USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > Early history of Cleveland, Ohio : including papers and other matter relating to the adjacent country : with biographical notices of the pioneers and surveyors > Part 18
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AUGUSTUS PORTER.
Although AUGUSTUS PORTER survived all the other surveyors, and lived on the shore of lake Erie ; his personal history is here imperfectly known. He appears to have attached much value, to the water power at Niagara Falls, and at the head of Niagara river, where the navigable waters of the lake term- inate. After spending about ten years in the woods
334
AUGUSTUS PORTER.
as a surveyor and explorer, principally in the west- ern part of New York, he established himself for life on the Niagara river. One reason why we are not better informed in regard to him, is given in the following extract from his letter to Judge BARR, dated at Niagara Falls, Jan. 10th, 1843.
"Had I all my original papers connected with the subject above named, such as my journal, original field notes of the survey taken on the ground, cal- culations on contents, geographical remarks, of per- sons employed, &c., &c., I should be able to give you such information, and it would give me much pleasure to do so. But unfortunately all these documents were lost in my dwelling house at this place, destroyed in 1813 by British troops."
This letter is quite lengthy, going over in much detail, the operations of 1796 in the field, which he conducted. I have made less use of it than other writers upon the pioneer times, because, being en- tirely a production of the memory, after the lapse of forty-seven years, it is occasionally contradicted by written evidence of the same date. Of what relates to himself he should be the best authority. He says :
"That in the early part of the year 1789, being the next year after Messrs. GORHAM & PHELPS, had made their great purchase of the State of Massa- chusetts of about six millions of acres of land, lying in the western part of the State of New York, then
335
AUGUSTUS PORTER.
known as the Genesee country, I being in the twentieth year of my age, went into the country a surveyor, and continued in the business until the winter of 1796, most of the time in the employ of OLIVER PHELPS. During the time from 1789 to 1796, my business led me to become particularly acquainted with most of that section of country, the navigable streams and small lakes, and the south shores of lake Ontario, and lake Erie as far west as Presque Isle, (now Erie) in Pennsylvania, and I had had considerable experience in the navigation of those streams, and the shores of lakes Ontario and Erie, in small boats."
"In running up the first four meridians, PEASE had delivered his provisions to other surveyors, ex- cepting a small quantity sufficient to subsist on until I should meet them, which was now all exhausted, and of course we had nothing but the flour I had procured. I returned to the point where Mr. PEASE had run the line, and took the direction of the sur- vey, and continued the line to the lake. On the evening of the first day, we very fortunately, dis- covered one of the finest bee trees I ever saw. We encamped, cut down the tree, ate to our satisfaction, each man filled his canteen, and the residue we put in the bags of flour. Excepting for two or three days, while our honey lasted we lived on bread alone. On our arrival at the lake, we took the beach and went east to our camp at Conneaut; and
336
THE STRIKE.
what was remarkable, on our way there, we fell in with all three of the parties, who had each finished their lines, and joined our party."
" All things being thus arranged, and about to muster our men for a start, we found some dis- position in camp to mutiny, or, what would now be called a strike for higher wages. For the purpose of settling this difficulty, Gen. CLEAVELAND agreed that before the close of the season, and after some of the township lines should have been run, a town- ship should be selected and set apart, to be surveyed into lots of one hundred and sixty acres each, and each individual of the party who should choose, might have the privilege of purchasing a lot on a long credit, and at a stipulated price named, what that price was, I do not recollect. This settled the matter, and all became satisfied. The township during the season was set apart, and called Euclid ; and as I am informed, still retains that name."
"On the north side of Sandusky bay, about op- posite where the City of Sandusky now stands, there was a Frenchman residing with his family, and also several Indian families. On our first arrival at the bay we went to this place, remained a short time, then returned to the mouth of the bay, and resumed our traverse. Before we had reached the upper end of the beach, or sand bar, lying between the lake and bay, we fell in with a party of Indians whose actions and looks we did not much like, yet they
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337
SURVEYS AT CLEVELAND.
offered us no injury, and we passed on and concluded our traverse."
