USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > Centennial history of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio, Vol. I > Part 24
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ROLL CALL OF THE OLD GUARD.
Rank and File.
Captain, William Miller,
First Lieut., B. F. Ollom,
Second Lieut., L. D. Ross,
Adjutant, David McCandlish,
Chaplain, H. Bailey,
Quartermaster, J. Conway, Sergeants.
J. S. Kessie,
C. L. Barlow,
J. L. Hale,
Q. C. Cook,
J. Peters,
J. F. Daley,
W. K. Stichter,,
E. S. Hawkins,
J. D. Kennedy,
J. D. Newton,
W. U. O'Hara,
Wm. Parks,
G. Sain,
S. H. Timmons.
Privates.
D. U. Hall,
D. H. Smith,
Z. E. Amlin,
A. R. Innis,
J. H. Smith,
L. Bauman,
Wm. Kauffman, T. T. Smith,
G. W. Bigelow,
L. F. Keller,
H. Schaffer,
J. H. Bliler,
J. D. Kenney,
O. E. Sells,
S. Chapman,
D. S. Latham, A. Stone,
F. D. Clark,
T. Clifton,
Corporals.
G. Dorbert,
W. F. Doty,
J. D. Fisher,
W. Haggerty,
J. A. Pettit.
Drummers.
H. T. Scott,
W. W. Walmsley,
J. H. Lloyd,
B. F. Manier,
C. R. Rhoads.
J. H. Allen,
G. Lawrence, George Stover,
J. W. Leach, Wm. Thacker.
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M. N. Cook,
J. H. Long,
J. A. Thompson,
J. Dice,
E. G. Maloney,
J. H. Toy,
L. T. Ebright,
W. W. McMain,
D. Wigands,
James Fagans,
D. McMullen,
W. W. Young,
F. Fisher,
J. W. Messick,
G. F. Geary,
C. Fishpaugh,
R. B. Oren,
H. S. Gilvert,
J. Foark,
W. C. Powell,
W. H. Pence,
A. P. Frame,
George Rie,
W. Y. Postle,
C. Graham,
E. E. Rickets,
D. Zook.
H. R. Guthrie,
C. Roberts,
Honorary.
Gov. A. L. Harris,
Gen. H. A. Axline,
Col. T. E. Knaus,
Col. James Kilbourne,
Judge D. F. Pugh,
Charles Dunphy,
Col. Geo. D. Freeman,
Capt. Geo. W. Ware,
J. W. Gardner,
Hon. R. M. Rownd,
Col. W. H. Knaus,
J. W. Lindsay.
Hon. E. L. Taylor, Jr.,
A Notable Review.
One of the most notable of the more recent reviews of the Old Guard was held in the Franklin County Fair grounds on G. A. R. and Home Coming Day, September 6, 1907.
There were present the governor and state officers, the two United States senators and most of the congressmen of the state, United States senators, congressmen and distinguished citizens of other states, and a vast concourse of prominent people, when the Guard marched by, counter- marched and wheeled into line in front of the reviewing stand and saluted the governor, his staff and the distinguished visitors.
Comrade William A. Taylor, J. C. McCoy Post, No. 1, Department of Ohio, G. A. R., presented the Guard to Governor Andrew L. Harris in these words: "It is my pleasant duty, Governor Harris, to present to you the Old Guard of Columbus, the only organization of the kind on the American continent, if not in the world. The thrilling story of their early lives is deep graven in the nation's history. In the great war to pre- serve the Union, 1861-1865, they individually and as a whole, participated in more and greater battles than were fought by Alexander in his con- quest of the ancient world, or in the wars of Caesar and Napoleon com- bined.
"From Bull Run to Appomattox; across the fire-wrapped fields of Gettysburg, Shiloh, Kenesaw, Atlanta, Mission Ridge, Chickamauga, Nashville, Vicksburg, the Wilderness, Petersburg and others like them, they answered the bugle's call and the drum beat of battle, 'as joyously as the bridegroom hastens to meet his bride.' Their story of today is l' envoi of an immortal epic; an unvoiced poem that enflowers their march to the grand encampment of the beyond.
"The Old Guard was organized August 13, 1884. Its object to pay a soldier's respect and reverence at the bier and above the turf of the mustered
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out. Also to act as an escort on all fitting civic occasions; to participate in the inaugural ceremonies of Ohio's governors and sometimes, as in 1905, in the inauguration of a president. The members of the Old Guard are life recruits from Ohio's veteran regiments, representing more, many more, or- ganizations than they uncover files in this review. They helped to make history. Soon they will be a part of history itself."
