USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Annals of the Early Settlers Association of Cuyahoga County, number I > Part 35
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EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.
GOLDEN WEDDING.
Mr. and Mrs. Darins Adams, of Collamer, Celebrate the Fiftieth Anni- versary of their Marriage.
Silver weddings are not infrequent, but the celebration of the fiftieth aniversary of the date when for better or worse two lives were united for life's journey, is more rare. as few husbands and wives are spared until they have passed together the three score years and ten alloted to man.
November 24th 1883. however, was the fiftieth anniversary of the. marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Darius Adams, of Collamer, and a large number of relatives gathered to celebrate with them their golden Wedding. On the 24th of November, 1833, Mr. Darius Adams, then a young man of twenty-three, was united in matrimonial bonds to Miss Mary Doan, daughter of Timothy Doan, who was one year his junior. They were married in that portion of Euclid township which has since become East Cleveland township, and have passed their lives in that locality, Mr. Adams having by his business as a contractor and builder acquired wealth that renders them independent in their later years. Among the guests at the golden wedding, many of whom came from distant States, were Mr. Edwin Adams and his wife, Mrs. Laura Adams. the oldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Darius Adams, Mr. Charles Adams of St. Louis, the eldest son, accommpanied by his wife. Mrs. Sarah Adams, Mr. Charles Taylor and Mrs. Mary Taylor, the second daughter, Mr. C. C. Shanklin and Mrs. Stella Shanklin, the youngest daughter, and Mr. Clark D. Adams, the youngest son, and several brothers and sisters of Mrs Adams, among them Mr. Seth Doan, of Kenosha, Wis., Mr. Norton Doan, Mr. George Doan, and Mrs. Samantha Slade. Beside these were Mr. John Doan, Mrs. Adams' unele, who, as well as several other of the guests, was present at the wedding in 1833. The relatives gathered at the family residence at 3 o'clock in the after- noon and enjoyed a family reunion, the more pleasant as many of the relatives, by business or other relations, had been prevented from meeting one another for years. When supper was served the
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ANNALS OF THE
dishes that were used fifty years ago were among those on the table, the knives and forks, with handles of horn, especially attract- ing much attention from the younger guests. The bride and groom sat in the same cane-seat chairs that they occupied at their wedding in 1833, these as well as the dishes having been preserved by Mrs. Slade. After spending the evening in an enjoyable manner, recall- ing incidents and anecdotes of the past, the guests whose homes were in the vicinity departed, leaving with Mr. and Mrs. Adams their most earnest wishes that they might live in peace and happi- ness until, on the seventy-fifth aniversary, their diamond wedding could be celebrated.
OUR PRESIDENTS.
The American Presidential line Began in Seventeen Eighty-nine. The roll was led by Washington, Who served two terms, then Adams one ; Jefferson, Madison and Monroe Enjoyed two terms each, although John Quincy Adams had but one. "Old Hickory " twice the honor won ; Van Buren was the next enrolled, One term the office he controlled. Harrison died and left years four For Tyler; Polk the burden bore ; Zach Taylor died in years scarce two, And Filmore filled the balance due. The next for a full term was Pierce. Buchanan has equal claims to verse. Abe Lincoln, first republican, Was shot as his second term began, And Johnson ruled until came Grant, Who had two terms, Hayes one and scant Four months had Garfield, who was killed And Arthur the vacant office filled.
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EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.
A NOTABLE ANCESTRY.
The following from Cooley's Weekly, published at Norwich, Conn., May 1Sth. 1884, refers to the family of Agent Wightman, of the Humane Society : " A singular fact in connection with the history of the First Baptist Church of Groton, is that for 137 of the years of its existence the pastor has been one of the Wightman family. The Rev. Valentine Wightman was its first pastor, serving forty- two years, ending 1747, when he died. He was succeeded by his son, Timothy Wightman, who served until his death in 1796. John G. Wightman, a son of the above, next occupied the pulpit until his death in 1841, and his grandson, Palmer G. Wightman, was its pastor for the twelve years ending 1875. The first was a descendant of Rev. Edward Wightman, the last Protestant clergy- man who was burned at the stake during the reign of 'Bloody Mary.' The above church. which is located in the village of Mystic, is the oldest Baptist church in the State."