" Having returned from Sandusky bay to Cuya- hoga, I remained there some time, perhaps two or three weeks, and surveyed the outlines of a piece of land designed for the town. Its dimensions I do not recollect-probably equal to about a mile square, bounding west on the river and north on the lake. I made a plat of this ground and laid it off into streets and lots. Most or all the streets I surveyed myself, when I left it in charge of Mr. HOLLEY to complete the survey of the lots."
Mr. HOLLEY's minutes, as far as we have them, make no reference to surveys by him on the city lots. On the fly leaf of one of the field books, in Mr. PEASE's hand writing, are brief minutes of the lots, their position on the streets, and their contents. As yet these are the only original notes discovered, and they may have been transcribed by PEASE, from the work of some of the other surveyors. Mr. POR- TER mentions the loss of a boatman belonging to his party, at Spraker's rift, on the Mohawk, killed by a fall from the mast, while he was adjusting a sail. This accident is not referred to in the journals of PEASE or HOLLEY.
"Immediately after this I commenced the traverse of the Cuyahoga river, with the intention of pursu- ing the whole line of boundary, as described in WAYNE'S treaty with the Indians, as far as the south
338
PORTER ON THE CUYAHOGA.
line of the Reserve. This line began at the mouth of the Cuyahoga, thence up the same to the portage, thence across the portage to the Tuscarawas branch of the Muskingum, thence down the same, &c. I accordingly traversed the Cuyahoga up, until it began to lead me off to the north; having kept two or three men, looking out continually along the west side of the river for the portage road, but without discovering it. The leaves having fallen and obscured the path it could not be found, and I returned to the mouth of the river."
Mr. PORTER lived to a very advanced age, and died on the banks of the Niagara. He was a promi- nent citizen on the frontier, as most of the old surveyors were. The intelligence and energy, which are necessary to make a good surveyor in the western wilds, furnish an excellent foundation for an influen- tial character. A large number of the leading men in the new States, and in the Indian wars, belonged to this profession, which then not only required knowledge and sense, but a reasonable stock of war- like skill and courage, to deal successfully with the aborigines. Gen. PETER B. PORTER was a brother of AUGUSTUS. I regret not being able to do better justice, to the eventful life of the man who determ- ined upon the plan of this city, and who must have surveyed some portions of it. Neither his name, or that of any of the first surveyors, has been perpetu- ated, in any street or place within our limits.
339
LORENZO CARTER.
According to his contemporary, ATWATER; POR- TER "was full middling in height, stout built, with a full face, and dark or rather brown complexion. In a woodsman's dress, any one would see by his ap- pearance that he was capable, and determined to go through thick and thin, in whatever business he was engaged. By the bursting of a gun, he had lost the entire thumb of his left hand."
Mr. PORTER received for his services as principal surveyor, in 1796, five dollars per day, and Mr. PEASE for the same services, in 1797, three and one- half.
LORENZO CARTER.
BY THE LATE ASHBEL W. WALWORTH .- 1842.
Major CARTER was a friend of liberty to the utmost. He was always found on the side of the weak and oppressed. His language was, "I hate negroes, and do not want them about me." But for all that, he did have them about him, most generally those that did him the least good. He used them as well as he did other people, if they were civil and decent.
To illustrate his goodness of heart, I will relate the following facts :
Early in the spring of 1806, a canoe containing a white man, his wife and some children, and a colored man, were coming down the lake. The canoe was upset, and all drowned but the colored man, called BEN, between this place and Rocky river. BEN was
340
BEN, THE NEGRO.
a large man, and reached the iron bound shore, where there was an old tree which had tumbled down the rocks; he climbed up it so far as to be clear of the water, and then stayed until he was discovered by some boatmen. When taken off he was almost insensible, his feet and limbs were much frozen, and he was brought to Major CARTER's house in that situation. He had no money, and all the clothes he had were not worth three dollars. The Major took care of him, as he would one of his children, all summer. The rheumatism drew his limbs out of shape, and I think his toes were frozen off. Although he hobbled about a little in the fall, I do not think he was able to render the least as- sistance to the Major.
Some time in October, 1806, there came to Cleve- land two Kentucky gentlemen, well mounted, and stopped at Major SPAFFORD's, who lived where the Merwin, or Mansion House used to stand. They stated that one of them was the lawful owner of BEN. The Kentuckians walked over to CARTER'S and made their business known. He told them of BEN's misfortunes, and also what he had done for him; said he did not believe in slavery, and he did not like negroes. The owner said he wanted to see BEN, and if he did not want to go back, he might stay where he was; that BEN would say that his master was kind to him, and that he could say that BEN was a good boy, but had been enticed away.
