USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > A history of the city of Cleveland: its settlement, rise and progress, 1796-1896 > Part 19
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Another of those entertaining pen-pictures of Cleve- land, which have been so wisely and carefully gathered into that store-house of historical treasures, the "An- nals " of Cuyahoga's early settlers, has been drawn by Judge Rufus P. Spalding," of the year whose record we have now reached: " In the month of March, 1823, I first saw Cleveland. I came from Warren, in Trumbull Coun- ty, where I then lived, in the company of Hon. George Tod, who was then president judge of the third judicial circuit, which embraced, if I mistake not, the whole Western Reserve. We made the journey on horseback, and were nearly two days in accomplishing it. I recol- lect the Judge, instead of an overcoat, wore an Indian blanket drawn over his head by means of a hole cut in the center. We came to attend court, and put up at the house of Mr. Merwin, where we met quite a number of lawyers from adjacent counties. At this time the village of Warren, where I lived, was considered as altogether ahead of Cleveland in importance; indeed, there was very little of Cleveland, at that day, east and southeast of the Public Square. The population was estimated at four
46 The seventy-fifth anniversary of the church was celebrated with ap- propriate ceremonies in 1895, commencing on Sunday, October 20th. A full account of these may be found in a work entitled: "Annals of the First Presbyterian Church of Cleveland, 1820-1895. Being Sermons and Papers called out by the Celebration of her Seventy-fifth Anniversary." 1895.
41 "Annals of the Early Settlers' Association," No. I, p. 42.
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hundred souls. The earliest burying-ground was at the present intersection of Prospect and Ontario streets. Some years afterwards, in riding away from Cleveland, in the stage-coach, I passed the Erie street cemetery, just then laid out. I recollect it excited my surprise that a site for a burying-ground should be selected so far out of town. The court that I attended on my first visit, was held in the old court-house, that stood on the northwest quarter of the Public Square. The presiding judge was the Hon. George Tod, a well-read lawyer and a courteous gentleman, the father of our late patriotic governor, David Tod. The associate judges of the Common Pleas Court were Hon. Thomas Card and Hon. Samuel Williamson. Horace Perry was clerk, and Jas. S. Clarke, sheriff. The lawyers attending court were Alfred Kelley, then acting prosecuting attorney for the county ; Leonard Case, Samuel Cowles, Reuben Wood and John W. Willey, of Cleve- land; Samuel W. Phelps and Samuel Wheeler, of Geauga; Jonathan Sloane, of Portage, Elisha Whittlesey, Thomas D. Webb, and R. P. Spalding, of Trumbull County. John Blair was foreman of the grand jury."
Judge Spalding's visit, this time, was only temporary. It was years afterwards that he became an honored citizen of Cleveland, where he remained until the close of his life. There arrived at about this time, however, a gentleman who became one of the busi- ness men of the village, and R. P. SPALDING. was soon recognized as an addition of which Cleveland had reason to be proud. This was Richard Hilliard, who was a moving spirit in his day, and gave to the young and struggling village a service of value in many ways. He was of New York birth, was well edt1-
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cated, and had spent some portion of his young manhood in school teaching. He went into business with John Daly at Black Rock, but removed to Cleveland, where, in 1827, he purchased his partner's interest, and carried on the business alone. He was located on Superior street, where the old Atwater Building used to stand, and soon built up a large dry-goods and grocery trade. He formed a partnership with William Hayes, and for some years the firm of Hilliard & Hayes carried on a profitable busi- ness. Feeling the need of better accommodations, Mr. Hilliard built a brick block on Water street, at the corner of Frankfort, moved into it, and extended his operations still further. In company with Courtland Palmer, of New York, and Edwin Clark, of Cleveland, he purchased a large tract of land on the flats, and aided in opening that part of the city to manufacturing purposes. In his labor in con- nection with the creation of Cleveland's system of water- works, as president of the incor- porated village, and as one of the promoters of the city's railroad system, he gave a service of great value. He died on Decem- ber 2Ist, 1856, leaving a name which deserves the high place it holds in the history of com- mercial Cleveland.
