USA > Ohio > Historical collections of Ohio, containing a collection of the most interesting facts, traditions, biographical sketches, anecdotes, etc., relating to its general and local history : with descriptions of its counties, principal towns, and villages > Part 4
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Another incident connected with the station at Manchester occurred shortly after this time, which, although somewhat out of order as to time, I will take the liberty to relate in this place. John Edgington, Asahel Edgington, and another man, started out on a hunt- ing expedition towards Brush creek. They camped out six miles in a north-east direction from where West Union now stands, and near where Treber's tavern is now situated, on the road from Chillicothe to Maysville. The Edgingtons had good success in hunting, having killed a number of deer and bears. Of the deer killed, they saved the skins and hams alone. The bears, they fleeced; that is, they cut off all the meat which adhered to the hide without skinning, and left the bones as a skeleton. They hung up the proceeds of their hunt on a scaffold, out of the reach of the wolves and other wild animals, and return- ed home for pack horses. No one returned to the camp with the two Edgingtons. As it was late in December, no one apprehended danger, as the winter season was usually a time of repose from Indian incursions. When the Edgingtons arrived at their old hunting camp, they alighted from their horses and were preparing to strike a fire, when a platoon of In dians fired upon them, at the distance of not more than twenty paces. Asahel Edg-
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ADAMS COUNTY.
ington feli to rise no more. John was more fortunate. The sharp crack of the rifles, and the horrid yells of the Indians, as they leaped from their place of ambush, frightened the horses, who took the track towards home at full speed. John Edgington was very active on foot, and now an occasion offered which required his utmost speed. The moment the Indians leaped from their hiding place, they threw down their guns and took after him. They pursued him screaming and yelling in the most horrid manner. Edgington did not run a booty race. For about a mile the Indians stepped in his tracks almost before the bending grass could rise. The uplifted tomahawk was frequently so near his head, that he thought he felt its edge. Every effort was made to save his life, and every exertion of the Indians was made to arrest him in his flight. Edgington, who had the greatest stake in the race, at length began to gain on his pursuers, and after a long race, he distanced them, made his escape, and safely reached home. This, truly, was a most fearful and well con- tested race. The big Shawnee chief, Captain John, who headed the Indians on this occa- sion, after peace was made and Chillicothe settled, frequently told the writer of this sketch of the race. Captain John said, that " the white man who ran away was a smart fellow, that the white man run and I run, he run and run, at last, the white man run clear off from me."
The first court in this county was held in Manchester. Winthrop Sargent, the secretary of the territory, acting in the absence of the governor, appointed commissioners, who located the county seat at an out of the way place, a few miles above the mouth of Brush creek, which they called Adamsville. The locality was soon named, in derision, Scant. At the next session of the court, its members became divided, and part sat in Manchester and part at Adamsville. The governor, on his return to the territory, finding the people in great confusion, and much bickering between them, removed the seat of justice to the mouth of Brush creek, where the first court was held in 1798. Here a town was laid out by Noble Grimes, under the name of Washington. A large log court house was built, with a jail in the lower story, and the governor appointed two more of the Scant party judges, which gave them a majority. In 1800, Charles Willing Byrd, secretary of the territory, in the absence of the governor, appointed two more of the Manchester party judges, which balanced the parties, and the contest was main- tained until West Union became the county seat. Joseph Darlin- ton* and Israel Donalson, were among the first judges of the Com- mon Pleas. These gentlemen, now living in this county, were also members of the convention for forming the constitution of the State, there being, in 1847, only three others of that body living.
WEST UNION, the county seat, is on the Maysville and Zanesville turnpike, 8 miles from the Ohio at Manchester, and 106 southerly from Columbus. The name was given to it by Hon. Thomas Kirker, one of the commissioners who laid it out in 1804, and one of its earliest settlers. It stands on the summit of a high ridge, many hundred feet above the level of the Ohio. As early as 1815, a newspaper was established here by James Finlay, entitled the Polit- ical Censor. The annexed view shows, on the left, the jail and market, and in the centre, the court house and county offices. These last stand in a pleasant area, shaded by locusts. The court nouse is a substantial stone building, and bears good testimony to the
* In 1803, Gen. Darlinton was appointed Clerk of Common Pleas and Clerk of the Su- preme Court. The first office he left a few months since, and the last he still retains.
