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Gc 977.1 H54b 1204265
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GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 00826 5750
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BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL MEMOIRS
OF THE EARLY
PIONEER SETTLERS OF OHIO,
WITH NARRATIVES OF
INCIDENTS AND OCCURRENCES IN 1775.
BY S. P. HILDRETH, M. D.
TO WHICH IS ANNEXED
"A JOURNAL OF OCCURRENCES WHICH HAPPENED IN THE CIRCLES OF THE AUTHOR'S PERSONAL OBSERVATION, IN THE DETACHMENT COM- MANDED BY COL, BENEDICT ARNOLD, CONSISTING OF TWO BATTALIONS FROM THE UNITED STATES ARMY, AT CAMBRIDGE, MASS., IN A. D. 1775 :"
BY COLONEL R. J. MEIGS.
CINCINNATI: H. W. DERBY & CO., PUBLISHERS. 1852.
Entered according to act of Congress, in the year of our Lord, one thousand, eight hundred and fifty-two,by H. W. DERBY & Co., in the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the District of Ohio.
CINCINNATI : Morgan & Overend. Printers
Ben, Cork 27,50
PREFACE. 1204265
THIS is the second volume of the Early History of Ohio, prepared by Dr. Hildreth of Marietta, and published under the auspices of the Ohio Historical Society. It is composed of a series of Biographical Notices of the early settlers of Washington County, who were also the carly settlers of Ohio. Among them are some names celebrated in American history, whose active life commenced amid the most stirring events of the Revolu- tion, and whose evening days were finished amid the fresh and forest scenes of a new and rising State. So various and eventful lives as theirs have scarcely ever fallen to the lot of man. They were born under a monarchy,-fought the battle of Independence,-assisted in the baptism of a great republic,-then moved into a wilderness,-and laid the founda- tions of a State,-itself almost equaling an empire. These men not only lived in remarkable times, but were themselves remarkable men. Ener- getic, industrious, persevering, honest, bold, and free - they were limited in their achievements only by the limits of possibility. Successful alike in field and forest,-they have, at length, gone to their rest,-leaving names which are a part of the fame and the history of their country.
Among the biographies of such men will also be found notices of some women, whose characters deserve to be perpetuated among the memories of the State. The public and posterity will owe much to Dr. Hildreth for having so carefully preserved these memoirs of the early times. The Historical Society deeply regrets that it has no power to do more than merely introduce this interesting volume to the public.
EDWARD D. MANSFIELD,
President of the Ohio Historical Society.
CONTENTS.
PAGE. INTRODUCTION 3 RUFUS PUTNAM 13 ABRAHAM WHIPPLE 120
JAMES MITCHELL VARNUM
165
SAMUEL HOLDEN PARSONS
186
BENJAMIN TUPPER
217
EBENEZER SPROAT
230
JONATHAN DEVOL
241
RETURN JONATHAN MEIGS
258
GRIFFIN GREENE
279
PAUL FEARING
291
JOSEPH AND REBECCA GILMAN
302
BENJAMIN IVES AND HANNAH GILMAN
306
MARY LAKE
320
DANIEL STORY
325
JABEZ TRUE
329
WILLIAM DANA
337
340
NATHANIEL CUSHING
JONATHAN HASKELL 345
EBENEZER BATTELLE 349
ISRAEL PUTNAM
354
NATHAN GOODALE
358
viii
CONTENTS.
ROBERT BRADFORD 370
AARON WALDO PUTNAM 372
JONATHAN STONE 380
ROBERT OLIVER
391
HAFFIELD WHITE
396
DEAN TYLER 398
WILLIAM GRAY. 399
WILLIAM STACEY 401
THE FIRST SETTLEMENT OF ATHENS COUNTY, OHIO 408
JERVIS CUTLER. 414
A HISTORY OF THE FIRST SETTLEMENT OF AMESTOWN, IN
ATHENS COUNTY, OHIO 421
BENJAMIN BROWN 428
JOSEPH BARKER 433
HAMILTON KERR 464
ISAAC AND REBECCA WILLIAMS. 475
HARMAN AND MARGARET BLENNERHASSETT
491
APPENDIX
529
.
INTRODUCTION.
