USA > Ohio > Ashtabula County > History of Ashtabula County, Ohio > Part 98
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relic of " ye olden time" in the cabinet of the Historical and Philosophieal Society of Ashtabula County. That night the court-house was burned, and the little mill vanished from mortal sight.
EARLY ROADS.
The first traveled route into Windsor was the marked road made by Mr. Phelps in 1799, upon his entrance into the township. This extended across the south line of Windsor from Mesopotamia to the spot where Mr. Phelps erected his eabin. The second marked road traveled by white men was that made by Mr. Griswold in 1800, from Ifarperstown south through Trumbull and Harts- grove, which he opened upon his first entranec into the township. He was ac- companied from Harperstown by William and John Harper, who helped him to mark this route to the place where he decided to locate, being in the northeast corner of Windsor. This road, which was called by some the Salt road, beeamue the principal thoroughfare over which immigrants traveled in coming into the township, and in passing into Trumbull and Portage counties. Over this route were transported provisions obtained from the east, and intended for use by the Windsor inhabitants. Great quantities of salt were transported over this road, whence arose the name by which it was known,-" Salt road." June, 1812, the road leading from Windsor east through Orwell, Colebrook, Wayne, and Wil- liamsfield to the Pennsylvania line was established. In March, 1815, that lead- ing from the highway, near the residence of Hezekiah Skinner, at the southeast corner of lot No. 7, in the seventh range of lots, westwardly to the west line of the township, was laid out; also at the same date the road beginning " near the intersection of the Post road, and the eastern and western centre lines of lots in' said Windsor, and leading westward on or near said line, crossing the northern and southern public road leading by Damel Morgan's dwelling; thence still westward on or near said line to the public road leading from Windsor to Hunts- burg, Middlefield, and Burton." This is the deseription given on record. The following roads were subsequently established : in March, 1817, the road from Jonathan Higley's dwelling to the west line of the township. June, 1819, the road from the north end of lot line between lots Nos. 6 and 7 and No. 6 in sixth range of lots to west end of bridge in the ceutre line of the township. Deceur- ber, 1820, from Loomis' mill to the west bauk of Grand river. December, 1822, from centre of highway, south of B. Cook's residence, where the lot line between Nos. 5 and 6 crosses the same; thence eastwardly, southeastwardly, and north- eastwardly to the line of lots ; thence along said line to the Trumbull and Ashta- bula turnpike. June, 1823. From the south line of the township at the termi- nation of the west, north, and south road in Mesopotamia; thencc northeast- wardly to the line between the seventh and cighth ranges of lots; then on said line northwestwardly to a southwest road; thence on several courses to Oliver Loomis' land. March, 1824. From the State road in Windsor, running on the line between the ninth and tenth ranges to the east line of said township; also, same date, from the bridge aeross Phelps creek, near Olin Loomis' mill ; thence running northwestwardly to the line between lots Nos. 5 and 6, and to continue west on said line to the west line of said township, to intersect a con- templated road running east and west through the township of Huntsburg, in Geanga county. December, 1824. From a road running from Jonathan Hig- ley's to the northwest corner of Windsor, betweeu lots No. 8 in the sixth and seventh ranges in said Windsor, and running south on said line near Alderman's mill, and from thence to intersect the east and west road in said township. A mail-route running from the lake south through Windsor was established in 1804. Judge Griswold received the appointment of postmaster, and served with satisfaction to the settlers for a period of twenty-eight years. In 1832 he was succeeded by Moses Barnard, who again was succeeded by William Barnard, in 1847. The first mail-carrier is thought to have been one McElvaine, who performed his journey over a route of more than a hundred and fifty miles on foot. The first mail-route is said to have been from Warren northwestwardly to Mesopotamia through Windsor to the dwelling of Judge Griswold; thence through Hartsgrove and Morgan to Austinburg; thence westwardly through Harpersfield to Euclid, near the present site of Cleveland ; thence southeast wardly in a circuitous direction to Deerfield, in the southeastern corner of Portage county ; thence northeastwardly to Warren, the starting-point. It is stated that this footman would make this long and perilous journey in a week's time. The footman, however, was succeeded by Ezra Gregory, of Harpersfield, who placed his son, with the mail-bag, on the back of a powerful horse, and thus furnished the dwellers in the wilderness with thesc advanced mail facilities.
SCHOOLS.
As soon as the people of Windsor began to feel the need of school facilities those facilities were provided. The first school was taught in Windsor in the winter of 1804-5, the teacher being Miss Kezia Griswold, afterwards the wife
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HISTORY OF ASHTABULA COUNTY, OHIO.
of Jonathan Higley, Esq .; the school-building being the blacksmith-shop of S. D. Sacket. The number of pupils was nine. The next year the inhabitants built a log school-house one-half mile south of Windsor Corners, Mr. Harvey Cook being the first teacher, in the winter of 1805-6. There were ten or twelve scholars in attendance. Other school buildings were soon erected, and now there are nine commodious and well-built sehool-houses in the township, whose valuation is four thousand dollars, with a total enrollment of two hundred and sixty-one scholars.