JOHN W. ALLEN. There were several other 1 1 notable names added to the lengthening roll of Cleve- landers about this time. Among these were John W. Allen, Sherlock J. Andrews and David H. Beardsley. Each one became identified with public interests, and lived to see a great city grow up about him. The serv- ices rendered by Mr. Allen were conspicuously useful. He was born at Litchfield, Connecticut, in 1802, the son of a lawyer, who gave him a good education. He came here in 1825, studied law with Judge Samuel
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Cowles, and became a member of the Cleveland bar. From 1831 to 1835, he was annually elected village president. In 1841, he became mayor. He was elected to the Ohio Senate in 1835; sent to Congress in 1836, and re-elected two years later. He was a Whig in politics; became the intimate friend of Henry Clay, and continued to act with that political organization until the formation of the Republican party, when he gave his ad- hesion to the new faith. In 1870, he was appointed post- master of Cleveland by President Grant, was reappointed in 1874, and resigned the following year. We have already noted his appointment as one of the first commis- sioners of the State Bank of Ohio; and at a later point will find him one of the moving spirits in the building of our first railways. Of him it has been truly said: " Mr. Allen was remarkable for the refinement and dignity of his face and person. His manners were courteous and friendly. His heart was always open to the calls of be- nevolence, and his ready hand and timely aid secured the prosperity of many a young man who otherwise might have failed entirely. The early settlers of Cleveland, who knew him as one of the foremost and most dis- tinguished of our citizens, will recall the great debt of gratitude the city owes him, for his untiring, unselfish labors in its behalf, and will honor his memory as it de- serves." Mr. Allen died on October 5th, 1887.
Sherlock J. Andrews came in the same year as Mr. Allen. He was a native of Wallingford, Connecticut, where he was born in 1801; was liberally educated; graduated from Union College in 1821; and came to Cleveland in 1825, where he commenced the practice of the law in connection with Samuel Cowles. He was af- terwards associated in the same manner with two other honored citizens of Cleveland, John A. Foot and James M. Hoyt. In 1840, he was elected to Congress, but ill- health compelled him to decline a renomination. He was elected judge of the Superior Court of Cleveland in 1848; in the next year was chosen a member of the conven-
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tion to revise the constitution of the State; and in 1873 was sent to a second convention called for the same purpose. He rendered valuable service to the public in all these responsible positions; was a brilliant advocate, a model judge, a cultured, high-minded gentleman. He died at his home in Cleveland, on February 11th, 1880.
David H. Beardsley, who was born, in 1789, at New Preston, Conn., and died in Cleveland in 1870, came to this city in 1826. He had previously lived at Lower San- dusky (now Fremont), Ohio, where he served as a judge, and a member of the Ohio Legislature. In 1827, he was appointed collector for the Ohio Canal at this point. He continued in that position for a score of years; the most of the commerce of Cleveland passing through his hands. So valuable were his services, that no matter how the political fortunes of those in charge of the public works of Ohio might change, he remained in his office undis- turbed. "His integrity," says one biographer,48 who knew him well, "was the great feature of his character. During all those years that he transacted the business of the State, and in the numerous accounts rendered by him, which amounted to thousands, and in the amount of money collected to about $1,400,000, not an error, either large or small, was ever detected in his accounts. Hav- ing remained many years in his office, and feeling finally that some other business would be more congenial to him, he voluntarily retired." Mr. Beardsley afterwards rendered Cleveland valuable service in connection with the public water-works, and as one of the sinking fund commissioners.
A new era lay just before the Cleveland of 1824; and the year that followed was, in one sense, the turning point in the fortunes of the city. Many signs of progress had been shown during the decade that had just ended, but none of them guaranteed anything beyond a continuation of the same modest village-hood that marked a half-dozen
48 " Life and Character of David H. Beardsley," by Hon. J. P. Bishop .- " Annals of the Early Settlers' Association," No. 2, p. 47.
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rivals and neighbors along the shore of the lake. Stage- coaches made the town a point of stoppage; the mails came with due regularity; two churches had been estab- lished; there was one live newspaper, and the remains of another that had departed. The seat of justice and the jail were here yet, but Newburg had by no means given up hope of securing them both. In lake traffic the town was fairly represented, but Grand River, Black River, and Conneaut Creek were by no means certain that their future was less brilliant than that of the Cuyahoga. Forests and wild country lay all about her; the logging bee was still a regular social feature out on the Euclid road; stumps, and briars, and underbrush, were among the things that yet adorned portions of the Public Square.