"THE early history of the first settlements in the now great state of Ohio, not only ought to be preserved as an important epoch in the general history of our common country, but also the characters and public services of those men who were eminent in forming these settlements, have a claim to go down to posterity amongst the bene- factors of mankind. The influence of their morals and habits has had a lasting effect on society, and is now perceptible in the general character of the communities in which they resided. The facts thus preserved, will enable the future historian to account for many things in our history which otherwise might appear obscure. The origin of an orderly, well regulated society, in any given district, may often be explained by tracing back its history to the influence exerted over it by some one or more individuals, who have imparted this character to it in its commencement : while the example of a few dissolute men, may have done much in placing a stigma on the name of a place, that will remain for ages." The settlements of the Ohio Company, were fortunate in this respect; all the leading and influ- ential men were on the side of good order, morality and religion ; and the impress of their character is seen and felt to this day, in the well regulated, quiet habits, of a New England community, worthy the descendants of their Puritan ancestors. While many of the early colonies in the West, were composed of the ignorant, the vulgar, and the rude, those of Washington county, like some of the Grecian, carried with them, the sciences and the arts; and although placed on the frontiers, amidst the howling wilderness, and tribes of hostile savages, exposed to danger and privation, there ran in the veins of these little bands, some of the best blood of the country. They enrolled many men of highly cultivated minds and exalted intellect. There was at one time, in 1789, no less than ten of these, who had
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INTRODUCTION.
received the honors of a college course of education : a larger number than can now be found in the same district of country, if the professors in the Marietta College are excluded. The Hon. William Woodbridge, in his remarks before the Senate of the United States, on the question of the annexation of Texas, against which the citi- zens of Marietta, with thousands of others in Ohio, loudly remon- strated, when presenting that paper, gave the following sketch of the character of the men who first founded that place :
" It was on the 7th of April, 1788, that this settlement was first commenced ; it was then that the first stone, the corner stone, of this great state was laid; and it was laid. by these men, or by their immediate ancestors. The colony then consisted almost entirely of a remnant, and a most revered remnant, of your armies of the Revolution-of officers and soldiers, who, at the close of that seven years' term of privation, of suffering, and of battles, found them- selves let loose upon the world with their private fortunes, in gen- eral ruined, estranged almost from their own early homes, and with occupations gone ! If they were of any of the learned profes- sions, and there were many such, their professions were forgotten, and if their pursuits had been agricultural, commercial, or mechanical, why they had lost those business habits so difficult to acquire, but which are yet so indispensable to success ; and such of their pay, too, as they may have been enabled to preserve, being old conti- nental certificates, and become almost worthless in their hands, for all available purposes. In circumstances of so much gloom, the thought occurred of establishing themselves once more in a body, in the untrodden West. During many years they had camped to- gether, and eaten together ; they had fought and bled together ; there was something pleasing in the plan of continuing still closer, their social and friendly relations. They had warrants which entitled them to public lands ; many of them had continental certificates and other evidences of claim, which would go far to enable them to make their purchase. An association was formed ; negotiations with the old Continental Congress and with the Board of War were com- menced, and during the year 1787, a purchase was effected; and on the 7th of April, as I have said, 1788, the first and principal detach
INTRODUCTION.
ment of that interesting corps of emigrants, landed at the confluence of the Muskingum with the Ohio river. This was directly athwart the old Indian war path; for it was down the Muskingum and its tributary branches, that the Wyandotts, the Shawnees, the Ottawas, and all the Indians of the north and northwest, were accustomed to march, when from time to time, for almost half a century before, they made those dreadful incursions, into western Virginia and wes- tern Pennsylvania, which spread desolation, and ruin, and despair, through all those regions. Being arrived there, they marked out their embryo city, and in honor of the friend of their country, the queen of France, called it Marietta. They surrounded it with pali- sades and abatis ; they erected block-houses and bastions. On an eminence a little above, and near the Muskingum, they constructed a more regular and scientific fortification. Thus did the settlement of that great state commence. Among these colonists were very many of the most distinguished officers of the Revolution, and of all grades. Gen. Rufus Putnam, and Gen. Benjamin Tupper, of the Massachusetts line, were there. Gen. Parsons of the Connecticut, and Gen. Varnum, of the Rhode Island lines, were there. Old Com- modore Whipple, of Rhode Island, for whom the honor is claimed of firing the first hostile gun from on board a 'Congress ' vessel of war, and who during the whole war, was another 'Paul Jones,' and as active and daring, found his grave there ; as did a near rela- tive of Gen. Nathaniel Green. The sons of the 'Wolf catcher,' Gen. Israel Putnam, and the descendants of Manasseh Cutler, were there. Col. Cushing and Col. Sproat, Col. Oliver and Col. Sargent, and multitudes of others, distinguished alike for their bravery, for their patriotism, and for their skill in war, were there. Some few there are, some very few, still alive, and whose names I recognize, who constituted a part of this wonderful band of veteran soldiers. The rest, one after another, have dropped off. Many of the things I have adverted to, I personally saw. I was a child then, but I well recollect the regular morning reveille, and the evening tattoo, that helped to give character to the establishment. Even on the Sabbath, the male population were always under arms, and with their chap- lain, who was willing to share the lot of his comrades, were accus-
xii
INTRODUCTION.
