A history of Lewis County, in the state of New York, from the beginning of its settlement to the present time, Part 13

Author: Hough, Franklin Benjamin, 1822-1885. dn
Publication date: 1860
Publisher: Albany : Munsell & Rowland
Number of Pages: 422


USA > New York > Lewis County > A history of Lewis County, in the state of New York, from the beginning of its settlement to the present time > Part 13


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35


Of his two sons, Lyman R. Lyon was born in what is now Walworth, Wayne county, in 1806, and was educated under the Rev. John Sherman, at Trenton, and at the Lowville academy. From 1830 to 1835 he was deputy clerk in assembly, and during several years after was employed upon gov- ernment contracts, in dredging the channels of western rivers and harbors. He was several years cashier and president of the Lewis county bank, and in 1859 was in assembly. He is at present the most extensive resident land proprietor in the county, and is largely concerned in business affairs. He re- sides in this town, near the river, and a short distance below the falls.


Caleb Lyon of Lyonsdale, widely known as a poet, lecturer, traveler and politician, was born in this town about 1821. He was educated at Norwich, Vt., and in Montreal, and at an early age became known in this county as a lecturer, while his poems and essays rendered his name familiar in literary circles throughout the country. He was commissioned as consul to Shanghai, China, Feb. 15, 1847, but entrusted the office to a deputy, and in 1848 he removed to California, where, after some months spent in the mines, he was chosen one of the secretaries of the constitutional convention. One of the first duties of this body was the adoption of a state seal, and the design of- fered by Mr. L. was adopted Sept. 2, 1849. He was paid $1000 for the design and seal-(Journal of Convention, p. 304, 323). In 1850 he was elected to


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Greig.


thers named Chase and others. At the present day much the largest part of the town is a forest, affording for many years to come, immense resources for the manufacture of lumber1 and articles of wood2 and bark for tanning leather.3 Its water power, especially along the course of Moose river, is of great amount, and as yet mostly unimproved.4


assembly. He resigned April 26, 1851, to run against Skinner for the senate. While in the legislature he took an active part in favor of free schools, the completion of the canals and other public measures, and upon final adjourn- ment was presented a silver tea service by his friends. In the fall of 1852 he was elected to the 33d congress. Soon after the expiration of his term he visited Europe and extended his travels to Turkey, Egypt and Palestine, from whence he returned with many souvenirs of foreign lands. While at Constantinople he addressed a letter June 28, 1853, to Com. Ingraham of the U. S. corvette St. Louis, highly approving the measures of Mr. Brown, in the case of the exile Martin Koszta, which excited much interest in this country and led to a sharp diplomatic correspondence-(Executive Docs., vol. 11, No. 91, p. 19, 1st sess. 33d Cong.). In 1858 Mr. Lyon was defeated at the con- gressional election. In each instance that he has appeared before the public as a candidate he has been self-nominated and has always canvassed the dis- trict, holding frequent meetings by appointment and discussing the public issues of the day with his views of the policy which should be pursued with regard to them. The degree of LL. D. was conferred upon Mr. Lyon by Norwich University, the college where he graduated, in 1851. He is also an honorary or corresponding member of several state historical societies. Mr. Lyon is a popular lecturer upon subjects relating to history and the fine arts, as well as upon Egypt, the Holy Land, Italy and southern Russia, and his manner of delivery is animated, earnest and often eloquent. During Mr. Lyon's congressional term, he enjoyed the friendship of Thomas H. Benton and other eminent statesmen. He is a good classical and somewhat of an oriental scholar.


1 Marshal Shedd, jr., and Henry S. Shedd, have a gang saw mill on Moose river, a mile from its mouth. A gang saw mill was put up about 1854, on Otter creek, by Richard Carter, upon the tract purchased by Governor Sey- mour, and there are numerous other lumber mills of less extent in town.


2 A match box and match factory have been in operation on Otter creek since the fall of 1855. There is an extremely thick growth of pines, soft maple, birch and ash, upon a level tract extending along the creek from half a mile above its mouth, five or six miles up, and from one to three miles from its bank. The pines are small and doubtless of second growth. An old map has a record that this district was burnt over by hunters about the time of the revolution. Running fires have at different times caused great destruc- tion of timber, especially in July, 1849, when the woods, near Port Leyden, were ravaged by the flames.


