USA > Ohio > Montgomery County > Dayton > Early Dayton; with important facts and incidents from the founding of the city of Dayton, Ohio, to the hundredth anniversary, 1796-1896, > Part 18
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There are now nineteen district schools, with twenty-nine buildings conveniently located in the various parts of the city. · Many of these buildings are large, handsome in appearance, and well equipped with modern improvements.
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In 1845 Dayton began to spread itself. That part of the city called "Oregon" was platted; also, about the same time, the part lying west, between Wolf Creek and the Germantown pike, which was called "Miami City," now "West Dayton." The common from 1845 to 1855 was the unenclosed ground west of Ludlow Street to the river and south of the old graveyard.
The warfare of President Andrew Jackson upon the United States Bank and the refusal of the Ohio Legislature to renew its charter compelled the closing, on the 27th day of January, 1843, of one of the soundest banks in the country-the old Dayton Bank. Dayton remained without banking facilities for more than two years. In 1845 two strong, conservative banks were started -the Dayton Bank and the Bank of Dayton. Fifty years of fair business prosperity, with the advantages of the banking law of 1863, have since given us a number of reliable and successful banks.
In 1841 an ordinance was passed providing that for the protec- tion of the city two constables should be elected each year in addition to the marshal and deputy. It would seem that Dayton was once a very good little city, but in 1850 sixty men were added to this body. That Dayton, as a certain small boy said of himself, "grew bigger and bigger and badder and badder," is in- dicated by the organization in 1873 of the metropolitan police force, with a chief, two lieutenants, twenty-six patrolmen, three roundsmen, and three turnkeys, the arrangement being similar to that now in force. The city had no prison before 1858, its few offenders being confined in the county jail. Then an old engine- house on Main Street, between Fifth and Sixth, was fitted with cells and so used. In 1872 the United Brethren church, near the corner of Sixth and Logan streets, was bought and remodeled for a city prison. In 1875 the county commissioners vacated the stone jail on Main Street, and it has since then been used as a work-house.
The old Court-house, on the northwest corner of Main and Third streets, was completed in 1850. "An exceptionally fine reproduction of Grecian architecture, it was at the time of its erection the finest building in the State, and is still regarded as one of the notable buildings of the city." The new Court-house on Main Street, north of the old one, was completed in 1884.
It was decided in the spring of 1869 that a new jail was needed for the county. It was placed west of the Court-house, on Third Street, and completed in February, 1874.
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John W. Van Cleve, of whom a biographical sketch has been given in a previous chapter, had a very tender feeling for this corner of the earth, which his father had helped to hew out of the wilderness. He was one of those who "call every bush my cousin." : Original in character, odd in appearance, the jolly band of children who followed his burly figure through many holiday excursions grew wiser, happier, and healthier. Men and women found in him an intelligent, cultivated, and agreeable companion, and a very true and loyal friend. As a citizen he was advanced, enterprising, and of unbending integrity. As previously stated, to him more than to any other we are indebted for our beautiful Woodland Cemetery. He made the suggestion of a rural cemetery, and from the organization of the Woodland Cemetery Association, in 1842, to the time of his death, in 1858, served as its president and gave to its affairs an amount of labor and watchful supervision which money could not have purchased. In June, 1843, the cemetery was opened, being the third rural cemetery of any importance established in the United States. Robert W. Steele became the president upon the death of Mr. Van Cleve, and served with the same unselfish sagacity until his death in 1891. Since the death of Mr. Steele, Jonathan H. Win- ters has been the president of the association.
The ground for St. Henry's Cemetery was purchased by Arch- bishop Purcell and used as a burial-place by the Roman Catholics until 1872, when land was purchased for Calvary Cemetery, two and a half miles south of the city, on a commanding bluff, with a wide outlook over the neighboring hills, valleys, and river.
The Hebrew Congregation purchased an acre on Brown Street in 1851, which is no longer in use, a new cemetery having been located near Calvary on the bluffs.