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ADAMS COUNTY.
skill of its builder, ex-Governor Metcalf, of Kentucky, who, com- mencing life as a mason, has acquired the sobriquet of "Stone Hammer." The first court house here was of logs. West Union contains 4 churches : 1 Associate Reformed, 1 Presbyterian, 1 Meth- odist and 1 Baptist ; 2 newspapers, a classical school, and 9 mercan- tile stores. It had, in 1820, a population of 406 ; in 1840, 452.
Public Buildings, West Union.
In the eastern part of this county are considerable beds of iron ore, that have been in use many years ; it is a mineral region, and large hills are composed of aluminous slate. Some years since, a singular phenomenon occurred in this section, described by Dr. Hildreth, in the 29th volume of Silliman's Journal :
A part of the summer of the year 1830 was excessively dry in the south-west portion o Ohio. During the drought, the water all disappeared from Brush creek, which heads among some slaty hills, leaving its bed entirely dry for several weeks. Towards the close of this period, loud and frequent explosions took place from the slate at the bottom of the creek, throwing up large fragments of rock and shaking the earth violently for some dis- tance. The inhabitants living near its borders became much alarmed, thinking a volcano was breaking out. On examining the spot, large pieces of iron pyrites were found mixed with the slate-stone. The water, which had heretofore protected the pyrites from the at- mosphere, being all evaporated, the oxygen found its way through the crevices of the slate to these beds, and acting chemically upon them, new combinations took place, forcing up the superincumbent strata with great violence and noise. When the water again covered he bed of the creek, the explosions ceased.
The barren hills in this part of the county, and of some of the other river counties, remain, in many cases, the property of the General Government. . They afford, however, a fine range for the cattle and hogs of the scattered inhabitants, and no small quantity of lumber, such as staves, hoop poles and tanner's bark, which are unscrupulously taken from the public lands. Dr. John Locke, from whose Geological Report these facts are derived, says :
Indeed, there is a vagrant class who are supported by this kind of business. They erect a cabin towards the head of some ravine, collect the chestnut-oak bark from the neighbor- ing hill tops, drag it on sleds to points accessible by wagons, where they sell it for perhaps $2 per cord to the wagoner. The last sells it at the river to the flat boat shipper, at $6 per cord, and he again to the consumer at Cincinnati, for $11. Besides this common tres- pass, the squatter helps himself out by hunting deer and coons, and, it is said, occasionally
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ALLEN COUNTY.
by taking a sheep or a hog, the loss of which may very reasonably be charged to the wolves. The poor families of the bark cutters often exhibit the very picture of improvidence. There begins to be a fear among the inhabitants that speculators may be tempted to purchase up these waste lands and deprive them of their present 'range' and lumber. The speculator must still be a non-resident, and could hardly protect his purchase. The inhabitants have a hard, rough region to deal with, and need all of the advantages which their mountain tract can afford.
Winchester, 12 miles Nw. of the county seat, is a thriving town, with 7 stores and about 400 people; Manchester, 8 sw., has 4 stores and about 250 population ; Jacksonville, 10 NE., has a population of about 200; Locust Grove, Rockville, Bentonville,. Cherry Fork, Eckmansville and Rome, are small towns having post offices.
ALLEN.
ALLEN was formed April 1st, 1820, from Indian territory, and named in honor of a colonel of that name in the war of 1812 : it was temporarily attached to Mercer county for judicial purposes. The surface is generally level; the soil varies from a sandy loam to clay, and is well adapted to grain and grass. The principal crops are wheat, corn, rye and oats, with timothy, clover and flaxseed. The county is well settled for a new one, which arises from the U. S., and State land offices having formerly been within it, and the land, therefore, was taken by actual settlers. The population is of a mixed character, and the southern part has many Germans. The following is a list of its townships in 1840, with their population:
Amanda,
282
Goshen, 236
Shawanee, 429
Auglaise,
732
Jackson,
570
Union, 669
Bath, 1,382
Marion, 315 Washington, 457
Clay, 435
Moulton,
263
Wayne, 404
Duchaquet, 692
Perry,
565
German,
856
Pusheta,
768
The population of Allen, in 1840, was 9,081, or 16 inhabitants to a square mile.
