USA > Michigan > St Clair County > St. Clair County, Michigan, its history and its people; a narrative account of its historical progress and its principal interests, Vol. I > Part 17
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Charles Phillips was probably the junior Phillips, a capable car- penter who bought land south of Pine river at corner of Fort street, both east and west of Front street. His father, Charles Phillips, Sr., was a blacksmith, a very ingenious man, who devised several inventions of merit, lived for a time at Marine City, and died at Algonac.
The value or the price of attorneys' service was growing, or the amount of crime was increasing, as Mr. Witherell was allowed $25 for his services at the October term of court.
January 21, 1828, the board formally declared the three north rooms of the lower story of the court house to be the common jaol of the county from that date, and postponed the completion of the court house under the Phillips contract to July 15. 1828.
At the meeting of April 21, 1828, changes appeared in the personnel of the board; Amasa Heminger represented the township of Cottrell- ville; Jeremiah Harrington, the township of Desmond; and Everett Beardsley, the township of Sinelair.
At the meeting of July 21, 1828, a new supervisor appeared and took his seat: Harvey Stewart, the former county commissioner and
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now supervisor of Clay township. It will be remembered that in 1827 it was generally assumed that the old township of Plainfield was incor- porated into the township of Cottrellville. This does not seem legally, however, to have been the fact. Undoubtedly the township of Plainfield continued to exist, but with much diminished area, containing, however, the village of Algonae and all of townships 2 north, ranges 15 and 16 east.
PLAINFIELD TOWNSHIP CHANGED TO CLAY
When the regular spring election of 1828 came on, Samuel Ward, whose interests and influence were considerable, and who had his slate of township officers whom he wanted elected, insisted that the men from Algonae and the extreme lower end of the county had no right to vote in Cottrellville. They were determined to be represented, and as they were more numerous than Ward's men, they would have carried the election if allowed to vote. In anticipation of the refusal, they pre- pared a list of the township officers they proposed to elect, and when they were prevented from voting they returned to the office of John K. Smith, held an election, and drew up a petition to the legislative council to have a township established to be ealled Plainfield. The couneil did not meet until May 5, and Mr. Bunee was no longer a member, his place being taken by John Stockton, of Maeomb county. Mr. Stockton pre- sented the petition which was headed by John K. Smith on May 9; it was immediately referred to the proper committee, and on May 20, it passed the council, cutting off from the township of Cottrellville, as fixed by the aet of 1827, the lower tier of townships. The next day the action was reconsidered, and the name of the township changed from Plainfield to Clay, presumably because there already was another town- ship of Plainfield in Allegan county, and Henry Clay was a great polit- ical favorite. The bill was approved by the governor May 27th, and thus became law. In the aet as passed and printed, the dividing line be- tween the townships is made to run between Sections 23 and 33, which is an impossibility. It is an evident mistake of 23 for 28. The act legalized the election held in April, and thus Mr. Stewart became a member of the board of supervisors.
At the October, 1828, session, one Lewis Austin appears prominently. Charles Phillips is allowed $6 for making ehain and other irons to secure him as prisoner in the jail, and then is allowed the further sum of $21.50 for his support for eighty-four days. This Austin is finally, the next year, admitted to bail. By this time the price of wolf sealps has risen to five dollars, and at the session of March 25, 1829, five are paid for at that rate.
In October, 1829, Harvey Stewart again represents Clay township, and George Cottrell, the former county commissioner, now represents Cottrellville. William Gallagher, St. Clair township, and John Kennely the township of Desmond.
William Gallagher lived in what is now the township of China and operated the mills upon Belle river, where Radike's mill has now been in operation for many years.
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At this session E. W. Ewing was allowed $25 for services as prose- cuting attorney by special appointment of the circuit court, and one- fourth of one per cent taxes was ordered raised. At this time the town- ship of Sinclair contained much more taxable property than any other township, as is shown by its proportion of county tax, $107.87, while Clay is compelled to raise only $59.75, Cottrellville $65.91, and Des- mond $96.88.
In October, 1830, the same supervisors constituted the board; they voted one-half of one per cent tax, and allowed George A. O'Keefe $25 for services as district attorney for each of the terms of the circuit court held in July and October.