3 In 1850, Cyrus W. Pratt, son of Ezra Pratt, of Greene county, built a large tannery on Fish creek, three miles below the High Falls. Mr. Wm. Wil- liams of Troy, erected another the same year on Crystaline creek, one mile from the former. This, after several changes of ownership, in the fall of 1856, also passed into the hands of Mr. Pratt, and both have since been run by him. They are capable of tanning 50,000 sides of sole leather annually, and would require 5000 cords of bark. Mr. P. was in our county the pioneer in this business which has come to form an important element of its manufac- turing industry.


4 Besides a saw mill and grist mill at Lyonsdale, the only manufactory on this river is a paper mill, built in 1848 by Ager and Lane, and now owned by the Ager brothers. It turns out of wrapping, book and news paper, about 500 pounds daily.


Caleb


CALEB LYON of LYONSDALE Lyon


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Greig.


The point at the junction of the two rivers has been sur- veyed into village lots, and mapped, but is still woodland, with no building but the forest church. It is owned by the five daughters of the late Caleb Lyon.


No settlement has been attempted upon Brown's tract within this county. The proprietor endeavored to establish settlers in Herkimer county about 1795, but failed entirely. In 1812, Charles Herreshoff, a son-in-law of Brown, formed a project of establishing a sheep farm on what he called The Manor, made a clearing and got on a flock of sheep, but this also failed. He afterwards built a forge and attempted to open a mine, and after spending all the money he could draw from the family completed this failure also, by suicide, Dec. 19, 1819. The soil of Greig is, in most parts, a light sandy loam. Many years since, Dr. S. Goodell undertook to dig a well in coarse gravel, alternating with hard fine sand. The latter often indicated water, but failed to afford it in quantities, and the shaft was sunk 116 feet before reaching a full supply. A neighbor, the next year, in digging a post hole, found durable water; and a well twelve feet deep, not twelve rods from the deep well, gave an abundant supply.


There is no village in this town. The three offices of Greig, Lyonsdale and Brantingham, are supplied by a side route from Turin village.


RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES .- A Presbyterian church was formed in 1825, and joined the Presbytery, Feb., 1826. No legal society was formed by this sect until Aug. 29, 1854, when the " Trustees of the Forest church, in connection with the Presbytery of Watertown," were incorporated by their own act, the first set being D. G. Binney, E. Schoolcraft, Heze- kiah Abbey, 1 Edmund Holcomb, Lyman R. Lyon, Henry S. Shedd and Cyrus W. Pratt. A neat gothic church was built of wood in the forest, on the point near the junction of Black and Moose rivers soon after, at a cost of about $3,000, including a bell worth $200. Of this sum, the Rev. Thomas Brainerd, of Phila., formerly of Leyden, raised $700 abroad.


A Free Will Baptist church was formed in this town Nov. 30, 1844, but never built a place of worship.


The Union Society of Greig, was incorporated Aug. 2, 1856, with Alex'r Hess, Waitstill Cleaveland and Adam Shell, trustees.


The Church and Society of North Greig, was formed Jan. 26, 1859, and Cyrus W. Pratt, Richard Carter, Wm. L.


1 Dea. Abbey was born in Windham, Ct., Jan. 31, 1786; settled in Greig in 1825, and died in this town March 5, 1858.


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Harrisburgh.


Phillips, Wm. Hillman, Caleb Brown, Wellington Brown, A. F. Cole, Simeon Crandall and Stephen Burdick were chosen first trustees. Neither of these have erected church edifices.


HARRISBURGH.