341
NEGOTIATIONS ACROSS THE RIVER.
The Major told him that BEN was away, and he did not know where he was, but at all events you can never see BEN, without he wants to see you. The Kentuckians agreed to that, and told the Major to see BEN, and he might have his choice to stay or go at his option, but wanted to see him face to face. The owner and the Major had a number of inter- views, and finally it was agreed that the owner and BEN, should see each other near enough to converse. BEN was to stand on the west side of the river, on a piece of land now owned by Mr. SCRANTON, covered with the heaviest kind of timber, the owner to be on the east side, a little below where the widow COLAHAN now lives, near the end of Huron street. At the time they were in conversation, I was passing along the top of the bluff, and heard them converse. The owner said, "BEN, have I not always used you well, and treated you as well as the rest of my family ?" BEN answered in the affirmative. Many inquiries and answers passed, but the conversation was marked by good feeling on both sides. Nothing further occurred to my knowledge until the next morning, or the next but one, when I saw BEN mounted on one of the Kentuckians' horses, with holster and pistols, &c., and the man on foot, on the road to Hudson, about a mile from Major CARTER'S, talking in the most friendly manner.
Now comes the most inexplicable part of the story. It would seem that the Major showed no dissatisfac-
342
UNCLE BEN'S CABIN.
tion to BEN's going with his master; but two white men, one called JOHN THOMPSON, and the other JAS. GEER, hangers on at the Major's tavern, and nearly as useless as BEN had been to him, preceded, or fol- lowed and passed the Kentuckians; for when they had got about three miles from Newburg Mills, (then called Cleveland Mills,) on the old "Carter road," they appeared, one on each side of the road, each with a rifle; and as the Kentuckians and BEN were passing, BEN still mounted; one of the men says, "BEN, you d-d fool, jump off of that horse and take to the woods." BEN obeyed, the hunters also ran, and it may be supposed, though not known, that the Kentuckians were somewhat astonished. However, they never returned to tell of their bad luck. The men and the Major kept the secret, but it was found out in this way. In the winter, a son of Major SPAFFORD, and a younger brother of NATHAN PERRY, Esq., of this place, were out on the west side of the river hunting. They got lost, and wandered around till nearly worn out. At last they struck a horse's track, and followed it until it brought them to a hut, and who did they meet but poor BEN, who told them the story and enjoined secresy, which they kept as long as was necessary. There was not at that time any road on the west side of the Cuyaho- ga, not a white person living east of Huron or north of Wooster, and perhaps none there. BEN's hut must have been in Brecksville or Independence.
343
NO ONE ALLOWED TO RUN AWAY.
What became of BEN is not known by me, but he was probably sent to Canada.
In the spring of 1807, (I think it was,) a man, perhaps forty-five years old, talkative, forward and rather singular, came into the place, stopped with Major SPAFFORD and worked for him two or three months. One morning Major SPAFFORD came to Major CARTER's and inquired about the man. He said he was at his house last night, and was not now . to be found, and he did not know but he might have walked over to CARTER's house. Major CARTER had not seen him, but says he, "the rascal has run away." Major SPAFFORD says, "I think not; he brought nothing with him to my house, and I do not know as he has carried anything away; and further, I think I must owe him about four dollars." " Well," says Major CARTER, "there shall nobody run away from this place, and I'll go after him; I can track him out."
He immediately started down what is now Water street, to the lake. There was then a number of log and brush fences across the street. When he got to the lake he found the track, and followed it down about two miles, when it turned off towards the road that leads to Euclid. The Major followed to the road, and thence toward Euclid, to near where Mr. J. K. CURTIS now lives, (Willson Avenue,) where he overtook the man. The Major told him he must go back to Cleveland. He said, "he would
344
THE CULPRIT RETURNED.