The real growth of the city commenced, only, after the building of the Ohio Canal. The modern traveler, who comes down to the foot of South Water street, in a rail- road car, may not realize that beneath the rails, over which he passes, lies the bed of what was once the central artery of Cleveland's traffic and travel.
The canal was, at one time, the main topic discussed by those who advocated internal improvements, and occu- pied the public attention as fully as did the railroad at a later date.
With the powers of steam but little known, it was nat- ural that this should be the case. The benefits obtained by use of the natural waterways, led men of a pro- gressive and inquiring turn of mind to ask themselves: Why not take a hint from nature, and pattern ourselves upon her model? If she has given us the Rhine, the Thames, the Mississippi, why cannot we have our artifi- cial rivers of water, to join those cities and aid those in- terests for which she has done so little? All countries cannot be Holland, nor all cities Venice, but leaves can be taken from the book of experience recorded by each. So they set themselves to work; and how well they suc- ceeded, can be read, somewhat, by the results produced
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before the days of canal decadence, near the middle of the present century.
The real era of modern canal building may be said to have opened in England about 1761, when the Duke of Bridgewater presented a petition for a bill that would per- mit the construction of the great canal that bears his name. By 1823, the canals of the United Kingdom had reached a total length of 2,68214 miles, and the cost had reached over thirty million pounds sterling.
The matter received serious consideration upon this side of the sea at an early date. It would be difficult to name any one person to whom belongs the honor of orig- inating the canal system of America. General Philip Schuyler, who won distinction in the Revolutionary Army, was certainly one of the original movers in that direction, and contributed much toward the bringing about of im- portant results. In 1761, he was sent to England upon public business, and while there examined the Bridge- water Canal, which had been recently completed. Upon his return home he dwelt with enthusiasm upon the sub- ject, and naturally cast about for directions in which a like enterprise, and a similar triumph of engineering, could be made to redound to the credit and good of America. It was not long before he suggested an artificial connection between Lake Champlain and the Hudson River.
The great war came on, and during it and the period of recuperation of energy and finances that followed, not even so earnest a canal disciple as Schuyler, could find the heart to suggest much beyond an occasional note, that the matter might not be lost sight of altogether. Others had ere this given the theme an attention not wholly of a speculative character, and among these was Elkanah Watson, who paid a visit to Mount Vernon in 1785, where he " found the mind of Washington engaged in a project for connecting the waters of the Potomac with those west of the Alleghany Mountains, by a canal, in order to divert the extensive fur trade from Detroit
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to Alexandria, which was then almost exclusively en- joyed by Montreal." The result was a renewed inter- est and energy on the part of Watson, and the production of some practical results.
In 1788, Watson proceeded to the head of navigation on the Mohawk River, at Fort Schuyler (now Rome), New York, and was there impressed with the feasibility of an artificial water connection between the Hudson River- which meant a direct route to the ocean-and Lake On- tario, which would open the whole basin of the great lakes, by the following route: A canal from Wood Creek to Oneida Lake, and thence down the Onondaga River to Oswego, on Lake Ontario.
The idea was slowly but surely worked out through cal- culations, conferences with General Schuyler and other enthusiasts, and the sounding of the opinions of those by whose private capital any such undertaking must be achieved. By 1792, public and private opinion had ar- rived at a point to permit the taking of a definite step. Accordingly, the Legislature of New York passed an act by which two companies were chartered-the Western Inland Lock Navigation Company and the Northern In- land Lock Navigation Company. General Schuyler was made president of both these organizations.
Both proposed routes were explored and work upon them commenced in 1793. The western canal was never completed, according to its original design, but a greater than it was opened to commerce along the same route at a later day. Gouverneur Morris was one of the inspiring spirits that carried forward the work begun by Schuyler and Watson. It was largely by his influence that New York was led, in 1810, to appoint a board of canal commis- sioners, of which he was made chairman; and the work, which ended in the completion of the great Erie Canal, was practically commenced and thence pushed with no hesitation as to the amount of energy, toil and money needed for the completion of the task.