Governor Harris spoke at some length to the old boys, just like one soldier would talk to another, for the governor is one of the old Guardsmen himself, both on account of age and service. He told stories, eulogized their services and was most enthusiastically received.
Honors to Louis Kossuth.
In the early part of the year 1852, the legislature of the state and the people of Columbus paid high honors and testified their admiration of the patriotism and heroism of Louis Kossuth the distinguished Hungarian patriot. The civil, social and military receptions tendered him continued from February 4 to February 9, 1852. Resolutions by the legislature, ask- ing the national government to mediate in behalf of peace and Hungarian liberty were passed; while the people of public meetings adopted rasolutions of sympathy and encouragement in behalf of the Hungarian people in their struggle for liberty. During the memorable patriotic week addresses were delivered by Samuel S. Cox, Rufus P. Spaulding, Rufus P. Ranney, Samuel Galloway, George E. Pugh, Judge Jacob Brinkerhoff and other distinguished Ohio statesmen of the day.
The First State Funeral.
General Thomas L. Hamer, of Brown county, former member of the legislature and of congress, who died of wounds received in the battle of Monterey, Mexico, December 2, 1846, was accorded a state funeral by the legislature of the state, and his remains were escorted from the Rio Grande to Ohio and to his home by a joint committee of the two houses. Eulogies were pronounced by the leading members of the two bodies, preceding the adoption of their resolutions, as well as at the distinguished statesmen and soldier's home in Brown county, where he was laid to rest among the familiar scenes of his early struggles and maturer successes.
A Solemn National Pageant.
The most solemn pageant ever beheld in the city was that commemor- ative and in honor of the remains of President Abraham Lincoln, in the spring of 1865, when the entire nation was plunged into grief because of the assassination of that great patriot and statesman. In solemn pomp and cir- cumstance of woe, the funeral pageant in Columbus was not equaled by any capital among the states through which it passed, the statehouse being
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draped from turret to foundation stone with the solemn symbols and habil- iments of grief.
Public Grief for Two Ohioans.
On two occasions since the great edifice which looms up in the Capital Park, has been similarly draped in 1880 because of the assassination of President Garfield and in 1901 and of the assassination of President Mc- Kinley, both of whom were the beloved and honored sons of Ohio.
Honor to a Journalist.
A splendid state tribute was paid to Januarius A. MacGahan, born in Perry county, Ohio, during the year 1884. Mr. MacGahan was an eminent newspaper writer, who going to London in 1877-8, was sent by the London Daily News to Bulgaria to investigate the conditions there under Turkish rule. The revelations made in his correspondence caused all Europe and the Chancellories to act in unison and they compelled the Sultan to cede Bulgarian independence. The grateful people offered to make him their king, but he declined to consider the proposition.
He died suddenly of typhus fever in Constantinople in June, 1878. In 1884 the Ohio legislature by joint resolution provided for the removal of his remains to Ohio, the navy department cooperating with the state legis- lature. His remains were brought to New York on a war vessel and from thence transported to Columbus, where they lay in state in the rotunda of the capitol. They were buried at New Lexington near the place of his birth. September 11, 1884.
The State Treasury Robbed.
On the 6th of May, 1827, the state treasury was entered and robbed of twelve thousand six hundred and fifty-seven dollars and ninety-eight cents, of which eleven thousand six hundred and twenty-seven dollars and sixty- six cents was subsequently recovered, leaving the actual loss, one thousand and thirty dollars and thirty-three cents. Treasurer Brown asked the legis- lature to investigate the robbery, and the committee found him blameless, and attributed the robbery to the unsafe condition of the treasury vault, and insufficient safeguards, and recommended that the treasurer be acquit of the loss and allowed forty-six dollars and fifty cents by him expended in appre- hending the thief and recovering the money. The name of the thief is not of record.
A Governor Constructively Imprisoned.
To Governor Thomas Worthington belongs the unique distinction of being the only Ohio governor ever arrested and started to jail for debt. In 1815 or 1816, Governor Worthington contracted with Judge Jarvis Pike to grub and chop the timber off the present statehouse square. The governor was a non-resident of Franklin county, residing at Chillicothe. Some mis-
THE LINCOLN FUNERAL CORTEGE PASSING THE STATE CAPITOL.
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understanding arose as to the payment of Judge Pike for his labors, where- upon he sued out a capias from the court of Squire King, and had the gov- ernor arrested and marched off to jail. He was not locked up, however, the matter having been amicably adjusted.
Burning of the First State House.