FIRST BRIDGES BUILT
At the spring election in 1831 Harvey Stewart was elected super- visor of Clay township, Amasa Hemminger of Cottrellville, Andrew Westbrook, the former county commissioner, of St. Clair (Sinclair as the name of a township never afterwards appears, although no legal steps were taken to make the change), and John Kenelly of Desmond, and they constituted the board at a special session held May 9, 1831. Up to this time there had been no bridges across Pine or Belle rivers near their mouths connecting the main highways along St. Clair river, the crossing being done by small ferry boats which could carry passengers and freight, horses and other animals being compelled to swim. The growth of the population of the county, which at this time was about 1,200, necessitated an improvement and the board resolved: "The supervisors of the county of St. Clair hereby give notice that they will receive proposals on Saturday, the 21st day of May, inst., at the house of H. James for building a floating bridge across Pine river and like- wise one across Belle river, of the following descriptions, viz: Five pine stringers 12 inches by 18, hewed on two sides, covered with plank 18 feet long, 2 inches thick, with a swing at each of said bridges suitable to let vessels pass, having 20 feet beam, with an apron at each end 10 feet long confined to the main bridge with iron hooks or snibills, the whole to be confined with braces from the shore, which are to be con- fined to each mud sill, 40 feet long at each end of said bridge. The whole to be done by the first day of August next in a workmanlike man- ner according to a plan to be seen by calling on Dr. Amasa Hemenger, or H. James. Good security will be required for the faithful perform- ance of each contract, said bridges to have good substantial railings. Payment to be made as follows: $250 in an order on the treasurer of the territory, equally divided according to the expense of building said bridges, the remainder in county orders. N. B .- The swinging part of the aforesaid bridges shall shut onto the main bridges with a halving or rabiting of six inches."
Recognizing the importance to the territory of improved communi- cations, the legislative council had appropriated on February 25th, $250 for assisting in the construction of these bridges.
The annual session of 1832 brought more changes in the board. Har- vey Stewart again appears from Clay township and John Kennelly from
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Desmond, but Samuel Ward appears for the first time from Cottrellville, and Edmund Carlton from St. Clair.
RALPH WADHAMS
At the October session, 1834, Ralph Wadhams appeared as super- visor for Desmond township. Mr. Wadhams was born in Goshen, Conn., in 1798, and when about seven years old his parents moved to Livingston county, N. Y., where he obtained his education and entered the store of Nicholas Ayrault, who afterwards came to Port Huron as the agent of the Huron Land Company. In 1823 he came west to Detroit and en-
RESIDENCE OF RALPH WADHAMS
(From an Old Painting. )
tered in business with one Reese as general merchants under the firm name of Reese and Wadhams, occupying the first briek store in Detroit, owned by Robert Smart. The firm later changed, the place of Reese being taken by Henry Howard, who subsequently became state treasurer. Through Smart, who, with Oliver Miller, Thomas Scott and John Biddle, all of Detroit, was interested in pine lands in St. Clair county and who built a mill on Black river at the point later known as Wadhams, he be- came interested in the lumber enterprise and bought the mill, selling a two-thirds interest to Howard and W. S. DeZeng of New York. He oper- ated the mill for some time while he lived in Detroit, but in 1829 he moved to where his mill was located and lived there during the rest of his life. In 1832 DeZeng sold out to Howard and Wadhams, who continued to lumber and manufacture, shipping some of the lumber by vessels which eame up Black river as far as the mill, and rafting some down the river. The business met with losses and in 1835 the firm made an assignment for the benefit of its ereditors, but satisfactory arrangements
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having been made with them during the following year the assignee reconveyed the property to them.
The firm continued to purchase pine land, and to pay for this and other purposes they gave a mortgage for $18,000 in 1838 to a New York City banking and trust company; with a large indebtedness and the hard times following the panic of 1837 the firm was again compelled in 1839 to make an assignment. This time Mr. Wadhams' father came to the reseue and in 1840 bought the interest of the firm in all the prop- erty and in 1844 settled with the New York company by dividing the property covered by the mortgage, and then conveyed his part to Ralph Wadhams, who continued business for many years. Mr. Wadhams built a grist mill in 1830, the second one in the county, and was a very active enterprising man in many ways. He was supervisor of Desmond town- ship, and later of Clyde township for several years, postmaster of Clyde Mills postoffice from its establishment in 1835 to its discontinuance in 1872. He was delegate to the convention which framed the first state constitution. During his later years he devoted his time to farming and the raising of fine cattle, of which he collected a notable herd. He never married and died March 28, 1877.