Upon the appointment of the canal commissioners of
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New York, above referred to, they found an efficient and able ally in DeWitt Clinton, who, with others, was ap- pointed in 1812 to lay the matter of the proposed canal before the general government, with a view that Con- gress should undertake it as a national work. The sug- gestion was not adopted; while the declaration of war with England delayed the pushing of the enterprise by the State, the party most interested in the results. When Clinton was elected governor in 1816, he found his occa- sion, and made the most able and earnest use of the power and influence thus placed in his hands. He worked day and night, was zealous in season and out of season, and saw the great enterprise not only commenced but completed and dedicated forever to the public use. The cost of the canal was $7,602,000, all of which was borne by the State of New York.
This experiment, upon the part of New York, and its successful conclusion, naturally had its effect upon other sections of the country. Ohio was especially interested, and the first steps toward a like system were taken before the completion of the New York enterprise. Legislation was had, as early as 1820, looking towards the construc- tion of a canal to connect Lake Erie and the Ohio River. On January 31st, 1822, a law was passed by the State Legislature authorizing an examination into the practica- bility of the scheme, and the commissioners named in the act for the carrying out of that measure were Benjamin Tappan, Alfred Kelley, Thomas Worthington, Ethan A. Brown, Jeremiah Morrow, Isaac Minor, and Ebenezer Buckingham. After the preliminary steps had been taken, Mr. Kelley and Micajah T. Williams were made acting commissioners, and the canals were constructed under their direct control. With full credit to all others who had a part in the work, it can be truthfully said that no words can overestimate the part Mr. Kelley had there- in. The following pertinent quotation tells the tale:
" The Ohio Canal is a monument to the enterprise, energy, integrity and sagacity of Alfred Kelley. He was
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acting commissioner during its construction, and the oner- ous and responsible service was performed with such fidel- ity and economy that the actual cost did not exceed the estimate. The dimensions of the Ohio Canal were the same as those of the Erie Canal of New York, but the num- ber of locks was nearly double. The Erie Canal is 363 miles in length, and its total cost was $7, 143,789, or cost per mile, $19,679. The Ohio Canal is 307 miles in length ; its total cost was $4,695,824, or cost per mile, $15,300, being less than that of any other canal constructed on this conti- nent. The Ohio Canal was finished about 1830. The labor, with the facilities then existing for the conducting of public enterprise, was Herculean, but Mr. Kelley's in- domitable will and iron constitution and physique tri- umphed over all difficulties. Mr. Kelley neither charged nor received any pay for his first year's services in super- intending the preliminary explorations and surveys for the Ohio Canal, and while engaged in the great labor of building the canal, received only a salary of three dollars per day. Surely, it was not the money he worked for!"
The commissioners, above named, set themselves earn- estly to the great work they had in hand. They employed James Geddes, of Onondaga County, New York, as engi- neer, and he arrived at Columbus, the State Capital, in June, 1822. He began an examination of the various proposed routes, ably assisted by Mr. Kelley and his staff, and con- tinued it during the whole of 1823-24; and in 1825 the route was established. It was to commence at Cleveland and end at Portsmouth, on the Ohio River, a distance of three hun- dred and fifty miles. The personal preference of Mr. Kel- ley naturally had considerable to do with giving Cleveland the wonderful advantage which this decision secured.
When everything was ready for the opening of the work, preparations were made for an inauguration in keeping with the greatness of the event. An invitation was extended to DeWitt Clinton to be present and break ground at the spot designated for the commencement, on Licking sum- mit, some three miles west of Newark, in Licking County.
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The date set for the ceremony was July 4th, 1825.
Governor Clinton accepted the invitation, and stated that he would reach Cleveland on the last day of June.