It will be remembered by many of our carly settlers that John Wightman settled in pioneer days on a farm located about half- way between the then rival villages of Cleveland and Newburgh, and on the road now known as Broadway. He emigrated from Connecticut. and settled on this farm, in 1811, and was a descend- ant of one of the clergymen who preached in that old church at Mystic, Conn. He was born in 1787, and received a good common school education, married Deborah C. Morgan in 1807, by whom he had eight children. She died in 1827. He married a second wife, Hannah Taylor, of Aurora, by whom he had one son, and died in 1837. His second wife still survives him. He led an honest and industrious life, and, though often solicited, would not accept a public office, except in one instance he consented to serve as supervisor of highways.
He employed Dr. David Long, of Cleveland, as his family physician, in whose skill he had entire confidence, and named one of his sons by the first wife David Long Wightman, who is our present well known D. L. Wightman, the efficient agent of the " Humane Society" of Cleveland. It hardly need be added that
96
ANNALS OF THE
our genial fellow citizen D. L. Wightman has inherited an hon- ored name. Ile certainly deserves great credit for the faithful manner in which he discharged for several years the responsible duties of sheriffof the county, and for some years past the still more responsible duties of agent for the Humane Society - duties to which he is still devoted. There can be no more divine work than that in which he is engaged. He devotes himself not only to the welfare of helpless humanity, but to the relief of the brute creation, that cannot speak in words the miseries which they suffer at the hands of their still more brutal masters. In his devotion to this benevolent work Mr. Wightman discloses the "divinity that stirs within him," and sufficiently corroborates the truth of his divine ancestry, or rather ancestry of divines.
It is to be hoped that the benevolent and humane work in which Mr. D. L. Wightman is now employed, will continue to be appre- ciated and liberally sustained by a generous public, and that the sphere of his usefulness may be enlarged.
OUR FIRST ATTEMPT AT RAILROAD BUILDING.
BY HON. JOHN W. ALLEN.
Judge Griswold, in his annual address, published in this number of the " Annals." has referred to the difficulty of starting our early railroads, and it may seem a little curious at this day to see to what devices the friends of the Cleveland and Columbus road had to resort to get even the organization of a company in legal shape for its construction.
The original charter required a subscription of $500,000, with a down payment of $50,000 - then a meeting of the subscribers was to be called for the election of officers and the complete machinery of a corporation established. At this time the country was on the highest wave of what was supposed to be prosperity, but it collapsed on a frosty morning in May 1837, and thousands of men who got up rich went to bed bankrupt at night, the country was strewed with wrecks from Maine to the Gulf of Mexico, and they
97
EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.
were not cleared off for years - nothing could be done with new enterprises and little with old ones. - About 1843-'44 the Whig tariff of 1842 began to bear fruit, and hopes of better times increased, and the people " thanked God and took courage," as did St. Paul when on his journey to Damascus he saw the three tavern signs on his road ahead. - At the session of 1845-'46 applications were made for several railroad charters between the Lake and Columbus, which were granted and the $500,000 requisi_ tion for the road of the Cleveland company was reduced to $50,000 and the down payment to five per cent. on that sum, and commis- sioners appointed for all of them. Thus in the Spring of 1846 there were three or four rival projects for a road to Columbus from the Lake, either in whole or part, but none of them were unfriendly to Cleveland. We called a meeting of all the commissioners at Mansfield, and at our request they all agreed to give us six months to enable us to carry out our project, and if we were successful, they would rest quietly as to theirs. We went to work actively in getting rights of way, surveying several lines in whole or part, seeking subscriptions, collecting money by donations for expenses, etc., which we could get more readily than stock subscriptions, which - last were mostly subject to conditions. When the limitation granted us was about expiring, we were not in a condition to organize, and the writer of this went to Columbus to consult our friends ; four of the most prominent men made this proposition, that they would take one-half the required $50,000 and be directors, and that the writer should select four men at Cleveland and be president, and that they should provide the other half of said sum, and that a call should be made for a meeting of the subscribers at the earliest day admissible at Columbus, and that on the question of calling for payments the writer should vote with them, and that their checks in the Clinton Bank, for the five per cent., should be held till they were ready to pay them.