Another supervisor was Edmond Carleton from the township of St. Clair, who was born in Bath, N. H., in 1783. He married. in 1808, Olive M. Barron, an aunt of W. B. Barron, long a merchant at St. Clair, and eame to St. Clair in 1831 and settled upon the place in the township of St. Clair upon which he lived the greater part of the rest of his life. He was supervisor of his township for three years and associate judge of the county court, elected in 1836 and re-elected in 1840. He died at Troy, Ohio, in 1872.
The session of the board held in March, 1836. met at the court house, but evidently the quarters there were not comfortable, as after organiz- ing and electing Charles Kimball from Clay township chairman, they adjourned to meet forthwith at the house of P. Leach, who kept the only tavern then in the village. on the south side of Pine river.
It appears from the records of this session that Sargeant Heath filled two important positions in the county, one that of jailer, for which he re- ceived $71.62 and the other that of county treasurer.
At the same session it was declared expedient to appropriate money for bridges, and $150 was appropriated to build a causeway across the marsh from Louis Chartier's (near Algonac) to Swan creek, and the sum of $70 to build a bridge across Pine river on the road leading from the Hoxie road by Cox's to the Fort Gratiot turnpike. This was the bridge across Pine river, on the so-called state road, which crosses the turnpike at Rattle Run and leads to the Hoxsie settlement later called Romeo.
SIX SUPERVISORS IN 1836
At the meeting in October, 1836, the members, after electing H. N. Monson chairman, at onee adjourned to the office of Horatio James, the county elerk. At this time there were six supervisors from the town- ships of China, Clay, Clyde, Cottrellville, Desmond and St. Clair. Mr.
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Monson, the chairman, was a native of Connectient and had been consul of the United States in the West Indies. He came to St. Clair in 1834 under contract with Thomas Palmer to join in the erection of a steam mill upon St. Clair river which he operated until it was sold to Truesdail in 1841. He was elected judge of probate in 1838 and held the office four years. He was for several years a director in and cashier of the Bank of St. Clair, and was highly regarded by his fellow citizens. Ile died in 1852.
Cummings Sanborn, or Big Sanborn, as he was often called to dis- tinguish him from James W. Sanborn, who came to the county about the same time, was the supervisor from Desmond township. He was born in New Hampshire in 1799 and eame to this county in 1833. He taught school for some months in each of his first three years here, and in 1835 built a water power saw mill on Pine river in the township of Kimball, and a store at Marysville. Three years later he sold the mill and not long after moved his store to Port Huron, where he entered into partnership with Martin S. Gillett, his nephew. He built a steam saw mill at Port Huron and dealt largely in pine lands and products, and aeeumulated what was a large fortune in those days before his early death in 1852. He was fully six feet two inches in height, well proportioned, an honorable public spirited and enterprising man, and a good citizen. He was postmaster at Port Huron from 1846 to 1849 and a member of the legislature in 1842. By his will he gave $500 to the common school library of the township of Port Huron, and thus he be- came in a real sense the father of the fine publie library which the city of Port Huron now possesses, and in commemoration of that gift his portrait was presented to the library by his son in 1907.
The board at this session appropriated $150 to improve the highway from the north line of the St. Bernard farm to Bunce's ereek.
In 1837 L. M. Mason was district attorney and the board allowed him $90 as salary, which shows a considerable increase from the early salaries for that position.
At the October session of 1837 Z. W. Bunee was allowed $40 for four years' services as associate judge. It is seldom that publie officers are content to wait as long as that for salaries. There were present at this session nine supervisors from as many towns, Lexington, Columbus, and Ira having been added.