The first statehouse built as elsewhere stated, stood on the southwest corner of the park, and finally became an eye-sore. The new building was progressing so slowly that the idea no doubt obtained that old was delay- ing the completion of the new. This building was destroyed early on the morning of Sunday, February 1, 1852. The origin of the fire was never seriously inquired into, and no one regretted its destruction. The following description of the conflagration appeared in the Ohio State Journal at that time. They did not print a Sunday edition :
"Yesterday (Sunday) morning, about four o'clock, the cry of fire rang through our streets. It was soon ascertaned that the old State House was on fire. The watch first discovered it in the center of the Senate Chamber, and on the floor. This was nearly extinguished, when it was discovered that the timbers over head were on fire. Soon it burned out through the roof, and the entire belfry was quickly in flames. The engines could not reach the fire, and it was evident that the venerable old edifice, in which the legislature of Ohio had met for the last thirty-five years, was doomed to destruction. The belfry, after burning brilliantly for a few minutes, came down with a crash upon the floor of the Senate Chamber. The roof then gradually fell in, and the upper story of the building was a mass of flames. An effort was now made to confine the fire to the Senate Chamber and upper rooms, but there was too heavy a mass of burning matter on the floor to be extinguished, and soon the flames reached the Hall of the House of Repre- sentatives. The origin of the fire has not yet been ascertained. The desks, chairs and furniture had been removed, and the entire building was then resigned to its fate. In the Senate Chamber very little was saved. We learn that the clerk's papers were all secured, but that a large mass of documents, journals, constitutional debates, etc., were consumed."
The cause of the fire was never satisfactorily ascertained. In the ensuing spring the remains of the building were removed, and the ungainly high board fence that had so long enclosed the public square was extended round the site of the old building. The remainder of the session the house of rep- resentatives sat in Mr. Neil's Odeon Hall, and the senate in the United States courthouse, on the opposite side of the street. The next winter, 1852-3, the house of representatives again sat in the Odeon Hall, and the senate in Mr. Ambo's Hall. In the winter of 1853-4, the regular session, both branches occupied the same halls as the preceding winter. In 1854-5, no legislative session. In 1855-6, they again occupied the Odeon and Ambos's Halls, and in the winter of 1856-7, they for the first time held their session in the new statehouse.
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A Striking Difference.
The difference between the old time and the present day escapes from the penitentiary is exemplified by the following account of a sort of a whole- sale escape of prisoners from the Ohio penitentiary in 1830 and their re- capture by means of public advertisements.
A Daring Rush.
"There were every year more or less escapes of prisoners by stealth, though but one daring rush. About the year 1830, some dozen or more prisoners, having banded themselves together to force an escape, were secreted in a vacant cell, just inside of the outer door of the prison, and when the turnkey, Mr. O'Harra (later Squire O'Harra, of Franklinton), had occasion to unlock the door, the daring Smith Maythe, who headed the gang, sprang forward and caught O'Harra round the body, and held him fast, while his comrades rushed out. He then, letting go of Mr. O'Harra, bounded forward and placed himself at the head of the gang, and they marched up past the mound (there then being but few improvements to ob- struct their way), and on to the woods in a southwest direction. They were advertised and finally all picked up, one or two at a time, and returned to the prison. Poor Maythe, some years after his release from the Ohio peni- tentiary, was, for a case of robbery and attempted murder in Kentucky, hung by a mob, without judge or jury."
Under the law and regulations of the old penitentiary, the institution was charged with and paid the costs of prosecution and transportation of con- victs-always a heavy item of expense. But under the law and regulations for the government of the present penitentiary, the costs of prosecution and transportation are paid out of the state treasury, and are not, in the warden's annual exhibits, charged to the institution, which should not be overlooked in making a comparison between the exhibits of the old and the present in- stitutions.
The old buildings and the ten-acre lot upon which they stood, and which had been donated by the proprietors of the town to the state for the erection of a penitentiary thereon, were no longer needed nor used in con- nection with the penitentiary ; and the succeeding year the walls of the yard were sold by the state officers and were torn down, and the stones used; part for building purposes, and part burned into lime at a kiln erected on the lot for that purpose, by Jacob Strickler. The main prison building, which had been erected in 1818, remained some two or three years longer, when it was also removed, leaving the original building, erected in 1813, and the brick storehouse, erected by Wright in 1822, still standing; and they were taken possession of by the quartermaster general-the one as a place of deposit for the public arms, and the other as a work shop for cleaning and repairing the arms, thus converting the two into a kind of state armory. and they so remained until 1855, when they were both razed to the ground,
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and the bricks used in filling in some part of the new statehouse; and the old lumber sold and removed. So that now there remains not a vestige of the old penitentiary and its appendages; and the grading down of the streets and the digging down and hauling away of a great part of the hill itself, for gravel and sand, has so changed the surface of the location where the prison and yard once were, that a person familiar with that place seventy years ago, could not now recognize it.