This town was formed from Lowville, Champion and Mexico, Feb. 22, 1803, embracing townships 5 and 10 of the Black river tract. By an act of March 24, 1804, number 9 or Handel was annexed to this town from Mexico. Denmark was taken off in 1807, and Pinckney in 1808, leaving it with its present limits, comprising township No. 10, or Platina, of the tract above named. The first town meeting was appointed at the house of Jesse Blodget, and adjourned to Freedom Wright's, in Denmark village, where Lewis Graves was chosen supervisor; Jabez Wright, clerk; David Graves and Solomon Buck, assessors ; Andrew Mills, Francis Saun- ders and Jesse Blodget, commissioners of highways; Charles Wright and Freedom Wright, overseers of the poor ; Nathan Munger, Jr., constable and collector ; and Charles Mosely and Andrew Mills, fence viewers.


Supervisors .- 1803-7, Lewis Graves ; 1808-13, John Bush; 1814-15, Ashbel Humphrey; 1 1816, Geo. A. Stoddard ; 2 1817-21, A. Humphrey ; 1822-25, Simeon Stoddard; 1826, A. Humphrey ; 1827, Amos Buck, Jr .; 1828, S. Stoddard ; 1829-30, A. Humphrey ; 1831, S. Stoddard ; 1832-3, Wm. C. Todd ; 1834-7, Elias Gallup ; 1838-9, Henry Humphrey ; 1840, Julius A. White ; 1841-2, H. Humphrey ; 1843-7, Horatio N. Bush ; 1848, Bester B. Safford ; 3 1849-50, John M. Paris; 1851, H. Humphrey ; 1852-4, J. M. Paris ; 1855-60, John Chickering.


Clerks .- 1803-5, Charles Wright, Jr. ; 1806, Andrew Mills ; 1807, C. Wright, Jr. ; 1808, John G. White ; 1809-15, Sanford Safford; 4 1816, Simeon Stoddard ; 1817-19, S. Saf- ford ; 1820, Palmer Hodge ; 1821, S. Safford ; 1822-24, Amos Buck, Jr. ; 1825-6, S. Safford (May 6, Wm. Allen) ; 1827-30, Wm. Allen ; 1831-3, Elias Gallup ; 1834-50, B. B. Safford ; 1851, Rufus Scott; 1852-5, E. Gallup; 1856-9, John Young.


From 1836 to 1846, the bounties authorized by special statute in this county were voted in this town for the killing


1 Born June 20, 1771; died September 9, 1855.


2 Died Jan. 11, 1844, in his 72d year. He removed from Westfield, Mass., March, 1802. His wife died Dec. 6, 1847, aged 75 years.


3 Died March 30, 1852, aged 55 years.


4 Died April 21, 1826, aged 53 years.


Harrisburgh. 113


of wolves. In 1846, '47 and '48, a $5 bounty was voted for bears.


B. Wright, in surveying the boundaries of this town, in the spring of 1796, made the following memoranda :


" The north line of this town is, in general, an excellent soil, timbered with basswood, maple, elm, beech, birch, butternut. There is one small cedar swamp near the 5 mile stake on this line. The country is level in general, and very finely watered. A large creek crosses this line near the one and } mile stake, which makes a N. E. direction, on which there is a fine country. The E line is excellent and very finely watered. There is some near the S. E. corner which is rather indifferent, but very little; the timber is maple, bass, elm, beech, birch, butternut and hemlock. On the South line there is middling country, some considerable swamp and some beaver meadow, on which excellent hay may be cut. Along the W line there is a good country of land. Some small gulfs along it which are made by the streams and a considerable gulf where the Deer creek crosses the line. The timber, in general, is maple, beech, bass, ash, birch, elm and some butternut and hemlock. Towards the South part, the land is swampy and timber sprucy." Measures 24,992 acres.


This town was subdivided into 49 lots by Joseph Crary of Denmark. It was named in honor of Richard Harrison of New York, former proprietor of the town. Mr. Harrison was of Welsh origin and a prominent lawyer. In 1788-9, he was in assembly, and from Feb. 15, 1798 to Aug. 1801, recorder of that city. He died Dec. 6, 1829, aged 81 years. After the death of Hamilton he became counsel for Consta- ble and Pierrepont in their landed transactions.


The transfers of title in this town have been related in our account of Denmark. Settlement was mostly made under the agency of I. W. Bostwick of Lowville. The first improvements were made about 1802, along the line of the West road, which crosses the N. E. corner of the town, and among the first settlers on this road were Wait Stod- dard, John Bush, Ashbel Humphrey, Joseph Richards, 1 Jared Knapp,2 Sylvanus Mead, 3 Palmer Hodge and John Lewis.