CHURCHES.
Early did the pioneers of Windsor who had emigrated from the land of steady habits begin to show proper regard for religion. The first sermon was preached at the house of Solomon Griswold, as early as the year 1802, by that faithful, pious missionary, Rev. Joseph Badger. We copy from Mr. Badger's journal the mention which he makes of this visit to Mr. Griswold's home in the forest :
" In the month of June (1802) I visited Mesopotamia and Windsor. Found seven families in the former aud three in the latter. .. . In Windsor the late Judge Griswold had commeneed breaking the forest. Their garden, baek of a small cabin covered with bark, was cultivated by the two daughters, and was well stored with culinary roots, plants, and vines. But to get bread was a herculean task. No flour could be had short of fifty or sixty miles, excepting in the spring, when keel-boats, with great exertion, were worked up the Mahoning to Warren, with a few barrels of flour ; but packing on horseback was the only mode of con- veyance from Warren, the rider having frequently to sleep in the woods."
The next minister who preached to the settlers of this township was Rev. G. H. Cowles, assisted by a Mr. Leslie. Whenever a minister arrived the glad news was carried to the scattered log cabins, and at the time appointed all would be in attendance. In those primitive times it was considered a matter of the highest pleasure to be able to attend divine worship, and, instead of regarding it as an irk- some duty, it was looked upon as a privilege affording the greatest enjoyment and delight. It is stated that upon one occasion Judge Griswold's daughters, Misses Ursula and Fanny, walked a distance of eight miles, one fine Sabbath morning, through the dense forest, with no other road than a blazed line, performing this feat in order to listen to the preaching of Rev. Joseph Badger in Mesopotamia. They did not disturb the worshipers by coming in late, but were present in ample time. They returned home after service on the same day, and considered that they had done nothing more than taken a pleasant walk !
The Griswold family were Episcopalians, Mr. Griswold being an active and efficient worker in that church. To this denominatiou belonged also the Hill family and the Cook family, the Aldermans and Skinners. In 1816 this society ereeted the first church building in Windsor, on lot 7, range 3, across the road from the house now owned and occupied by Hiram Griswold. Judge Solomon Gris- wold contributed the greater part towards its erection, and it was familiarly known as " Solomon's temple." In 1832 a neat and well-built Episcopal church build- ing was erected one-half mile west of the centre of Windsor, at the corners known as Windsor Mills. The house was dedicated by Bishop MeIlvaine. The church at present numbers but few members, and has no settled pastor.
In 1812. when the Norris and Barnard families settled in Windsor, a Meth- odist society was formed, the Norrises and Barnards being stanch adherents of this religious body. The first Methodist sermon was preached by John Norris iu the same year. Commencing with a membership of but nine, the society in- creased rapidly in numbers, and in eleven years contained over fifty members. They erected their first church building in the year 1827,-lot 5, range 6,-the same building now used as a town-house. Their present church building at Wind- sor Corners was built in 1854, and rebuilt in 1877. Their membership now num- bers eighty, and their church property is valued at four thousand dollars. Their present pastor is Rev. J. H. Stoney.
The Universalist church was organized in November, 1868, by Rev. Andrew Wilson, of Akron. Rev. E. R. Wood was the first settled minister. In 1876 the society bought the lower room of the Grangers' building, which they use and oceupy as a church building. They have no settled pastor at present. The church numbers at present forty-eight members.
The Wesleyan Methodists organized a church at Windsor Mills about the year 1844, and in the year 1852 or 1853 a church was organized in the southwest part of the township, where, soon after, they erected their present church building, in lot 1, range 7. Their membership is very small at present. Rev. Mr. Hayes, a resident of Middlefield, Geauga county, is their pastor.
SOCIETIES.
Windsor Lodge, No. 329, 1. O. O. F., was instituted September 2, 1857.
The charter members were Dr. Bellows, George A. Gibbs, A. L. Pomeroy, T. W. Gould, Alexander Adams, Frederick Chrispel, Stephen Winslow, aud J. F. Howes.
Iu 1876 the society built their present building at Windsor Corners, a large, two-story frame structure, thirty by sixty-four feet, with twenty-six feet posts, and a cellar under the whole building. This they own, with the land on which it stands. The upper story is used for their rooms, and the ground story for an audience-room.
Their present officers are Marsh Atkins, N. G .; A. A. Olin, V. G .; Olney Bell, R. S .; Dwight Carpenter, P. S .; and R. F. Cook, Treas. The lodge now numbers about uinety members, and is in a prosperous condition.
Windsor Grange, No. 491, P. of II., was instituted January 30, 1874, by O. P. Laird, deputy from Trumbull county. The charter members were Charles S. McIntosh, J. C. Humphrey, S. C. Wilson, Milo Dyer, B. F. Austin, A. A. Olin, O. P. Cook, O. J. Faulkinburg, H. D. Adams, Franklin Noble, and George Olin, with their wives, aud Royal Grover, E. W. Griswold, Catherine Rawdon, and Miss Helen A. Griswold.