Patriotic Societies.
Columbus is the headquarters of numerous patriotic societies. That is to say, societies that were organized to commemorate great patriotic events in the foundation and preservation of the republic. Most prominent among these is the Ohio society of the Sons of the American Revolution vehicle, was organized April 22, 1889, in the senate chamber by about fifty charter members. The first officers chosen were William A. Taylor, president, April to November, 1889; A. A. Graham, secretary; Henry A. Williams, treasurer ; Daniel H. Gard, registrar. Their successors were elected and took office the first week in November 1889. The terms of the officials since 1890 has been from April 19 to April 18 of each year.
Sons of the American Revolution.
The following have been the presidents of the society during the twenty years of its existence :
1889. William Alexander Taylor, Columbus.
1889. Wilson Riley Parsons, Worthington.
1890. Henry A. Axline, Zanesville.
1891. John Luther Vance, Gallipolis.
1892. Henry M. Cist, Cincinnati.
1893. Edwin Michael Putnam Brister, Newark.
1894. Orlando W. Aldrich, Columbus.
1895. Lucius Bliss Wing, Newark.
1896. John Fassett Follett, Cincinnati.
1897. James McElroy Richardson, Cleveland.
1898. James McElroy Richardson, Cleveland.
1899. John W. Harper, Cincinnati.
1900. Moulton Houk, Toledo.
1901. Emilius Oviatt Randall, Columbus.
1902. Millard Fillmore Anderson. Akron.
1903. James Kilbourne, Columbus.
1904. Isaac F. Mack, Sandusky.
1905. Isaac F. Mack, Sandusky.
1906. Edward D. Gardiner, Toledo.
1907. William L. Curry. Columbus.
1908. Harry P. Ward. Worthington.
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The officers for 1098-1909 with the addresses are as follows:
President, Harry P. Ward, Columbus.
Registrar, Hugh Huntington, Columbus.
Treasurer, Stimpson G. Harvey, Toledo.
Historian, William L. Curry, Columbus.
Chaplain, Wm. H. Cole, Sabina.
Secretary, William A. Taylor, Columbus.
Board of Management, Benj. F. Wirt, Youngstown; Theo. M. Bates, Cleveland; William L. Curry, Columbus.
Many Accessions.
There have been nearly two thousand accessions to the society. To be eligible to membership the candidate must be able to establish from historical records that he is descended from a Revolutionary soldier. The object of the society is to perpetuate the memory and the spirit of the men who achieved American Independence, by the encouragement of historical research in re- lation to the Revolution and the publication of its results, the preservation of documents and relics, and of the records of the individual services of Rev- olutionary soldiers and patriots, and the promotion of celebration of all patriotic anniversaries.
To carry out the injunction of Washington in his farewell address to the American people "To promote, as an object of primary importance, in- stitutions for the general diffusion of knowledge," thus developing an en- lightened public opinion and affording to young and old such advantages as shall develop in them the largest capacity for performing the duties of American citizens. To cherish, maintain and extend the institutions of American freedom, to foster true patriotism and love of country, and to aid in securing for mankind all the blessings of liberty.
The society has quarters in the Franklin County Memorial Hall; its annual meetings are held April 17, the anniversary of the battle of Concord and Lexington. The Benjamin Franklin Chapter is a subordinate post of the state society at Columbus. Other chapters are: Anthony Wayne, Toledo; Nathan Hale, Youngstown; Western Reserve, Cleveland; Simon Kenton, Kenton; Cincinnati, Cincinnati; Nathaniel Greene, Xenia; George Wash- ington, Newark.
Grand Army of the Republic.
There are numerous posts of the Grand Army of the Republic in the county. In the city is J. C. McCoy Post, No. 1, which at one time had a membership of over two thousand five hundred. The formation of other posts and demises have reduced the membership to between two hundred and fifty and three hundred. Other posts in the city are Wells Post and Beers Post. The Sons of Veterans, descendant of the Civil war veterans, have societies or camps as have the soldiers of the Spanish-American war, and all of them have Women's Relief or Auxiliary Corps.
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The Local Legion (officers of the Civil war), the Union Veterans Union and the Society of the Ex-Prisoners of War maintain organizations.
Daughters of the American Revolution.