The first member of the Dayton bar, Judge Crane, with his well-trained mind, legal learning, courteous and commanding bearing, simple life, and kind and helpful friendliness, had unconsciously done much to mold the character and ambitions of the young lawyers who were his companions and successors, so that the spirit of integrity came to be a characteristic of the early Dayton bar. Of the members of this early bar, Charles Anderson became Governor of Ohio, four were judges, two members of Congress, and ten members of the Ohio Legislature. Among the later members Judge Haynes is perhaps the oldest and most respected. John A, McMahon, who represented the
From a photograph by Appleton.
SECOND STREET, LOOKING WEST FROM LUDLOW.
From a photograph by Appleton.
A VIEW AT THE CORNER OF LUDLOW STREET AND MONUMENT AVENUE.
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Third Ohio District in Congress for three terms, and Lewis B. Gunckel, who served in Congress and other political capac- ities, and whose services in connection with the location of the Soldiers' Home in Dayton and its management are especially appreciated, stand at the head of the profession at present.
If "the baton of a marechal is hidden in every soldier's knap- sack," there must have been much in the saddle-bags which young Robert C. Schenck brought to Dayton in 1831 of which even he had no knowledge, for his musings as he followed the narrow trail through the quiet wood were only of the fortune he must make and of how he would some day write his name beside those of Crane, Holt, Anderson, and Thruston. The youth was not ill equipped -with a nature which time showed to be strong and deep, unlimited energy, a brain full of wit, and a mind orig- inal and logical, stored and trained by six years at Oxford, Ohio, where he had graduated first in his class, and in the office of one of the most distinguished legal practitioners of Ohio-Thomas Corwin, of Lebanon. The saddle-bags contained one very tangible treasure in the sealed letter from Mr. Corwin to Judge Crane-the "open sesame" to needed opportunity, for when the Judge had read it and taken a keen, quiet look at the slim, pale- faced, pale-haired young man, he invited him to become his partner. So, instead of waiting and hoping for a client, he had for the next three years the care of one of the largest practices in Ohio, Judge Crane having been called to Washington soon after.
In politics Mr. Schenck was an ardent Whig. He was a capti- vating speaker, and did yeoman service in the Harrison campaign. In 1841 he was elected to the Ohio Legislature, from which he and other Whig members resigned in order to defeat the Demo- cratic "gerrymander bill." The next year he was returned to the Legislature. In 1843 Mr. Schenck was elected to represent this district in Congress, where he spent eight active years and was ranked among the foremost men of his party. In 1851 he was appointed United States Minister to Brazil. Having performed some important diplomatic services, he returned to Dayton in 1856.
Robert C. Schenck was said by Lincoln to have been the first inan who in a public address named him for the Presidency.
When "with a voice that shook the land, the guns of Sum- ter spoke," Mr. Schenck offered his services to the Government and was inade a brigadier-general. He commanded a brigade at the battle of Bull Run, and did good service by his "gallantry
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in action and coolness and discretion in retreat." In the second battle of Bull Run he was shot in the wrist while urging his men on with uplifted sword. While suffering from this wound he received the commission of major-general. Still unfit for active service, he was given command of the Middle District, where he filled a difficult place with sagacity and skill. Being again elected to Congress in his old Third District, in 1863, he resigned his commission in the army. It has been said that "a history of the course of General Schenck in the Thirty-ninth and Fortieth Congresses would be a complete history of the military legislation of the country through the most eventful years of the War to its close."
Appointed by General Grant Minister to Great Britain in 1871, he represented the United States at the Court of St. James for five years. During this period he was also a member of the Joint High Commission providing for the Geneva Conference. And to the zeal and ability, tact and experience, of Robert C. Schenck America is very much indebted for that peaceful settlement. This was the crowning achievement in the life of the old statesman.
General Schenck was ever a fearless fighter, and while he was a man with many loyal friends, his extremely frank and caustic speech had made bitter enemies, who were able to darken some- what, by annoying and unfounded charges, the last days of a man who had for more than forty years put the interests of his country before his own, and used in her service talents and ener- gies which, applied to his chosen profession, would undoubtedly have brought him fortune, friends, and fame.
It seems well to tell the story of General Schenck's life at some length, not because it is full of interest, as it is,-not because he served his country well, as he did,-but because he belonged to Dayton-was her most distinguished citizen : his fame was hers ; he loved the place, cast his first and last vote at her polls, and now sleeps on one of her sunny hillsides with the companions of his youth.