Extensive preparations were made for his arrival. It was not known whether he would come by stagecoach or boat. When the first named means of conveyance arrived without him, all Cleveland went down to the bluff to watch for the "Superior," which was then due. The story of his arrival and reception has been told by an eye-witness 49 in a manner that cannot be improved upon, so I give it in full: " It was a heavenly day, not a cloud in the sky, the lake calm as the river, its glistening bosom re- flecting the fierce rays of an almost tropical sun; she [the 'Superior'] soon passed Water street, dressed with all her flags, and came to anchor about a mile opposite the mouth of the river, and fired her usual signal gun. Her com- mander, Captain Fisk, ordered the steps to be let down and her yawl boat to be placed alongside of them; then, taking Governor Clinton by the hand, seated him in the stern of the boat, and was followed by his aids, Colonel Jones, Colonel Read, and Colonel Solomon Van Renssel- aer, who had traversed the State when a wilderness, as an officer, under General Wayne; Messrs. Rathbone and Lord, who had loaned us the money with which to com- mence the canal, and Judge Conkling, United States Dis- trict Judge, of New York. They came up the river, the Stars and Stripes waving over them, and landed at the foot of Superior street, where the reception committee with carriages and a large concourse of citizens awaited them and took them to the Mansion House, then kept by my father, where Governor Clinton was addressed by the late Judge Samuel Cowles, who had been selected by the committee to make the reception address. Governor Clin- ton made an eloquent reply. In a part of his remarks he made the statement, 'that when our canals were made, even if they had cost five million dollars, they would be
49 " Governor Clinton and the Ohio Canal," by George B. Merwin,- " Annals of the Early Settlers' Association," No. 6, p. 38.
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worth three times that sum; that the increased price of our productions, in twenty years would be worth five million of dollars; that the money saved on the transpor- tation of goods, to our people, during the same period, would be five million of dollars, and that the canals would finally pay their tolls, refund their entire cost, principal and interest.' DeWitt Clinton was a man of majestic presence. In his person he was large and robust, his forehead high and broad, his hair black and curly, and his eyes large, black and brilliant, and, take him all in all, looked as though he was born to command."
The inauguration was accompanied by appropriate cere- monies, Governor Clinton himself turning the first spade- ful of earth. The work of construction was pushed rapid- ly forward, and the canal was ready for practical naviga- tion, as far south as Akron, by mid-summer of 1827.
The formal opening was marked by the usual festivi- ties, which occurred in July-one account says on the 4th, but Mr. Merwin places it on the 7th. The two north- ernmost locks, which connected the canal with the Cuya- hoga at Cleveland, were not completed, and the question arose as to how a boat from this end of the line could be got past the locks, and go southward to meet one coming from the other way.
Active Noble H. Merwin found a way of solving that difficulty. He had gone to Buffalo, purchased the canal boat " Pioneer," had it towed to Cleveland, and taken up the river to a convenient point, where teams hauled it over the bank into the canal. A party of leading citizens went aboard, and the boat was soon on its way toward Akron. They soon met the "Allen Trimble "-so named in honor of the governor of the State, who was aboard, as were also the State canal commissioners, and other prominent officials.
Salutes were fired, flags flung to the breeze, speeches made, and a day of genuine rejoicing indulged in. Both boats came back to Cleveland, where a banquet was served under a bower at the Mansion House, followed by
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a grand ball in the evening, where Sherlock J. Andrews and John W. Allen served with C. M. Giddings, H. H. Sizer and William Lemon as managers.50
In a business way, the effect of this new water highway was immediate and beneficial. It made Cleveland the principal place in Ohio, on Lake Erie, and enlarged the possibilities of lake travel and freightage by providing a means of carriage into the State, and on to the south by means of the Ohio and the Mississippi rivers. A large section of country was provided with an outlet for grain and produce hardly marketable before,51 and general business received a marked stimulus. Cleveland had secured a great advantage over all her rivals, and settlers and capital came to her in a steadily increasing stream.
There was one result, immediate in its nature, which had not been anticipated, and that for a time bade fair to do the city great harm. In July and August a severe epidemic of typhoid fever swept over Cleveland, and it was charged to the malaria arising from digging the canal basin. Seventeen deaths occurred in less than two months. " A terrible depression of spirits and stagnation of business ensued," writes Ara Sprague, in the com- munication from which we have already quoted. "The whole corporation could have been bought for what one lot would now cost on Superior street. For two months I gave up all business; went from house to house to look after the sick and their uncared-for business. People were generally discouraged and anxious to leave."
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