The Daughters of the American Revolution is a large and enthusiastic body, who have rescued from oblivion the graves of Revolutionary soldiers who lie buried in Ohio, until thousands have been identified with bronze markers and the work is still being carried enthusiastically forward as it has been for years. Among the local daughters, Mrs. Professor Orton, Mrs. Colonel James Kilbourne and Mrs. Frank Tallmadge have been especially prominent in the work, while hundreds of other willing hands have helped it forward.
Graphic Story of Jonathan Alder.
Colonel William L. Curry writes entertainingly of Jonathan Alder, an Indian prisoner from Virginia, who was brought into this part of Ohio and was a frequent visitor in the limits of the city, both before and after the organ- ization of the municipality.
Mr. Alder was born near Philadelphia, but over the New Jersey line, September 17, 1773, and was about forty years of age when the war of 1812 commenced. When he was about seven years of age his parents emigrated to Virginia. About a year after this event, and after the death of his father, he was in the woods hunting for horses with a brother and was taken pris- oner by the Indians. His brother attempted to escape and was killed by the Indians and his scalp taken in the presence of Jonathan. Mr. Alder often related to the old settlers incidents of his trials and hardships during his years of captivity, in very graphic language.
The village to which Alder was taken belonged to the Mingo tribe and was on the north side of the Mad river, we should judge somewhere within or near the limits of what is now Logan county. As he entered he was ob- bliged to run the gauntlet, formed by young children armed with switches. He passed through the ordeal with little or no injury and was adopted into an Indian family. His Indian mother thoroughly washed him with soap and water with herbs in it, previous to dressing him in the Indian costume, consisting of a calico shirt, breechclout, leggings and moccasins. The fam- ily having thus converted him into an Indian, were much pleased with their new member. His Indian father was a chief of the Mingo tribe, named Succohanos; his Indian mother was named Whinechech, and their daughters respectively answered to the good old English names Mary, Hannah and Sally. Succohanos and Whinechech were old people and had lost a son, in whose place they had adopted Jonathan. They took pity on the little fel- low and did their best to comfort him, telling him that he would be restored to his mother and brothers.
Life Among Indians.
When Alder had learned to speak the Indian language, he became more contented. He says: "I would have lived very happy, if I could have had
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health, but for three or four years I was subject to very severe attacks of fever and ague. Their diet went very hard with me for a long time. Their chief living was meat and hominy; but we rarely had bread and very little salt, which was exeremely scarce and dear, as well as milk and butter."
When he was old enough he was given an old English musket and told that he must go out and learn to hunt. So he used to follow along the river courses, where mud turtles were plenty and commenced his first aims upon them. He genereally aimed under them as they lay basking on the rock, and when he struck the stone they flew sometimes several feet in the air, which afforded great sport for the young marksman. Occasionally he killed a turkey or a raccoon, and when he returned to the village with his game, generally received high praise for his skill. The Indians told him he would make "a great hunter one of these days."
He had a varied experience during the years he remained with the Indians and witnessed the shedding of blood in more than one engagement between the whites and the savages. He also went on one expedition with others in Kentucky to steal horses from the settlers. He remained with the Indians until after Wayne's treaty, 1795. He was urged by them to be present on the occasion and obtain a reservation of land which was given to each of he prisoners, but ignorant of the importance, he neglected and lost his land. Peace having been restored, Alder says, "I could now lie down without fear and rise up and shake hands both with the Indians and the white man."
Met Lucas Sullivant.
The summer after the treaty, while living on Big Darby, Lucas Sulli- vant made his appearance in that region, surveying lands, and became on. terms of intimacy with Alder, who related to him a history of his life and generously gave him a piece of land on which he dwelt; but there being some little difficulties about the title Alder did not contest and lost it. When the settlers first made their appearance on Darby, Alder could scarcely speak a word of English. He was then about twenty-four years of age, fifteen of which was passed with the Indians.
When talking one day with John Moore, a companion of his, the latter questioned him where he was from. Alder replied that he was taken prisoner somewhere near a place called Greenbrier, Virginia, and that his people lived by a lead mine, to which he used frequently to go to see the hands dig ore. Alder then made up his mind that he would make every effort to find his family, and he advertised for them in various places. Some time afterward he and Moore were at Franklinton, when he was informed there was a letter for him at the postoffice. It was from his brother Paul, stating that one of the advertisements was put up within six miles of him and that he got it the next day. It contained the joyful news that his mother and brothers were still alive. He had married a squaw, from whom he separated after dividing his property with her. He went back to Wythe county, Virginia, and found his family and mother still living. "The first words she spoke,"
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