The writer for himself agreed to this offer, came home, and his associates here assented, and at the meeting called, the records and papers showed a full compliance with the law, the officers were chosen, a corporation was formed and out of these devices grew 7
·
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ANNALS OF THIE
this road of great and immediate importance to Cleveland. The requisitions of the law were not complied with in spirit or fact, but we made a good show on paper. nobody was hurt, nor was it meant that anybody should be. As a matter of fact the subscriptions and the Columbus checks were never paid specifically, but the makers aided in other ways, and what finally became of their subscriptions and checks never was known; but probably they were put in some packages where they should not have been put, by accident, and now repose among the old packages of papers in the company's office.
In the light of much later events it is obvious that we were decidedly verdant as railroad managers. In our ignorance and honest simplicity we supposed it took money to construct railroads, and that the money must be furnished by the projectors, and so it was at that day. We should have employed printers and engravers, run a line or two, got estimates from some county surveyors, ascertained that the cost would be. say five million dollars, issued ten millions in bonds and used half in replenishing our own pockets, then issued as large an amount of common stock, and divided that, finished the road after a fashion, declared one or two liberal dividends, run the stock up to a high figure, and then sold out. and if we could have swindled a few banks, so much the better. and then emigrate to Canada or some other safe locality.
THE FARMERS' INN.
In the days of the early pioneers Paul P. Condit, of Euclid, was known far and near as the popular landlord and proprietor of the " Farmers' Inn." This inviting home of the weary traveler was located on the Lake Shore road leading through Euclid from Buffalo to Detroit.
There is much in the character and career of Mr. Condit, that is not only interesting, but exemplary and worthy of record. Yet the want of space in these pages forbids amplification. Mr. Condit was born at Morristown, N. J., in 1784, and soon after com-
99
EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.
pleting his education, and arriving at the age of manhood, visited friends in Euclid. and liked the then "far west " so well that he concluded to remain. He engaged in business with Enoch Murray, a merchant at Euclid, and was employed for some time in trans- porting goods for his employer from Pittsburgh on pack-horses - the usual method adopted in those early times. In 1816, he married Phebe Mellrath, a young lady of Euclid, who possessed just the amiable, patient, and yet efficient traits of character, that are requisite in a wife destined to share the trials and hardships of pioneer life. In 1819, Mr. Condit purchased 85 acres of land at $3 per acre, on which he erected the "Farmers' Inn." He and his wife took charge of the inn, or tavern as it was sometimes called, and soon gave it a wide reputation for good cheer and ample fare, and the result was, that inn received a liberal and a profitable patronage. It was for many years the favorite resort not only of travelers, but of social parties from the region round about. The frank and pleasant manner in which guests were received at the inn, and the generosity with which their wants were supplied, were subjects of remark and general commendation. Mr. and Mrs. Condit remained in charge of this inn for thirty or more years, and in addition to the care of providing for its numerous guests, raised a family of children, five of whom still survive. Mr. Condit died in 1851, at the age of 67 years. He was a gentleman of unblem- ished character, who enjoyed the confidence of the public and the respect of his fellow citizens. For some years he held the office of postmaster at Euclid, and also that of assessor. Whatever he undertook to do, was faithfully done. He has left an honorable record, and his memory will long be cherished.
Mrs. Condit, who still survives him, is now 87 years of age. She enjoys excellent health, and is still possessed of sound mental powers. She has performed in her day a great work, and is in fact a remarkable woman. She was born at Morristown, N. J., in 1797, came to Euclid in 1807, when but a child, with her father Andrew McIlrath, who settled here. It was at his house that the first church in Euclid was organized. It was a Presbyterian Church, and consisted of but twelve members when organized. Mr.