To the older men of Dayton there are few names that bring more stirring memories than that of Clement L. Vallandigham, who came to Dayton in 1847,-a lawyer by profession, by instinct a politician. He had the qualities of his ancestors,-Scotch-Irish and Huguenot,-ability, courage, ambition, and dogged deter- mination, qualities which, after a series of defeats, gave him a
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seat in the Congress of 1856, and kept him there until 1862. Vallandigham's opposition to the War was so radical, his prin- ciples so boldly declared, his influence in his party so great, as to induce his arrest by the Government in May, 1863, his trial by a military commission, and banishment to the South. In June of the next year he ran the blockade from Wilmington to Bermuda, and from there to Canada, where he remained at Windsor until the following spring. While there he was nom- inated by acclamation Democratic candidate for Governor of Ohio, and defeated by John Brough, of which Senator Sherman has just said, "I have always regarded Brough's election in Ohio upon the issue distinctly made, not only as to the prosecu- tion of the War, but in support of the most vigorous measures to conduct it, as having an important influence in favor of the Union cause equal to that of any battle of the War." In June, 1864, Mr. Vallandigham returned to his home in Dayton, where he was received by an immense crowd of sympathetic and enthusiastic friends. From this time he was again a familiar and striking figure at Democratic meetings and conventions. In May, 1871, he presented to the convention in Dayton his "New Departure" resolutions. Soon after, he delivered the last and probably most powerful speech of his life. Mr. Vallandigham formed a law- partnership in 1870 with Judge Haynes. In June of the following year he was leading attorney for the defense in an important murder trial at Lebanon. While demonstrating his theory in regard to the alleged murder, he accidentally shot himself, and died the next morning. Then once again the name of Vallan- digham brought together a great concourse of people. This time they followed him quietly, and left him sadly in the peace which comes to all-under the sod.
Among the portraits in the large history of Dayton, Ohio, published in 1889, is one with the trembling, unsteady signature of an old man-"Thomas Brown." Life was still attractive and full of interest to this bright-eyed, active, helpful, genial old man when the angel of death led him gently over the threshold into the promised land one day in May, 1894. Mr. Brown had been one of Dayton's best citizens since 1828. "A man of public spirit, fully up with the times, and always at the front in all public enterprises," he was a Christian and a gentle- man of the old school. Born in 1800, Mr. Brown had seen the century from the beginning almost to the end.
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DAYTON FROM 1840 TO 1896
In 1840 the medical profession was represented in Dayton by such old-school gentlemen and positive characters as Dr. John Steele, Dr. Job Haines, and Drs. Hibberd and Adams Jewett. Later came many others, among them Dr. Clarke McDermont, who served the soldiers with heart and hand; Dr. Armor, and Dr. John Davis. Of the charter members of the Montgomery County Medical Society, organized in 1849, only two survive- Dr. Carey, lovingly remembered by many friends and patients here, now a citizen of Indianapolis, and Dr. J. C. Reeve, whose keen, sensitive, scholarly face is still a familiar one among us.
Perhaps, among the many who spend long summer hours under the trees in Cooper Park, idly watching the little crowd that passes along the sun-flecked walk, and in and out of the open door of the Library, there are a few who wonder what it is- this strange hunger for books, not knowing it was that which made the beautiful building possible, and stored it with treasures to which all are inade welcome; for it is a very common instinct among those who love books to pass their blessings on. This feeling led to the establishment of libraries and lyceums, and to the organization in 1847 of the Dayton Library Associa- tion, which soon started on a pleasant and useful career, with an opening list of a thousand books. In a little town of scarcely twenty thousand people a library association was a luxury that must be paid for with work and self-denial. The cheerful givers were called upon again and again, while other friends labored earnestly with tongue and pen, that the good work might go on. The money which had been gathered by taxation for school library purposes was used in Dayton for a central library, which started in 1855 with one thousand two hundred and fifty carefully selected books free to all. In 1860 it was determined that the public interest would be best served by the union of the two libra- ries ; so the Library Association transferred its valuable library and furniture to the Board of Education. The united books, the cheerful room, an ever-ready librarian, and the prosperity of an assured income, combined then to make the Dayton Public Library the object of pride, pleasure, and profit to the citizens of Dayton which it is now. In 1888 the library was removed to the stone, fire- proof building in Cooper Park-one of the finest in the West- which it now occupies ; and in its commodious quarters, with more than thirty-five thousand catalogued books, and a well-equipped museum, it is the center of attraction for a large number of citizens.