In 1806, Silas Greene, Thomas and Ebenezer Kellogg, John Snell, Mark Petrie, John F. Snell and Jacob Walrod, with families named Lamberton and Weston, settled on


1 From Cummington, Mass .; settled in 1803; died Feb., 1813, aged 58 years. David R. settled in 1804, and died in this town in 1845. They were descendants of Joseph Richards, of Abington, Mass.


2 Col. Knapp died at Copenhagen, March 29, 1854, aged 73 years.


3 Died Aug. 15, 1848, aged 61 years.


0


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High Market.


what is since known as the State road, across the south border of this town. Several of these were Germans from the Mohawk valley, and from them the settlement acquired the name of Dutch Hill, by which this region is still known. They have all since removed, and their places are held by others.


In 1821, Jacob Hadcock, and soon after, Michael Parish, Peter Picket, Henry Cramer, Jacob Biddleman, Thomas and Gilbert Merrills, settled on the river road above Copen- hagen.


A pompous advertisement was issued in Jan., 1849, an- nouncing the beginning of a village on Watson creek, in the south part of this town, to be named California. The affair ended as it began-in nothing.


Schools were first legally formed under the statute in 1814, when John Bush, John Lewis1 and Micah Humphrey were chosen first school commissioners, and David Richards, Hart Humphrey, Nathan Look, Jr., Charles Loomis and Seth Hanchet, inspectors.


RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES .- A Free Communion Baptist church was formed in this town July 16, 1822, by a council appointed from Lowville, Martinsburgh and Turin, and subsequently a regular Baptist church was formed and a church edifice erected on the West road. In 1847, this first edifice was removed and a new one, 34 by 44 feet, erected on its site. It was built by Philo Hadcock, at a cost of $945, and is owned in equal shares by the two Baptist organizations.


St. Patrick's church (R. C.), was erected a few years since in the west part of the town, and is attended from Carthage.


HIGH MARKET.


This town was formed from West Turin by the super- visors, November 11, 1852, by the same act that organized the town of Lewis. The first town meeting was directed to be held at the house of Schuyler C. Thompson.


Supervisors .- 1853, S. C. Thompson ; 1854-5, Michael H. Coyle ; 1856-8, Michael Walsh ; 1859-60, Charles Plum- mer.


Clerks .- 1853, Lynville M. Beals ; 1854, Wm. Dolphine ; 1855, G. R. Thompson ; 1856, L. M. Beals ; 1857, Charles P. Felshaw ; 1858-9, William Rowlands.


This town embraces township 9, or Penelope,2 of the


1 This settler was from Westfield, Mass. Silas Bush died Jan. 21, 1829. 2 Penelope was the wife of Ulysses, king of Ithaca.


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High Market.


Boylston tract, with 35 lots of township 2 or Floral and 64 lots of township 3 or Lucretia,2 of Constable's Four Towns, its present name was borrowed from that of its post office. established in March, 1849, but since discontinued. It was invented by S. C. Thompson to distinguish this place from every other, and in this view it was entirely successsful. The Irish settlers wished to have the town named Sligo, and usage had long before applied to an undefined region, west of Constableville, the nondescript name of Kiabia, by which it is still, to some extent, known.


Township 2, of which nearly half lies in this town, was subdivided by Benjamin Wright in 1797, and measures 26,2662 acres. The bearings and distances of its outlines are as follows :


N. W. side, N. 37° 30' E. 412 ch. 48 1ks. N. E. N. 52° 30' W. 632


50 S. E. S. 37° 30' W. 412 48 S. W. S. 52° 30' E. 63 23


At the second town meeting, the owner of the premises, at which, by adjournment, the voters were to meet, refused to open his house. The majority of the voters, who were Irish, and not accustomed to the usages proper in such a case, were quite at a loss to know how to proceed, and came near losing their organization by failure to elect town officers. Just before sunset, they however organized in the street, as near the place of meeting as practicable, and ad- journed to some convenient place the next day. With the advice of a lawyer they went through with their meeting, and have since retained the management of town affairs. In 1858 the town voted, with but one dissenting voice, tc petition for re-annexation to West Turin, but without suc- cess. In 1857 they purchased for $200 a store for a town house.