tomed to march in battle array, to their block-house church. And I take this occasion to remark, that it was not until the memorable victory of Gen. Wayne, that the war of the Revolution really ended, and Gen. Harrison was right when he made that assertion."
There is nothing more noble than to feel a deep interest in the honor of our country, our state, or the community in which we mingle. The history of these men belongs to the United States ; their breasts were often the bulwarks, which, in the "time of trial," saved us from the enslaving power of Great Britain, and we are endeavoring to preserve their names and their characters from oblivion, by erecting this historical monument to their memory. For the materials on which it is founded, the author is indebted to many kind friends, generally the relatives of the persons, but in an especial manner to W. R. Putnam, Esq., Hon. Judge Cutler, Col. Joseph Barker, and William Slocomb : for Com. Whipple, to his grandson, Dr. Com- stock, of Boston, John Howland, Esq., of Providence, Rhode Island, and P. G. Robbins, M. D., of Roxbury, Massachusetts. The names of many other prominent men are omitted from a lack of the facts on which to found a written biography ; and the larger number of those here given were obtained with much laborious search, amongst old letters, volumes of history, oral tradition, and numer- ous letters of inquiry written to the relatives of the deceased, in various and distant parts of the country. A full and well written biog- raphy of the late Gov. Meigs, who was one of the early settlers of Marietta, has been published in a posthumous volume of Sketches of the early Settlers of Ohio, by the late Alexander Campbell, Esq., and is not given here .* The present work has many imperfections, but may be the means of preserving some facts not generally known, for the use of a future and more able historian.
* That of General R. Putnam in the same volume, is a brief sketch taken from a newspaper notice at the time of his death; and that of Paul Fearing, Esq., was written for Mr. Campbell, by the author of this volume, and is now republished with some additions.
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Anderson lith.
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PIONEER SETTLERS OF OHIO.
RUFUS PUTNAM.
GENERAL RUFUS PUTNAM, the subject of this historical memoir, was a descendant in the fifth generation from John Putnam, who emigrated from Buckinghamshire, England, and settled at Salem, in the province of Massachusetts, in the year 1634. He brought over with him three sons, who were born in England, viz .: Thomas, Nathaniel and John. The father died quite suddenly, when about eighty years old. He ate his supper as usual, performed family worship, and died directly after getting into his bed.
Edward Putnam, the son of Thomas, and grandfather of Rufus Putnam, in the year 1733, made the following record : "From those three proceeded twelve males, and from these twelve forty males, and from the forty eighty-two males;" so that in 1733, there were eighty-two males by the name of Putnam, besides the females. All of that name in New England were the descendants of John.
With respect to their condition in life, he observes, "I have been young, I now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread ; except from God, who provides for all; for he hath given to the genera- tion of my fathers Agur's petition, neither poverty nor riches; but hath fed us with food convenient for us, and their children have been able to help others in their need."
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RUFUS PUTNAM.
.
When this was written, he was seventy-nine years old. He lived after that fourteen years, and died when he was in his ninety-fourth year. This Edward was the grandson of John, the patriarch of the Putnams in New England. The males of this family were for many ages famous for longev- ity, numbers of them living to be over eighty years old, and several over ninety. The descendants of this good old man still inherit the promise and the blessing of the righteous : all of that name have had, and still continue to have, not only an abundance of bread for themselves, but also to spare to the poor and needy.