BRIDGE STREET BRIDGE AND BELMONT AVENUE, DAYTON VIEW.
From a photograph by Appleton.
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From a photograph by Appleton.
BIRDS'-EYE VIEW OF MONUMENT AVENUE AND THE MIAMI RIVER, FROM THE TOP OF THE TOWER OF THE STEELE HIGH SCHOOL.
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Dayton has never been lacking in churches. In 1842 Dr. Barnes was preaching in the First Presbyterian Church, the second that had been built on the corner of Second and Ludlow streets, where a handsome stone one now stands. The Third Street Presbyterians built a brick church on the corner of Third and Ludlow streets in 1842, which they occupied until it was torn down to make way for the present handsome stone structure. . The town clock which many remember on the old Second Pres- byterian steeple, was purchased and first placed on the tower of Wesley Chapel in 1851. The First Baptist Church had finished an edifice on the corner of Jefferson and Fourth streets, where they remained until the removal to their present quarters on Main Street. Christ Episcopal Church, on Jefferson Street, was then almost ten years old, and was not abandoned until 1874, when a new one was completed on First Street. The First United Brethren Church was organized in 1847 in a small room in the Oregon Engine-House. Their first church building was erected in 1852 on Sixth Street near Logan, and served the congrega- tion until 1873, when the lot on Fifth Street between Main and Jefferson was bought, on which their church now stands. The Methodists, who were among the earliest settlers of Dayton, had already outgrown two churches when a new brick one was erected on Third Street in 1849. In 1866 more room was needed by the congregation, and a lot on the corner of Fourth and Ludlow streets was purchased and a new building dedicated in 1870. The First Reformed Church had finished their building on Ludlow between Second and Third streets in 1840. The First English Lutherans built their first house of worship on the southwest corner of Fourth and Jefferson streets in 1841. Their present church building was erected in 1860, and dedicated in January, 1861. The first Hebrew congregation was organized in 1850. They met in the old Dayton Bank building until 1863, when they purchased the old Baptist church. Since then a hand- some synagogue has been built on Jefferson between First and Second streets. The first Roman Catholic family came to Dayton in 1831. By 1837 the Franklin Street church was built, and in 1873 a very large new one just east of the old site was dedicated. The first church for colored people was organized in 1842. From these various beginnings have sprung many churches and mis- sions, until now, looking down from the surrounding hills, noth- ing is more striking than the number of slender spires in the
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once little town below that has come to be called the "City of Churches."
Dayton was much terrified and incommoded by the flood of 1847. Some money was lost, but no lives. The heavy rainstorms of September, 1866, again produced a flood, which cost, in losses to individuals and public property, no less than two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. After this disaster the waterway was broadened and the bridges lengthened. Another general flood occurred in February, 1883, and an extraordinarily heavy storm visited the city in 1886.
In the summer of 1849, by a cholera epidemic Dayton lost more than two hundred of her people.
For the first half century Dayton, like a happy young mother, kept her children close about her; but the modern restless feel- ing began to come. Some talked of the gold of California, and took the long and toilsome trip as if it were a journey to Fairy- land. Some talked of politics and some of war. Blaine says, " There was not in the whole country a single citizen of intelli- gence who was indifferent to Clay or Jackson." A little later the men of Dayton were watching the battles of the political giants with the same eager interest. Some had been captivated by the "Fifty-four forty, or fight" campaign cry. Others would have left that question to time. Some were for the annexation of Texas and the acquisition of Mexican territory. Others felt that a war with Mexico would have no excuse of justice or necessity. Yet when the election of Mr. Polk gave an unques- tionable verdict in favor of annexation, and when on May 13, 1846, war with Mexico was formally declared, the citizens of Dayton sprang forward to defend the country, and Dayton became a ral- lying-point for the enlistment of soldiers. The militia of the county, organized as the First Brigade, commanded by Brigadier- General Adam Speice, was attached to the Tenth Division of Ohio Militia. Public meetings were held and offices opened for recruiting.