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1
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ANNALS OF THE
Andrew McIlrath was a devout man, and did not think there could exist a wholesome state of society without the aid and influence of a church and the promulgation of the Gospel. He furnished an ancient silver-plated tankard, which had been brought over from Scotland, and also plated cups which he purchased at Pittsburgh for the communion service. Andrew was elected deacon. This church still survives the many trials and vicissitudes through which it has passed - a landmark of the pioneer days.
Mrs. Condit remembers vividly many incidents of interest con- nected with her pioneer life. While mistress of the " Farmers' Inn," she did nearly all the housework, cooking and getting meals for travelers, washing and caring for her children, and spinning the flax and wool required for clothing the family. In spinning she says that she often made her wheel go with all the noisy rapidity she could, in order to drown the howl of the wolves and save her little children from being scared by their dismal howlings, especially in the evening. At that early day tea cost $3 a pound, and was brought from Pittsburgh in saddle-bags. It was used by the family on extra occasions, Sundays, and washing days. We also made the ink we used. It was simply a decoction of maple bark and copperas. We hunted along the bank of the lake, where we found a supply of wild goose quills with which to write. We paid 25 cents postage on letters in those days. Aunt Shaw was my father's sister. Mr. Shaw, her husband, was an Englishman highly educated, who taught our school. It was he who endowed the old academy known for many years as Shaw's Academy. The church that was first built and organized at Euclid was a log-building. After some years it was replaced by a frame building with a steeple, when people came from far and near to see a church that had a steeple. It was the greatest marvel of the times. We had to go to Willoughby to mill to get our breadstuffs ground. It took three days to go and return, and was considered a hazard- ous undertaking, owing to the condition of the roads. We did not like the mill at Newburgh. My Aunt Shaw invited company one day, and was expecting flour from the mill in time to make a short-cake for her guests, but was
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EARLY SETTLERS ASSOCIATION.
disappointed, and so she stewed a pumpkin and flavored it in a way that made it a very good substitute for cake. She was a very hospitable, social and cheerful lady, and by some of her pious friends was thought to be rather too gay. She at one time attended a ball, and ventured to indulge in dancing a figure or two. For this she was called to an account by the church, and censured. She had no children of her own, but her husband kept a hired boy, who at one time was very anxious to attend a military muster or general training, but could not go for the want of respectable clothing. Aunt Shaw, in the kindness of her heart, put a piece into the loom, wove it, and in the course of the following day, furnished the lad with a new suit of becoming apparel which made him very happy and enabled him to go to the general training. These are but few of the many incedents of pioneer life which Mrs. Condit remembers and delights to relate. Old as she is, she reads the newspapers, keeps up with the times, and takes a deep interest in politics and the welfare of our common country. She is one of the few sincere, intelligent women of the carly times, who still remain to tell the story of life's battle in the primitive wilds of the Western Reserve.
IN MEMORIAM.
Another old pioneer of Cleveland has left us to join her kindred who stand on the other side of the river to tender her a greeting of love. Mrs. Catherine Spangler Lemen, an honored matron, who has lived in Cleveland ever since it was a hamlet of a couple of hundreds of inhabitants in 1815 - sixty-nine years ago - passed away early Monday morning, September 8th, 1884, at the residence of her son-in-low, George Howe, Esq. Her death will be mourned by a large circle of friends who knew her only to have the highest esteem for her many amiable traits of character.
Mrs. Lemen was born in Canton, O., in the year 1811. In 1815 her parents moved to Cleveland, where the whole family has resided. Her father kept what was known in those good old days as Spangler's tavern on the site of the Miller Block, next west of
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ANNALS OF THE
the Excelsior building. In the year 1827 Mrs. Lemen was married to the late William Lemen, and shortly afterwards he erected on the site of the Hoffman Block, opposite the postoffice, the famous residence known as "the stone cottage." This beautiful cottage was a well-known land mark on account of its unique style of architecture. It was one story high, with a front facing the Square, of exactly the same width of the Iloffman Block, about sixty feet. The roof extended over the front the entire length, and was supported by eight beautiful stone columns. The cottage extended the same distance on Superior street that the Hoffman Block does. It was torn down about thirty years ago, when the present block was erected. The columns have been preserved and were used to erect the Grecian temple now on the family lot in Lake View, where the remains of Mrs. Lemen will be interred. For over a quarter of a century Mrs. Lemen presided in this cottage and dispensed its well-known hospitality. Many regretted the removal of that cottage, for it added much in its days to the beauty of the Square.
