Pettit; Justice of the Peace, J. B. Phillips ; School In- spector, Andrew J. Cornell; Township Superintendent of Schools, Alfred F. Hart; Commissioner of Highways, Hiram Miller; Drain Commissioner, Thomas Dennis ; Constables, David Stoner, Ambrose H. Baldwin, James C. Bailey, Charles H. Moore.
EARLY SCHOOLS.
The first school in the township of Ransom was taught in the summer of 1838 by Lucinda Bird, in a shanty on the northwest quarter of section 8, on land now owned by George W. Boothe. The three families who sent children to Miss Bird for instruction were those of Rowland Bird, Orrin Cobb, and Israel S. Hodges. The first school-house was a log building erected in 1839 or 1840, in district ,No. 2, near the present structure, in the same district. A frame school-house, the first in town, was built in 1844 in district No. 7, where now stands the brick building. In what is now district No. 9 the first school-house was a log building erected about 1851-52, and the teacher was Han- nah McCarty. A frame building afterwards put up was destroyed by fire, and the present one, also frame, has taken
* None since chosen.
1875-77. Moses E. Bailey.
1863. Jonathan B. Bailey. Isaac B. Mapes.
1864. E. C. Turner.
John W. Warner. Peter Croup.
1865. Z. D. Hammond. Henry L. Russell.
1866. Enoch H. Goodrich. Samuel B. Brown.
1852. Cyrenus Powers.
1853. Joseph Miller.
1870. Reuben B. Mason. 1871. Samuel B. Brown. 1872. Ephraim C. Turner.
1873. David T. Carpenter. 1874. Newton Russell. 1875. Harvey Higley. Charles G. Palmer.
1876. Ephraim C. Turner. 1877. D. M. Worden.
1860. E. C. Turper.
William E. Warner.
1847. S. S. Drake. W. D. Stout. James Denney.
1865. Oliver T. Powers.
1866. William Hile.
1871. Harvey Higley.
1862. George A. Brown.
1855. Isaac Doty.
1854-55. Jared B. Norris. 1856-57. Nelson Doty.
1859. Lemuel J. Squier. 1860. Cyrus Lee.
PHOTOS: BY CARSUN & CRAHAM.
MRS.GILBERT HOWLAND.
GILBERT HOWLAND.
RESIDENCE OF GILBERT HOWLAND, RANSOM, HILLSDALE CO., MICH.
.
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HISTORY OF HILLSDALE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
its place. The township has very good schools and school buildings, three of the latter being constructed of brick.
About 1844 a log school-house was built on land owned by Thomas Burt. Probably the first teacher was the wife of Thomas Lee (brother of Dr. Lee), and another who taught here early was Amanda Birch. A frame school- house is now standing in the district, on section 24.
RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES.
FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, RANSOM .*
This church was organized May 19, 1848, by a council called for that purpose, at the house of C. B. Shepard, two and a half miles northeast of the Centre. The council consisted of Rev. S. R. Laird, preaching at Hudson and Wheatland; Rev. Roswell Parker, of Adams; and laymen Jacob Robins, of Wheatland; A. Wade and David Bagley, of Adams ; and B. H. Lane, of Hudson. The church was organized with seven members,-three males and four females,-six of whom came with letters from other churches. These persons were Stephen Ingersoll and Joan, his wife; C. B. Shepard and Mary E., his wife ; Jacob T. Service and Ann, his wife; and Sally Perkins. The church assumed the name of the " First Congregational Church of Ransom" on the day of its organization, and voted to invite Rev. R. Parker, of Adams, to preach for them one-half of the time. A committee was also appointed to solicit aid from the American Home Missionary Society, and it was granted. The church was first represented in the Southern Michigan Association, by C. B. Mott, at a meeting held at Clinton, on the fourth Tuesday in June, 1848.
Rev. Roswell Parker closed his labors with this church in November, 1850, having remained two and one-half years. Soon after this Rev. William E. Warner (Wes- leyan), a resident of the town, was employed for half of the time, and remained about two years. For eight or ten months subsequently the church was not supplied except occasionally, when Rev. W. Wolcott, of Adrian, came and preached one-third of the time for some two years. Mr. Wolcott labored as a minister at large for the Massachusetts Home Missionary Society. His successor was Rev. T. W. Davis (Wesleyan), of Ransom ; he began in the spring of 1856, and continued one year. The church was again un- supplied for some six months, and then secured the services of Rev. M. Tingly, a recent graduate of Oberlin. He came in November, 1858, and remained three years. After a vacancy of a few months the church was supplied for three years by Rev. George Barnum. In August, 1864, Mr. Barnum was obliged to cease preaching in consequence of the failure of his voice. He was succeeded, in September, by Rev. J. F. Boughton, of Geneva, Ashtabula Co., Ohio.
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