On the 20th of May the First Brigade of the Tenth Division was. ordered to assemble at Dayton with a view to immediate organi- zation for service. As the numbers of the companies were not quite full, the National Guard, Captain Hormell, began recruit- ing on the 26th at their armory ; the Dayton Dragoons, changed to Dayton Riflemen, Captain Giddings, at McCann's store. The Riflemen and National Guard were the first to start for Camp
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Washington, the rendezvous for Ohio volunteers. They boarded the canal-boats, amid music and cheering, just at sunset on the 4th of June. It is safe to say that the most of Dayton watched the slow boats towed off and the bright new banners vanish in the distance. There were sad hearts, of course ; but many also who were eager to follow. So by June 9 another company was ready to leave, but could not be accepted by the Government, too many mien having already volunteered for the necessities of the service. By August the three Ohio regiments were beside the Rio Grande, and later took a brave part in the battle of Monterey. Eight Dayton men were lost in this battle.
In 1847 the Fifteenth Regiment of regulars was raised to serve during the war. In one of the companies there were twenty-two Dayton men. Edward A. King was appointed captain of this company, which left Dayton on the 24th of April, 1847, a great crowd watching its departure also. The time of the first two companies having expired, they were mustered out of service at New Orleans June II and 12. Company B reached Dayton on the 26th with a tattered flag and but forty men ; Company C, a few days later. The people turned out from town and country - five thousand of them -and waited at the foot of Main Street with the militia, music, and guns until the slow little canal- boats brought them back. In response to the next call for troops the "Dayton German Grenadiers" were raised, Captain John Werner. These were with Scott at Contreras, Churubusco, Cha- pultepec, and the city of Mexico. In July, 1848, they returned with only thirty-six men. Peace was proclaimed by President Polk July 4, 1848. The military spirit seems to have lingered in Dayton long after the end of the war, and was kept up by reviews, sham-battles, and parades. The largest of these dem- onstrations was in 1858, when Governor Chase reviewed the Ohio troops at Dayton.
The first telegraph message was received in Dayton September 17, 1847. In the next few years other lines were built, which have since been consolidated, until now there are but two offices in the city.
The population of Dayton in 1848 was fourteen thousand.
Houses were first lighted by gas in 1849, but street lights came a little later. At present the city is well supplied with bothı gas and electric light.
Curwen says, in 1850 : "Dayton is on the natural route of the 13
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great chain of railroads that are destined at an early date to con- nect the extreme West with the Atlantic cities. The completion of the several lines of railroads now in process of construction and contemplated will afford a continuous chain from St. Louis to all the great commercial cities of the East. What has been done may be briefly stated. The Lake Erie & Mad River Rail- road [from Dayton to Sandusky ] terminates here. Over this road there passed last year over one hundred and eight thousand people. The Dayton & Western Railroad [from Dayton to Rich- mond, Indiana ] when completed will be one of the best roads in the country. The road from Dayton to Greenville will be in operation early in 1851." It is safe to say that Mr. Curwen's predictions have been amply fulfilled. Dayton now has eleven railroads, which form parts of four great systems. The period of which Curwen writes was also one of great prosperity for the canals, which showed little diminution for the next ten years.
The first street-railroad was chartered in 1869, as the "Dayton Street Railroad," though generally known as the "Third Street Railroad." Others followed rapidly until in 1896 there are few parts of the city not reached by street-cars. Electricity has taken the place of horse-power on all but one road.
After a discussion of several years the volunteer fire department in Dayton was succeeded by a paid force, and the first steam fire-engine was purchased in 1863. Dayton now has one of the most efficient and best-equipped fire departments in the country.
At the spring election of 1869 the question was put to the people whether water-works should be erected, and was answered in the affirmative. On April 1, 1870, the water-works committee made a report to Council to the effect that the machinery and fixtures placed in position were in successful operation, and up to and over the standard guaranteed by the company; from which time Dayton has been one of the most fortunate cities in her unfailing supply of pure, cold water.
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