It is rare, indeed, that a person living in a hamlet of 200 inhabitants lives to see it blossom into a mighty and beautiful city of 220,000 population. Such was the privilege Mrs. Lemen had. It can be imagined how she could hardly realize the great change that had occurred in the city in which she resided so long. Soon none of the old settlers who were her cotemporaries will be left to tell the story of the infancy of our magnificent city. Mrs. Lemen was a lady of great benevolence of character, and, as a life-long member of Trinity Church a most consistent Christian, and was universally beloved by all who knew her. She left three children, Mrs. William H. Sholl, Mrs. George Howe, and Mrs. Walter Morison, of Columbus. She also left a brother, Miller M. Spangler, Esq., of this city, and two sisters, Mrs. J. K. Miller and Miss Harriet Spangler. The late Basil Spangler was a brother of Mrs. Lemen.
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EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.
A COMPLETE LIST
OF THE
MEMBERS OF THE ASSOCIATION,
Since its Organization, November 19th, 1879, to October 1st, 1884. Total 591.
Name.
Where Born.
When.
Came to Reserve.
Died.
Abbey, Seth A.
New York,
1798
1831
1880
Ackley, J. M.
Ohio,
1835
1835
. . . .
Adams, Darius
Ohio,
1810
1810
Adams, Mrs. Mary A.
Ohio,
1811
1811
Adams, W. K.
New York,
1812
1831
1882
Adams, S. E.
New York,
1818
1837
Adams, Mrs. S. E.
Vermont,
1819
1839
Adams, G. H.
England,
1821
1840
Adams, E. E.
Ohio,
1830
1830
. ...
Adams, Mrs. E. E.
Ohio,
1836
1836
...
Adams, C. M.
Ohio,
1843
1843
Addison, H. M.
Ohio,
1818
1818
Aiken, Mrs. E. E.
New York,
1821
1835
. . . .
Alleman, C. J.
Ohio,
1833
1833
. . . .
Allen, J. W.
Connecticut,
1802
1825
Andrews, S. J.
Connecticut,
1801
1825
1880
Andrews, Mrs. J. A.
Ohio,
1816
1816
Angell, George
Germany,
1830
1838
Anthony, Ambrose
Massachusetts,
1810
1834
. .
Atwell, C. R.
New York,
1813
1817
. .
Avery, Rev. J. T.
New York,
1810
1839
. . . ·
Babcock, Chas. H.
Connecticut,
1823
1834
. . . .
Babcock, P. H.
Ohio,
1816
1816
.. .
Babcock, Mrs. P. H.
Ohio,
1841
1841
. . ..
. .. .
.
. . . .
·
104
ANNALS OF THE
Name.
Where Born.
When.
Came to Reserve.
Died.
Bailey, Robert
Bailey, Jno. M.
New York,
1820
1835
Baldwin, Dudley
New York,
1809
1819
. .
Baldwin, N. C.
Connecticut,
1802
1816
Banton, Thomas
England,
1816
1832
Barber, Mrs. J. T.
New Hampshire,
1804
1818
Barber, Josiah
Ohio,
1825
1825
Barnett, Jas.
New York,
1821
1826
Barnett, Mrs. M. H.
Germany,
1822
1835
Barr, Mrs. Judge
Connecticut,
1820
1-37
Bartlett, Nicholas
Massachusetts,
1822
1833
Bauder, Levi
New York,
1812
1834
1882
Bauder, L. F.
Ohio,
1840
1840
Beanston, Jno.