Settlement was begun about 1814, by Alfred Hovey and Liberty Fairchild, and in 1815, John Felshaw,3 became the third settler. Ebenezer Thompson4 and others subsequently located in town.


Upon the suspension of the public works in 1842, great numbers of Irish families removed to this town, and took up small tracts of land. The census of 1855 shows that 320 persons (about one-fourth) were natives of Ireland.


1 Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers.


2 Lucretia was a noble Roman lady.


3 Died June 24, 1857, aged 82 years.


He settled in the county in 1813.


4 Mr. T. removed from Rockingham, Vt., in 1821, and died June 6, 1843, aged 69 years. He was the father of S. C. Thompson, Esq., of Constable- ville.


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Lewis.


These, with their children, born in America, would form over half of the present population of the town. There are also a few French or Germans.


A large part of this town is still a wilderness, including almost the whole of township 9, near the west part of which Fish creek flows southward across the town.


The highest point of land in the county is said to occur on lot 50, township 3. Streams flow from this lot in several different directions, and in a clear day distant glimpses of the hills in Madison county, as well as more than half of the distant eastern horizon, are seen. There are at present neither village, church, store nor grist mill in town.


LEWIS.


This town was formed from Leyden and West Turin by the supervisors, Nov. 11, 1852. The first town meeting was ordered to be held at the house of Orlando S. Kenyon. Its name was derived from that of the county.


Supervisors .- 1853, Orson Jenks ; 1854-5, Charles Pease ; 1856, O. Jenks ; 1857, Hiram Jenks; 1858, Jonathan A. Pease ; 1859, 60, O. Jenks.


Clerks .- 1853-4, David Crofoot; 1855, Orson Jenks ; 1856-7, Daniel H. Buell; 1858, O. Jenks ; 1859, William Gray ; 1860, Jay Pease.


This town embraces very nearly that part of Inman's triangle, known as the "New Survey," the whole of town- ship No. 1, or Xenophon, and three rows of lots from the S. W. side of No. 2, or Flora, of Constable's Four Towns. The principal settlements are in the eastern part, and its drain- age is southward, by the head waters of the Mohawk and by Fish creek, and south westward by Salmon river. The soil is well adapted to grazing and the coarser grains, but fruits and corn have not been extensively or successfully cul- tivated. Its soil is inclined to clay, and in places is a gravelly loam, or covered with flat stone derived from the underlying slate rock.


That part of this town taken from Leyden, was sold to settlers by Storrs and Stow. Township 1 was surveyed into lots by Benjamin Wright in 1797, and its outlines were run in 1795, as follows :


N. W. line : N. 37º, 30' E. 520 chains, 3 links. N. E. do S. 52º, 30' E. 631 do 62 do S. E. do S. 37º, 30' W. 339 do 07 do S. W. do N. 68º, 50' W. 559 do 20 do


The latter is the patent line, and was surveyed in 1794.


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Lewis.


Practically 3º further W. are allowed to the magnetic me- ridian to make present surveys coincide with the original field notes. Township 1, measures 27,105 acres, and the whole of Tp. 2, 26,2662 acres. The connection of John Jacob Astor, with the titles of this town has been noticed on page 31. Lots 1 to 19 and half of 20, in township 1, were conveyed by Pierrepont to Charles Ingersol of Phila- delphia, agent of Consequa, a China merchant, in payment of a debt of $12,000 which the captain of a vessel owned by Mr. P., had incurred. John G. Costar, afterwards be- came agent, and paid the taxes many years from a fund pro- vided for that purpose. They were finally sold for taxes and are now chiefly owned by the Costar heirs. Fifteen lots,1 owned by Judge Wm. Jay of Bedford, by virtue of a marriage, were sold in 1840, to R. T. Hough, with certain conditions of opening roads and forming settlements. Jas. S. T. Stranahan of Brooklyn, the Lawrence heirs and John E. Hinman of Utica, are owners of considerable tracts of wild lands in this town.