Elisha Putnam, the father of Gen. Rufus, was the third son of Edward Putnam, and his wife, Mary Hall, was born in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1685. Here he continued to live until manhood, and married Susannah Fuller, the daugh- ter of Jonathan Fuller, of Danvers. About the year 1725, when forty years old, he moved, with his wife and family of three children, to the town of Sutton, Worcester county, Massachusetts, where he purchased a fine farm, and pursued the occupation of a tiller of the earth, as all his fathers had done. After his removal to Sutton, three other sons were born to him; of these Rufus was the youngest, and born the 9th of April, 1738.
The Rev. Dr. Hall, in his diary, says, that " Deacon Elisha Putnam was a very useful man in the civil and ecclesiastical concerns of the place. He was for several years deacon of the church, town clerk, town treasurer, and representative in the General Court, or Colonial Assembly of Massachusetts. He died in June, 1745, in the joyful hope of the glory of God."
Maj. Gen. Israel Putnam was also a descendant of Thomas, the oldest son of John, in the fourth generation, by Joseph, the third son of Thomas. Joseph had three sons, William, Daniel and Israel. The latter was born in 1717,
.
15
RUFUS PUTNAM.
and was the cousin of Elisha Putnam, the father of Gen. Rufus. At the death of his father, Mr. Putnam was seven years old. He was now sent to live with his maternal grand- father in Danvers, and remained in his family until Septem- ber, 1747. During this period he was sent to school a portion of the time, and made some progress in reading. In the course of this year, his mother married Capt. John Sadler, of Upton, Massachusetts, and he went to live with him, and remained under his roof until his death, in 1753. His mother was now again a widow.
In 1752, when fourteen years of age, Rufus made choice of his brother-in-law, Jonathan Dudley, of Sutton, as his guardian, and the certificate is signed by the Hon. Joseph Wilder, judge of probate for Worcester county. During the time of his residence with his step-father, all opportunities for instruction were denied him. Capt. Sadler was very illiterate himself, and thought books and learning of very little use, and not worth the time bestowed on their acquire- ment. The world is not destitute of such men to this day ; they think and act as if they believed that the body was the only part to be provided for, and that the mind needed no instruction, or food for its growth, except what is acquired by natural observation and instinct. But young Putnam felt that he had another appetite to supply, besides that of the body; that his mind craved food and instruction, and would not be appeased without it. Notwithstanding the ridicule and obstructions thrown in his way by his step-father, he sought every opportunity for study, and examination of the books that fell in his way. Having no school books of his own, and this parsimonious man refusing to buy them, he soon fell upon a plan to get them himself. Capt. Sadler kept a kind of public house, at which travelers some- times called for refreshment. By waiting diligently upon them, they sometimes gave him a few pence. These he
16
RUFUS PUTNAM.
carefully laid by, until he could purchase some powder and shot: with this ammunition and an old shot gun, he killed partridges, or pheasants, and sold from time to time until the proceeds bought him a spelling book and an arithmetic. With these two invaluable articles, the foundation of all, even the most profound learning, he soon made considerable progress in the rudiments of education, without any teacher but his own patient ingenuity. In the same way he learned to write, and make figures in a legible manner, progressing in a short time to the rule of three, guided only by the directions laid down in the book. How delightful must have been his sensations when he could put his own thoughts into tangible sentences on paper, and understand the rules of calculation, so important in all the concerns of life.
In March, 1754, when nearly sixteen years old, he was bound as an apprentice to the mill-wright trade, under Daniel Mathews, of Brookfield. He was a man who had nearly the same opinion of the inutility of learning, as Mr. Sadler, and entirely neglected to send his apprentice to school. He, however, was more favorable in one respect, as he did not refuse him the use of candles for light, when pursuing his studies in the long winter evenings. His atten- tion was chiefly directed to the acquisition of arithmetic, geography and history; while orthography, etymology, and the rules of grammar were neglected. Having no books in these branches and no one to teach him, his attention was chiefly directed to that which would be more immediately useful in the common affairs of life. In penmanship he had no aid from those nice copperplate engravings, pub- lished in after years, nor any one to guide him in the art of neat handwriting, so that those two important branches, spelling correctly, and writing handsomely, did not receive that attention they otherwise would have done, and left him during all his future life to regret his deficiencies in these
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RUFUS PUTNAM.
respects. Could he have looked into futurity, or had the least intimation of the public stations of trust and honor which he was destined by Providence to fill in manhood, he would doubtless have been better prepared for their arduous duties. The greatest wonder of all is, that with the discour- agements and privations which environed him, he had the fortitude and perseverance to overcome these obstacles, and acquire so much really useful learning as he did. Ninety- nine boys in a hundred would never have made the attempt, but have lived and died in ignorance.