Scotland,
1810
1837
Beardsley, 1. L.
New York,
1819
1838
... .
Beardsley, Mrs. 1. L.
New York,
1821
1836
Beavis, B. R.
England,
1826
1834
1884
Beers, D. A.
New Jersey,
1816
1818
1880
Beers, L. F.
Ohio,
1823
1823
Belden, Mrs. Silas
New York,
1808
1840
Benedict, L. D.
Vermont,
1827
1830
. .
Benham. F. M.
Connecticut,
1801
1811
...
Berg, Jno.
Germany,
1817
1842
. ..
Beverlin, John
Pennsylvania,
1813
1834
. . .
Beverlin, Mrs. G.
Ohio,
1817
1842
Bingham, Elijah
New Hampshire,
1800
1835
1881
Bingham, Mrs. Elijah
New Hampshire, Connecticut,
1816
1836
Bingham, E. Beardsley
Ohio,
1826
1826
Bishop, J. P.
Vermont,
1815
1836
1881
Bishop, Mrs. E. W.
Ohio.
1821
1821
..
Blackwell, Benj. T.
New York,
1808
1832
...
Blair, Mary Jane
Ohio,
1818
1818
. ..
Blair, Elizabeth
Ohio,
1820
1820
Blish, Mrs. A. M.
New York,
1826
1837
. ...
Bliss, Stoughton
Ohio,
1823
1823
Blossom, H. C.
Ohio,
1822
1822
1883
Bolton, Mrs. Judge
1822
1833
Borges, J. F.
Germany,
1810
1835
. . .
Bosworth, Milo
New York,
1806
1841
. . . .
Bosworth, Mrs. L.
New York,
1828
1847
....
. . .
. . .
. .
. ..
. . .
. ..
Bingham, William
1805
1835
. .
.
1834
Baldwin, Mrs. Dudley
105
EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.
Name.
Where Born.
When.
Came to Reserve.
Died.
Bowler, N. P.
New York,
1820
1839
Bowler, William
New York,
1822
1833
Brainard, Mrs. Stephen
Massachusetts,
1802
1815
. . . .
Brainard, G. W.
New Hampshire,
1827
1834
. .. .
Brainard, Mrs. G. W.
Ohio,
1831
1831
. . .
Branch, Dr. D. G.
Vermont,
1805
1833
1880
Brayton, H. F.
New York.
1812
1836
Brett, J. W.
England,
1816
1838
Brooks, O. A,
Vermont,
1814
1834
Brooks, S. C.
Ohio,
1820
1820
Brown, H.
Michigan,
1823
1837
Brown, Mrs. Hiram
England,
1822
1832
. . . .
Buell, Anna M.
Ohio,
1837
1837
Buhrer, Stephen
Ohio,
1825
1844
Buhrer, Mrs. Stephen
Germany,
1828
1840
. . . .
Bull, L. S.
Connecticut,
1813
1820
· . ..
Burgess, Catherine
New Jersey,
1800
1830
. . . .
Burgess, Solon
Vermont,
1817
1819
. . . .
Burgess, L. F.
Ohio,
1823
1823
. ...
Burke, O. M.
Ohio,
1823
1823
. . . .
Burke, Thos.
New York,
1832
1839
....
Burnham, Thos.
New York,
1808
1833
. . . .
Burnham, Mrs. M. W.
Massachusetts.
1808
1838
. . . .
Burnett, Mrs. F. M.
Ohio,
1832
1832
. ...
Burton, Mrs. Abby P.
Vermont,
1805
1824
. .. .
Burton, Dr. E. D.
Ohio,
1825
1825
. . . .
Burwell, G. P.
Connecticut,
1817
1830
. . . .
Burwell, Mrs. L. C.
Pennsylvania,
1820
1824
. ...
. ...
Butts, S. C.
New York,
1794
1840
. . . .
Butts, Bolivar
New York,
1826
1840
. . . .
Byerly, Mrs. F. X.
Ohio,
1834
1834
.
Cahoon, Joel B.
New York,
1793
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