not go, that he did not owe anybody there, and had not stolen anything, and the Major had nothing to do with him." The Major told him "he did not care whether he went back or not, but one of two things you shall do, either you must go with me peaceably, or be killed and thrown into this cat swamp, to be eaten by the wolves and turkey buzzards." The Major had a peculiar manner of suiting actions and looks, to words. "Oh !" says the man, "if you are in earnest, I don't care if I go back." The Major brought him to Major SPAFFORD, who asked him " What made him go off in such a manner; you know I owe you something." He an- swered, "I suppose you owe me a little, but I will tell you how it is with me. I have been a roving character, and don't stay but a little while in a place. I have been in the habit when I left a place to run away." Major SPAFFORD told him "it was a bad one, and that he had better give it up; besides, you cannot run away from this place." The man said "he saw it would not do here, and he thought he would not try it again." Major SPAFFORD told him "to eat his breakfast, and he would see in the mean- time how much he owed him, and then he might go when and where he pleased." The man said "he had about given up the idea of going, and if the Major would let him work he would stay," which was agreed to, and he stayed two or three months.
ANCIENT MOUTH OF CUYAHOGA. 345
Sometime in the fall of 1798, Major CARTER said to me, "When I was living in my old log house un- der the hill, I saw an Indian coming up the river in a canoe. He landed opposite my house, fastened his canoe, and with his paddle walked up to where I stood. After the usual salutation, he asked, ' What stream do you call this?'" The Major re- plied, "the Cuyahoga." "No, no, this is not the Cuyahoga. I was here when a boy so high, (placing his hand about the height of a boy ten or a dozen years old,) and the Cuyahoga was like this," making a plan with his paddle on the ground, which corres- ponded with what we call the old river bed. [It must be kept in mind, that from the point where the parties stood, they could not have a view of the old river bed as we can now, on account of the forest.] The Major said he had not any doubt, that the river used to empty itself at the west end of the pond. The Indian appeared to Major CARTER to be seventy or seventy-five years old.
Subsequently I learned that in the year 1798, an old Oneida Indian, whose name was SCANODEWAN, who had been a faithful friend to the Americans during their struggle for independence, and was much attached to the HARPERS, of Harperstown, State of New York, followed Col. ALEX. HARPER and family to Harpersfield, in this State.
SCANODEWAN made himself useful to the Colonel,
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346
CARTER AS A REGULATOR.
by hunting and procuring game for the support of his family and others.
Col. HARPER died in the fall of 1798, and soon after SCANODEWAN became uneasy, and told the fam- ily of Col. HARPER that he would go to the lake, build a canoe, and go up the lake. He returned to the widow HARPER's, and reported to them the changes that had been made since he had been there before, more especially the alteration of the mouth of the Cuyahoga river. There can be little doubt that SCANODEWAN, was the same man who conversed with Major CARTER on the subject.
The facts relating to the Indian, I have recently obtained from Mrs. TAPPEN and her brother, Col. ROBERT HARPER, of Harpersfield, Ohio, who is the youngest child of the late Col. ALEX. HARPER, and who was eight years old when his father died.
Major CARTER was far from a quarrelsome man. I never heard of his fighting unless he was grossly insulted, and as he would say, "driven to it." It was a common saying in this region, that Major CARTER was all the law Cleveland had, and I think he often gave out well measured justice. It was not unfrequent, that strangers traveling through the place, who had heard of the Major's success in whipping his man, who believed themselves smart fighters, thought they may gain laurels by having it said that they whipped him. I never heard it as-
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347
AMOS SPAFFORD.
serted by any one, and never heard of any one boasting, that such an act had been performed.
He was kind and generous to the poor and unfor- tunate, hospitable to the stranger, would put himself to great inconvenience to oblige a neighbor, and was always at the service of an individual or the public, when a wrong had been perpetrated. In all the domestic relations he was kind and affectionate.
In the year 1812 he was afflicted with a cancer on his face, and went to Virginia in 1813 for medical aid, which proved useless. He died February 8th, 1814, aged forty-seven, after enduring the most ex- cruciating sufferings for months, previous to his death. Mrs. CARTER survived him till October 18th, 1827, aged sixty-one.
AMOS SPAFFORD.
BY JUDGE HOSMER.
PERRYSBURG, April 11th, 1843.
My Dear Sir :- Of Major AMOS SPAFFORD I have been able to learn but little. He emigrated from Vermont to Cleveland in 1800 or 1801. He re- ceived the appointment of Collector for the District of Miami, and of Postmaster, in 1810, at the com- mencement of which year he moved from Cleveland to the foot of the rapids, and built a small [log house under the table of land, which forms the present site of Fort Meigs.