During this portion of his life, from sixteen to nineteen years, he was busily occupied under Daniel Mathews, in acquiring the practical art of the mill-wright, and in working on his farm. It required some knowledge of geometry, to form perfect circles, divide them into numerous equal por- tions, and lay out the exact angles necessary in the frame- work of the mill; thus gradually enlarging his knowledge of mathematics, for which he had naturally an ardent attach- ment, and a mind well fitted to comprehend. During this time his physical frame grew full as rapidly as his mind, so that when he was eighteen years old, he possessed the brawny limbs, the muscular power, and the full stature of a man six feet high. In all athletic exercises, he was renowned for his great strength and activity ; and thus eminently fitted for the fatigues and privations of the military life he was destined so early to enter.
The war between Great Britain and France, in which the colonies were much more deeply interested than the mother country, commenced in the year 1754, when he entered on his apprenticeship. The accounts of the several battles, the defeat of Gen. Braddock, and the exploits of his martial relative, Capt. Israel Putnam, no doubt filled his youthful mind with ardor, and led him while yet only in his nineteenth year to enlist as a private soldier, in the company
2
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RUFUS PUTNAM.
of Capt. Ebenezer Learned, consisting of one hundred men, many of whom must have been his acquaintances or asso- ciates. The term of service was a little short of a year, commencing the 15th of March, 1757, and ending the 2d day of February, 1758. By the 30th of April the de- tachment was ready for marching, and that day left Brook- field, on their route for Kinderhook, on the Hudson river, about eighteen miles below Albany, which place they reached on the 6th of May.
In this and his subsequent campaign, he turned the art of writing, which he had with so much difficulty acquired, to a useful purpose, by keeping a regular journal of the events which took place; and without this precaution would have been lost or forgotten. He remarks that Capt. Learned prayed regularly, night and morning, with his men, and on the Sabbath read a sermon in addition-a proof of the gen- eral prevalence of piety amongst the New England people, and which if more common in this day, would suppress much of the profanity and wickedness so universal amongst the soldiery of modern times. On the 18th of May, they left Kinderhook, and marched the same day to Greenbush, opposite the town of Albany.
On the 21st of May, the company moved to Seaghticoke, a Dutch settlement on the banks of the Hoosack river, three miles from the Hudson. It was deserted by the inhabitants on account of the Indians, and now lies in the north-westerly corner of Renssellaer county.
On the 9th of June, the detachment joined Col. Fry's regiment, at Stillwater, a spot subsequently famous for the bat- tles at Bemis' Heights, which turned the tide of Burgoyne's success, and finally led to his surrender. On the 11th they marched to Saratoga, a place still more celebrated in military history, for the conquest of his army, thirty years after this time, in which Mr. Putnam acted a conspicuous part.
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RUFUS PUTNAM.
On the 14th of this month, Fry's regiment, composed of seventeen companies of provincials, decamped, and on the following day reached Fort Edward. This celebrated mili - tary post, so often noticed in the events of the old French war, was built two years before this time, and was now in the pride of its strength. It stood on the east or left bank of the Hudson river, about fifty-two miles above Albany, and was constructed by a body of colonial troops under Gen. Lyman, and named after Edward, Duke of York, the eldest son of King George the Second, of England. It is thus described in Mr. Putnam's journal : " The river washed one side of its walls. The form was somewhat irregular ; having two bastions and two half bastions. The walls were high and thick, composed of hewed timber-a broad rampart, with casements, or bomb-proofs-a deep ditch with a draw-bridge- a covered way, glacis, &c." In an after note, he says, "I have been particular in this description, because in 1777, there was by no means so great an appearance of there hav- ing been a fortification here as we find in the ancient works at Marietta and other parts of the Ohio country." It stood at the head of the carrying place, between the Hud- son and Lake George, and also Wood creek, a tributary of Lake Champlain. The village of Fort Edward stands near the site of the old fort, and serves to perpetuate its name. The tragical fate of Miss McCrea happened in this vicinity in 1777. White Hall, at the head of the Lake, the port from which steamboats now run to St. John, in Canada, was, in the Revolutionary war, called Skenesborough; and was, named after Maj. Skene, presently noticed by Mr. Putnam in his journal.
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