PINE RIVER BRIDGE AT ST. CLAIR
Before this time it would seem that there was no stationary bridge aeross Pine river at St. Clair, as a motion at this session to appropriate $150 for that purpose was lost, but two years later a bridge was built by Chamberlin and Ogden, costing $225. This meeting was the last of the first board of supervisors. In 1838 the law was changed so that the county affairs were again administered by a board of three commission- ers, eleeted by the people at large, and the first board so eleeted consisted of Zael Ward, Justin Rice and Jolin S. Parker. Their first meeting for business was held February 11, 1839. In 1839 John Howard took the place of Justin Riee, whose term expired, and in 1841 Zael Ward was re-
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placed by Chester Kimball, and in 1842 Oel Rix replaced John S. Parker. In that year the law was again changed and a board of supervisors was provided, consisting of the supervisors from all the townships-in that year thirteen-and that system of county management has continued to the present.
BELLE RIVER BRIDGE AT NEWPORT
The commissioners in May, 1839. in addition to voting $200 to build a bridge across Pine river at St. Clair, gave $200 to assist in building a bridge across Belle river at Newport, and at the same session decided to advertise for bids for the erection of two briek buildings, each 26 by 20 feet on the public square. One of these buildings was intended for the county clerk and register, and the other for the judge of probate and county treasurer. By the time the bids came in the commissioners felt so uncertain about the taxes, owing to delay by the legislature in adopting the necessary tax laws, that they decided to build but one build- ing-that for the clerk and register-at a cost of $650, which was erected near the southwest corner of the Court House block. The board appropriated $100 to assist in building a bridge across Belle river at Gallagher's mills in China.
One of the prominent objects of expenditure at this time was wolf scalps, the bounty having risen to $8. In May, 1840. Knawkechigame, a Chippewa Indian from Saginaw, who had bought land in the town- ship of Riley, obtained $16 for two scalps. and Obedig, who was re- lated to Old Mother Rodd, produced evidence of killing a wolf and received $8. Later in the same year Wasaheanahbe and Neeick, both Indians, were allowed each $8 dollars.
In March, 1841, a meeting of the commissioners could not be held, owing to the fact that Chester Kimball, who lived in Ira township, and John S. Parker, who lived in the township of Columbus, could not get te St. Clair on account of the roads being impassable, and their meeting was adjourned until May 3rd. by John Howard, from Port Huron, who was able to be on hand.
At the meeting in May, True P. Tucker was allowed $50 for half a year's salary as district attorney, which indicated a rising scale in official salaries, and in October, Edmund Carleton and David Cottrell, asso- ciate justices in the county court, are allowed $16 and $18 respectively, evidently for only half a year.
COURT HOUSE IMPROVEMENTS
At a session in September steps were taken to increase the size of the court house by an addition of 6 feet on the south end, and the entire upper story made into one room for a court room. The court house, which was of logs, covered with clapboards, remained unchanged after these improvements, until it was destroyed by fire in 1855. It was then rebuilt of brick at a cost of $1.500 chiefly contributed by St. Clair citi- zens under the leadership of Harmon Chamberlin, and dedicated in 1859. A reference to the orders for jury service and official charges would seem
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to indicate that it required a large part of the county's population to fill the offices and perform jury duties.
When the county, in 1842, entered upon the system of government by board of supervisors, its records cease to have special interest, or to differ except in amounts involved from the records of today. The county by that time had acquired a population of over 5,000 and the foundations of its political divisions and government were pretty well laid.
CHAPTER X IN THE EARLY DAYS
THE HOUSE AND HOUSE RAISING-THE SIMPLE, HOSPITABLE LIFE-ST. CLAIR COUNTY IN 1820-ASSESSMENT ROLL FOR 1821-ST. CLAIR IN 1821-1830-EARLY PORT HURON-FROM 1830 TO 1835-EARLY MARINE CITY.
It is difficult if not impossible for us of the present to adequately realize the conditions under which the early settlers of the county lived. The means of communication which we enjoy were entirely lacking. Each family was necessarily almost absolutely independent economieally -it made its own living. The house was built of logs cut from the trees which, from the pioneer's standpoint eumbered the ground. No mills were at hand to saw the logs into lumber, but whatever shaping and fitting was needed was done with the axe; generally only the sides of the logs were squared to make the house corners, but occasionally an ambitious pioneer would square the logs so that the outside and inside of the house would present a finished appearance.