Settlement was began at West Leyden (now included in the town of Lewis), in the summer of 1798, by two families named Newel and Ingraham, who came by way of Whites- town and fort Stanwix, and located, the former on the farm of George Olney, and the latter on that of Amos B. Billing, adjacent to the east line of this town. Fish then abounded in the streams, and game in the forests, affording partial support, with no care but the taking, and incidents were not wanting to diversify the life of the first pioneers of this lonely spot. On one occasion, as the wives of the two first settlers were returning on foot from fort Stanwix (Rome), they saw a bear on a tree near where Jenk's tavern now stands. One of the women took her station at the foot of the tree, club in hand, to keep bruin from escaping, while the other hastened home a distance of two miles, procured a gun, returned and shot the bear.2 These families remained about two years and went off.


Col. John Barnes came in 1799, and brought potatoes for planting on his back from Whitestown. A saw mill was built in the winter following, near the present mill of Ashael Fox, by Joel Jenks,3 Medad Dewey, John and Cornelius Putnam4 who came on with their families, Maj. Alpheus


1 Numbers 26, 27, 32, 41, 50, 52, 53, 55, 56, 58, 61, 64, 65, 68, 69.


2 Related by Josiah Dewey of Delta, N. Y., who has furnished ample notes upon the early history of this town.


3 Mr. Jenks was from R. I., and held the first appointment as magistrate He died, February 9, 1838, aged 77.


4 From Somers, Ct.


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Lewis.


Pease,1 took up four or five lots in 1801, and built the first grist mill, one or two years after, a little above the Mohawk bridge, in the present village of West Leyden. Nathan Pelton 2 and Wm. Jenks, from Stafford, Ct., Stephen Hunt,3 - Graham, - -McGlashan, Levi Tiffany,4 Winthrop Felshaw, and perhaps others, settled within four years after. Most of the lands first taken up, were sold at $5 per acre. Samuel Kent and Jeremiah Barnes, were early teachers, and the first school was taught at the house of Joel Jenks. The first death that occurred in town, was that of a child in the family of some travelers, but the first adult person that died in town, was Mrs. Calvin Billings, a sister of Stephen Hunt, in the spring of 1810, about twelve years after the beginning of the settlement.


The first road to Constableville was cut in 1803, by Mr. Shaler, but the first direct road was not opened until 1816, by commissioners appointed for the purpose. This became the line of the Canal turnpike, and still later of a plank road, which in its turn has been abandoned to the public, and is now maintained by the towns through which it passes.


An occurrence happened in November, 1804, which caused much alarm in this settlement, and might have led to a most melancholy result. Joseph Belknap, Cornelius Putman, jr., and Josiah Dewey, jr., set out from the former Dewey tavern stand, westward, on a deer hunt. The snow was about ten inches deep, and they found tracks of deer plenty, but no game. They had no compass, the day was cloudy, and towards night they attempted to return, and as their track was crooked, they concluded to take a direct line for home. After traveling some distance, they came around to the same place, a second and a third time. They were evidently lost, and no longer trusting to their own estimate of direction, they concluded to follow down a stream of water which they took to be the Mohawk, which would of course lead them home. They passed a number of beaver meadows, and were frequently obliged to wade the freezing stream, and at other times were forced to 'wade down its channel instead of climbing its steep rocky banks. They tried to kindle a fire but failed, and finally kept on traveling till daylight, when they came to a foot-


1 Mr. Pease died April 8, 1816, aged 54 years.


2 Died June 7, 1856, aged 92 years.


3 Died June 14, 1853, aged 79 years.


4 From Somers, Ct.


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Lewis.


path, which in two or three miles, led out into a settlement which proved to be in the town of Western, twenty miles by the nearest traveled road from home. They had fol- lowed down the Point-of-Rock stream, to near its junction with Fish creek. The half starved wanderers having fed, pushed on over a miry road, and reached home at midnight, when they found the country had been rallied, and a dozen men had gone into the woods in search of the lost.




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