Lima, the county seat, is 95 miles www. from Columbus, and was laid off as the seat of justice for the county in the spring of 1831. It is several miles north of the centre of the county, the southern portion of which has been an Indian reservation. The annexed view was taken near the residence of Col. Jas. Cunning- ham, on the Wapakonetta road. The stream shown in the view is the Ottawa river, usually called Hog river-a name derived from the following circumstance : McKee, the British Indian agent, who resided at the Machachac towns, on Mad river, during the incursion of General Logan, in 1786, was obliged to flee with his effects. He had his swine driven on to the borders of this stream, the Indians thereafter called it Koshko sepe, which, in the Shawnee language, signifies Hog river. Lima contains 1 Presbyterian, 1
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ALLEN COUNTY.
Methodist, and 1 Baptist church ; 6 dry goods and 4 grocery stores, a foundery, 2 newspaper printing offices, and a population estimated at about 500. The town is progressing with the gradual increase of the country.
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Lima.
Wapakonetta is 10 miles from St. Mary's, and 12 from Lima, on the Auglaize, and contains 1 Catholic and 1 Methodist church and 3 stores ; it is settled principally by Germans, and in population is somewhat less than Lima. After the Shawnees were driven from Piqua by Gen. Clark, they settled a town here, which they called Wapaghkonetta .* By the treaty at the Maumee rapids, in 1817, the Shawnees were given a reservation of ten miles square in this county, within which was their council house at Wapakonetta, and also a tract of twenty-five square miles, which included their set- tlement on Hog Creek ; by the treaty of the succeeding year, made at St. Mary's, 12,800 acres adjoining the east line of the Wapakonetta Reserve were added.
At the village there is a fine orchard, at least sixty years of age, and from its being planted in regular order, it is supposed to have been done by Frenchmen settled among the Indians. The society of Friends, for a number of years, had a mission at Wapakonetta.
From the year 1796 till the formation of the state constitution, Judge Burnet, of Cincinnati, attended court regularly at that place, Marietta and Detroit, the last of which was then the seat of justice for Wayne county. The jaunts between these remote places, through a wilderness, were attended with exposure, fatigue and hazard, and were usually performed on horseback, in parties of two or three or
* John Johnston says " Wapagh-ko-netta : this is the true Indian orthography. It was named after an Indian chief long since dead, but who survived years after my intercourse commenced with the Shawanoese. The chief was somewhat club-footed, and the word has reference, I think, to that circumstance, although its full import I never could discover. For many years prior to 1829, I had my Indian head quarters at Wapagh-ko-netta. The business of the agency of the Shawanorse, Wyandotts, Senecas and Delawares, was trans- acted there."
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ALLEN COUNTY.
more. On one of these occasions, while halting at Wapakonetta, he witnessed a game of ball among the people, of which he has given an interesting narration in his letters.