THE HOUSE AND HOUSE RAISING
As the logs were collected, if the family in itself was not numerous enough to raise them without assistance, the neighbors for miles around were invited in to help and by combined effort the exterior walls were built of logs laid one upon the other, to a height sufficient to make a story with a loft above. Then came the roof, with poles for rafters, and strips laid upon these on which were fastened the shooks or large shingles split from the trunks of trees. The floors were made of thick hewed planks and a ladder led to the loft. The cracks between the logs were ehinked with wedge shaped strips of wood and plastered with elay. The chimney was made of such material as could be obtained. brick if possible, stone if that could be found in the vicinity, and failing in both of these, the chimney was built of sticks laid in and covered with clay. This was at one end of the house, and within was a large fireplace in which the cooking was done, and which to a large extent furnished all the artificial light used in the family.
To start the fire in the morning was not then the simple expedient of turning on the gas and touching a match. Matches did not exist
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and fires were carefully guarded and kept. as it required some time and experience to start a new one. with carefully prepared material and a steel and flint, or a tinder box.
THE SIMPLE, HOSPITABLE LIFE
The food was simple and adapted to the hearty outdoor life in which the entire family was engaged. Enough land must be cleared to raise some corn or grain, the meat supply would come from the forest, the deer or bears, wild turkeys and other game, all abundant in the early days, and no family was withont the familiar "porker" to supply the winter needs when game was searce.
Most of the elothing was made at home, "homespun" wearing like iron, unattractive to modern eyes, but admirably adapted to the needs of the time.
Some things there were which could not be made and must be pro- cured from the towns : salt, a prime necessity, powder and lead, flour- it was not until 1823 that the first grist mill was built in this county, upon Belle river-and such delicacies as tea and sugar, if had at all, must be obtained by the exchange for something which the pioneer could get, and in this county in the early days that something was generally the skins of wild animals, which were plentiful.
If sickness came, the homely remedies known to all were tried, and if the patient did not soon recover there was always within reaching distance some good woman of experience and kindness who would gladly go many miles to help a neighbor. If nature was not too much inter- fered with, the patient generally recovered. and for the most part the pioneers were a sturdy, active, strong, out-of-doors folk, entirely ignorant of many of our modern diseases. True, in Michigan, with its numerous swamps and mosquitoes. there was fever and ague, which everyone was supposed to have, and which was inevitable, as it was due-as then thought-to the breaking up of new ground. The connection between malaria and mosquitoes was not then guessed at.
The law of nature, the survival of the fittest, was in full operation. not impeded by our modern ideas of learned physicians, germs and hospitals, and the survivors were those who were most able to cope with all the difficulties of a simple but stremons life.
Doctors were either scarce or non-existent, the demand for them was small, and their patrons widely scattered. Dr. Harmon Chamberlin came to the county about 1820. a young physician, well prepared, and after spending a few months near the future Algonac, at that time the most populous section of the county, went the following year to the county seat. Although he was for a time the only physician in the county, in order to keep himself occupied, he was compelled to turn his hand to a number of different vocations, acting as county clerk, sheriff repairing the court house, lumbering, erecting and operating saw mills, besides other minor avocations.
Even when the houses became numerous and close enough to form a settlement, conditions were not much different; the roads were still little better than trails, impassable with wagons during much of the Vol. I-9
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year; streams were unbridged : in consequence most of the land travel was on horseback.
Wolves were numerous, especially in the winter, and so dangerous an enemy to the pioneers. both in respect to human beings and to domestie animals, that a considerable bounty was paid by the public authorities for their scalps. In 1834 $110, or one-sixth of the entire tax levy, was paid for wolf scalps.
Owing perhaps to the fewness of the people and the lack of public accommodations, there was a warmth of hospitality which does not exist in modern conditions. Strangers were welcomed. and treated with the utmost kindness. It is told of Judge Bunee that on one occasion a party coming from Detroit reached his house after dark. and mistakenly thinking it a tavern. went in. were heartily welcomed, and stayed all night. In the morning when they offered to pay, they first learned their mistake, and the judge, in his courtly manner, assured them that their visit had brought him great pleasure.
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