348
PERRYSBURG SACKED.
His first return to the Government shows that the amount of exports from this district, at the expira- tion of the first quarter, was three thousand and thirty dollars. It consisted of three thousand dol- lars worth of coon, bear and mink skins, and thirty dollars worth of bear's oil. Major SPAFFORD culti- vated a piece of land, including Fort Meigs, built several out houses, and acquired considerable prop- erty here previous to the war. He was a man very much esteemed by the American and French inhabi- tants, was indeed an adviser and friend to all the early settlers.
At the time the war broke out, there were sixty- seven white families living on the twelve mile square Reserve, and some nine or ten families in the imme- diate neighborhood. The first actual notice the settlers had, that hostilities had commenced after HULL's troops had marched through to Detroit, was the appearance of about forty Delaware Indians and as many British, at the foot of the rapids one bright morning in July, 1812. The Indians, under com- mand of their war chief SACAMANC, by direction of the British, entered every house on the north side of the river, and after a friendly salutation, took all articles of any value which they could find, loaded them into the canoes, pirogues and flats be- longing to the settlers, and then passed over to the south side. They met Major SPAFFORD in his corn- field, and were about to subject his house to pillage,
349
PETER MANOR.
but were prevented by a salvo of twenty dollars, paid them by the Major, which was all the money he had.
With the exception of their chief, SACAMANC, and four other Indians, they together with the British, left with their plunder by water, for Malden. The Maumee river was in those days inhabited by a species of hybrid, half human, half animal, better known at the present time by the name of Canadian French. These creatures united in their character the cunning of an Indian, and the sagacity of the white. They were principally friends to the British interest. One among them, who had long been an Indian trader, was, however, a true American in feeling. His name, PETER MANOR, should ever be remembered, for he was a true friend of the Ameri- cans. He knew SACAMANC, pretended a friendship for him and for the British, and learned from him that in the space of eight or ten days, it was the in- tention of the confederated tribes in the British interest to hold a council near Malden, and in six days thereafter to make a general descent upon Monroe, Maumee and the other places on their trail to Fort Wayne, whither they were going, with about fifteen hundred British, to aid the beseigers of that fort, for the purpose of pillage, massacre and rapine.
SACAMANC and his four men left for the interior of our State, the day after the others had gone to Mal-
350
PERRYSBURG ABANDONED.
den. MANOR visited Major SPAFFORD the next day, asked him what he intended to do; and was inform- ed that he intended to remain on the river and attend to his business. MANOR then told him of the conversation he had had with SACAMANC, at which the Major took alarm, and concluded to make preparations to go down the lake. As the contem- plated attack was some two or three weeks distant, he was in no hurry. About five days after this, at or near ten o'clock in the morning, a man, who was brought up among the Indians, and who had been befriended by Major SPAFFORD, came running to his house in breathless haste, with the astounding in- formation, that a party of some fifty Pottawatomies were within six miles of the foot of the rapids, and that they were massacreing every Yankee they met with. The Major spread the news among his
neighbors. They immediately launched an old barge, which was built by the army a year previous at Fort Wayne, and used by Col. UNDERMICK and other officers, to come down the river on their way to Detroit.
Having put on board of this crazy hulk, what few articles of provision and furniture they could, the little party consisting of the Major's family and three other families, set sail for Milan, in Huron county. Scarcely had they got under cover of the point, be- low the amphitheatre at the foot of the rapids, ere the Pottawatomies made their appearance. They
351
SPAFFORD'S FARM RUINED.
inquired after the Yankees, and were told by MANOR that they had been gone a week. The Indians stole what money and other property the fugitives had left, and started for Malden. Meantime, the little barge, favored by prosperous gales, reached Milan in safety. Major SPAFFORD established his office as collector there until after the war, at the close of which he and his old companions returned to old Fort Meigs. When they left they had dwellings, horses, fine corn-fields, and comfortable homes. On their return they found their fields destroyed, and their horses and cattle stolen by the Indians. Gov- ernment promised redress for the injuries committed by our army. Their families obtained a small com- pensation, for the supposed quantity of corn taken from the fields by Gen. HARRISON's army.
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