Blue Jacket, the war chief, who commanded the Shawanees in the battle of 1794, at Maumee, resided in the village, but was absent. We were, however, received with kind- ness, by the old village chief, Buckingelas. When we went to his lodge, he was giving audience to a deputation of chiefs from some western tribes. We took seats at his re- quest, till the conference was finished, and the strings of wampum disposed of-he gave us no intimation of the subject matter of the conference, and, of course, we could not ask for it. In a little time he called in some of his young men, and requested them to get up a game of football for our amusement. A purse of trinkets was soon made up, and the whole village, male and female, were on the lawn. At these games the men played against the women, and it was a rule, that the former were not to touch the ball with their hands on penalty of forfeiting the purse ; while the latter had the privilege of picking it up, running with, and throwing it as far as they could. When a squaw had the ball, the men were allowed to catch and shake her, and even throw her on the ground, if necessary, to extri- cate the ball from her hand, but they were not allowed to touch, or move it, except by their feet. At the opposite extremes of the lawn, which was a beautiful plain, thickly set with blue grass, stakes were erected, about six feet apart-the contending parties arrayed them- selves in front of these stakes; the men on the one side, and the women on the other. The party which succeeded in driving the ball through the stakes, at the goal of their op- ponents, were proclaimed victors, and received the purse. All things being ready, the old chief went to the centre of the lawn, and threw up the ball, making an exclamation, in the Shawanee language, which we did not understand. He immediately retired, and the con- test began. The parties seemed to be fairly matched, as to numbers, having about a hun- dred on a side. The game lasted more than an hour, with great animation, but was finally decided in favor of the ladies, by the power of an herculean squaw, who got the ball, and in spite of the men who seized her to shake it from her uplifted hand, held it firmly, dragging them along, till she was sufficiently near the goal to throw it through the stakes. The young squaws were the most active of their party, and, of course, most frequently caught the ball. When they did so, it was amusing to see the strife between them and the young Indians, who immediately seized them, and always succeeded in rescuing the ball, though sometimes they could not effect their object till their female competitors were thrown on the grass. When the contending parties had retired from the field of strife, it was pleasant to see the feelings of exultation depicted in the faces of the victors ; whose joy was manifestly enhanced by the fact, that their victory was won in the presence of white men, whom they supposed to be highly distinguished, and of great power in their nation. This was a natural conclusion for them to draw, as they knew we were journeying to' Detroit for the purpose of holding the general court ; which, they supposed, controled and governed the nation. We spent the night very pleasantly among them, and in the morning resumed our journey.
In August, 1831, treaties were negotiated with the Senecas of Lewiston and the Shawnees of Wapakonetta, by James Gardiner,, Esq., and Col. John M'Elvain, special commissioners appointed for this purpose. The terms offered were so liberal that the Indians consented to give up their land and remove beyond the Mississippi. The Shawnees had at this time about 66,000 acres in this county, and in conjunction with the Senecas about 40,300 acres at Lewiston. The Indians were removed to the Indian territory on Kanzas river, in the Far West, in September, 1832, D. M. Workman and David Robb being the agents for their removal. The latter, Mr. Robb, in' a communication respecting the Indians, has given the following interesting facts.
Intemperance to a great extent prevailed among the Indians; there was, however, as. wide a contrast in this respect as with the whites, and some of the more virtuous refused to associate with the others. This class also cultivated their little farms with a degree of taste and judgment : some of these could cook a comfortable meal, and I have eaten both .:
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ALLEN COUNTY.
butter and a kind of cheese made by them. Many of them were quite ingenious and na- tural mechanics, with a considerable knowledge of, and an inclination to use tools. One chief had an assortment of carpenters' tools which he kept in neat order. He made plows, harrows, wagons, bedsteads, tables, bureaus, &c. He was frank, liberal and conscientious. On my asking him who taught him. the use of tools, he replied, no one ; then pointing up to the sky, he said, " the Great Spirit taught me."
With all their foibles and vices, there is something fascinating in the Indian character, and one cannot long associate with them without having a perceptible growing attachment. The Indian is emphatically the natural man, and it is an easy thing to make an Indian out of a white person, but very difficult to civilize or christianize an Indian. I have known a number of whites who had been taken prisoners by the Indians when young, and without exception, they formed such attachments that, after being with them some time, they could not be induced to return to their own people. There was a woman among the Shawnees, supposed to be near an hundred years of age, who was taken prisoner, when young, in eastern Pennsylvania. Some years after, her friends, through the agency of traders, en- deavored to induce her to return, but in vain. She became, if possible, more of a squaw in her habits and appearance than any female in the nation.
As a sample of their punctuality in performing their contracts, I would state that I have often loaned them money, which was always returned in due season, with a single excep- tion. This was a loan to a young man who promised to pay me when they received their annuity. After the appointed time he shunned me, and the matter remained unsettled until just prior to our departure for their new homes. I then stated the circumstance to one of the chiefs, more from curiosity to see how he would receive the intelligence than with the expectation of its being the means of bringing the money. He, thereupon, talked with the lad upon the subject, but, being unsuccessful, he called a council of his brother chiefs, who formed a circle, with the young man in the centre. After talking to him a while in a low tone, they broke out and vociferously reprimanded him for his dishonest conduct ; but all proved unavailing. Finally, the chiefs, in a most generous and noble spirit, made up the amount from their own purses, and pleasantly tendered it to me.
The Indians being firm believers in witchcraft, generally attributed sickness and other misfortunes to this cause, and were in the habit of murdering those whom they suspected of practising it. They have been known to travel all the way from the Mississippi to Wapakonetta, and shoot down a person in his cabin merely on suspicion of his being a wizzard, and return unmolested. When a person became so sick as to lead them to think he was in danger of death, it was usual for them to place him in the woods alone, with no one to attend except a nurse or doctor, who generally acted as an agent in hurrying on their dissolution. It was distressing to see one in this situation. I have been permitted to do this only through the courtesy of relatives, it being contrary to rule for any to visit them except such as had medical care of them. The whole nation are at liberty to attend the funerals, at which there is generally great lamentation. A chief, who died just previous to their removal, was buried in the following manner. They bored holes in the lid of his coffin-as is their custom-over his eyes and mouth, to let the Good Spirit pass in and out. Over the grave they laid presents, &c., with provisions, which they affirmed the Good Spirit would take him in the night. Sure enough !- these articles had all disappeared in the morning, by the hand of an evil spirit clothed in a human body. There were many funerals among the Indians, and their numbers rapidly decreased : intemperance, and pul- monary, and scrofulous diseases, made up a large share of their bills of mortality, and the number of deaths to the births were as one to three.
A few anecdotes will illustrate the wit and dishonesty of some, and the tragical encoun- ters of others of the Indians. Col. McPherson, the former sub-agent, kept goods for sale, for which they often got in debt. Some were slow in making payments, and one in parti- cular was so tardy that MePherson earnestly urged him to pay up. Knowing that he was in the habit of taking hides from the tanners, the Indian inquired if he would take hides for the debt. Being answered in the affirmative, he promised to bring them in about four days. The Indian, knowing that M'Pherson had at this time a flock of cattle ranging in the forest, went in pursuit, shot several, from which he took off the hides, and delivered them punctually according to promise.
While we were encamped, waiting for the Indians to finish their ceremonies prior to: emigration, we were much annoyed by an unprincipled band of whites who came to trade, particularly in the article of whiskey, which they secreted from us in the woods. The In- dians all knew of this depot, and were continually going, like bees from the hive, day and night, and it was difficult to tell whether some who lead in the worship passed most of the time in that employment or in drinking whiskey. While this state of things lasted, the
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ALLEN COUNTY.
officers could do nothing satisfactorily with them, nor were they sensible of the consequence of continuing in such a course The government was bound by treaty stipulations to maintain them one year only, which was passing away, and winter was fast approaching, when they could not well travel, and if they could not arrive until spring, they would be unable to raise a crop, and consequently would be out of bread. We finally assembled the chiefs and other influential men, and presenting these facts vividly before them, they became alarmed and promised to reform. We then authorized them to tomahawk every barrel, keg, jug, or bottle of whiskey that they could find, under the promise to pay for all and protect them from harm in so doing. They all agreed to this, and went to work that night to accomplish the task. Having lain down at a late hour to sleep, I was awakened by one who said he had found and brought me a jug of whiskey: I handed him a quarter of a dollar, set the whiskey down, and fell asleep again. The same fellow then came, stole jug and all, and sold the contents that night to the Indians at a shilling a dram-a pretty good speculation on a half gallon of " whisk," as the Indians call it. I suspected him of the trick, but he would not confess it until I was about to part with them at the end of the journey, when he came to me and related the circumstances, saying that it was too good a story to keep.
One of our interpreters, who was part Indian and had lived with them a long time, re- lated the following tragical occurrence. A company of Shawnees met some time previous to my coming among them, had a drunken frolic and quarrelled. One vicious fellow who liad an old grudge against several of the others, and stabbed two of the company succes- sively until they fell dead, was making for the third, when his arm was arrested by a large athletic Indian, who, snatching the knife from him, plunged it into him until he fell. He attempted to rise and got on his knees, when the other straddled him, seized him by the hair, lifted up his head with one hand, while with the other he drew his knife across his throat, exclaiming-" lie there, my friend ! I guess you not eat any more hommony."
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