First Master, C. S. MeIntosh ; second, E. J. Adams; and third, A. A. Olin, the present incumbent. Since the organization of the grange there have been twenty-three additions to the membership, two deaths, three removals, and one expelled. The grange is at present in a flourishing condition, and owns the rooms it oecupies.
Windsor Division, No. 166, Sons of Temperance, was organized, October S, 1874, with the following charter members: Rev. H. Huncher, Henry Pratt, Elmer Cook, B. F. Austin, G. F. Rawdon, E. P. Northway, C. F. Clapp, A. Warick, Frank More, C. Clark, Harry Rawdon, Mrs. Catharine Rawdon, Mrs. Abigail Pratt, Mrs. Elizabeth Cook, Mrs. C. E. Austin, Mrs. Luey Rawdon, Mrs. Gertrude Northway, Mrs. Augusta Clapp, Mrs. Antinelle Grant, Mrs. Estelle Carter, Misses Marian Rawdon, Carrie Smith, Deette Clapp, Alma Tudor, Elva Adams, Adell Adams, Fannie Hoyt, Frankie Pratt, Eva Hill, Evaline Rawdon, Hattie Grant, and Dell Alexander. Present officers, Frecland Rawdon, W. P .; Miss Edney Winslow, W. A .; Eugene Rawdon, R. S .; Miss Emma Winslow, F. S .; Rollin Rawdon, Treas .; Guy Rawdon, Con .; Miss Eva Hill, Assistant Con. ; Chas. Winslow, I. S .; Mrs. Lois Rawdon, O. S .; Levi IIill, Chap .; F. R. Smith, P. W. P.
The first cheese-factory in Windsor was built and put into operation about the year 1851, by the Farmers' company. It was located a short distance east of Windsor Corners, on the north side of the road. The milk was made into curd, and in this form carried to the factory to be made up into cheese. One year after the Farmers' company's factory was started, another factory was put into operation by Adams & Tudor. These both proved unsuccessful, however, and soon diseoutinued operations.
In the spring of 1867, S. E. Carter & Co. built a cheese-factory at Windsor Corners and commeneed the manufacture of cheese. This building was burned in the fall of 1869, and the present factory, a building thirty by eighty feet, with two floors and garret, was put up the ensuing winter. Business was eommeneed in this new building in the spring of 1870, and has been continued each season since by the same firm. This factory utilizes the milk of from four to five hun- dred cows.
E. A. Wiswell is proprietor of a cheese-factory at Windsor Mills, which was built iu 1874, and put into operation the same year. Ninety-five thousand pounds of cheese was manufactured during the present season at this factory.
A cheese-box factory is owned and operated a short distance north of Windsor Corners by Edwin Rawdon. From twenty-five to thirty-five thousand boxes are made and sold annually.
THE INDIANS OF WINDSOR.
At the time when the first settlements were made in Windsor there were three or four hundred Indians living in the township, scattered along the banks of the Grand river, Phelps and Indian creeks. They were a mixed lot, made up partly of eastern and partly of western tribes. Some were members of the Seneca, Cayuga, and Cuttaraugus tribes, and some of the Chippewas and Otta- was of the west. The dwellings were fragile in character, formed by inserting poles in the ground at proper distances, the tops of which were drawn together and fastened with strips of bark, branches of trees or skins of wild animals being used as a covering. Their beds were skins of wild beasts spread upon the ground, or, in default of these, they lay on the bare earth. Their house- hold furniture consisted of a kettle, a few wooden spoons, and their hunting- knives ; their food the meat of wild animals, fowl, and fish ; their dress was simply a blanket fastened about the waist by a belt, in which were hung their tomahawk, knife, and moecasins. The only labor they were ever known to perform aside from hunting, which was their chief occupation, was the manufacture by the squaws of maple-sugar. All that was needed to consummate the marriage contraet was the consent of the parties. They were not known to have marriage eeremo- Dies. Polygamy occasionally prevailed. But one instance of divoree was known
MRS.THOMPSON HIGLEY
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THOMPSON HIGLEY
RESIDENCE OF THOMPSON HIGLEY, WINDSOR TP. ASHTABULA CO.,0
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RESIDENCE OF PROF . E. HAMILTON, WINDSOR TP, ASHTABULA Co., OHIO.
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HISTORY OF ASHTABULA COUNTY, OHIO.
among them. The cause was unknown, but the parties seemed to be members eaclı of a different tribe, and the points in dispute being referred to a solemn tribunal it was judged that the Indian and his squaw should undergo a separation for six months. They had one child, and in the presence of the entire foree of Indians assembled on the banks of Grand river the partics arose, the Indian taking the child, an infant, in his arms, and, turning their backs to each other, the father took a due north course, the mother a due south coursc, and thus lengthencd the distance between them, the squaw bitterly crying and loudly wail- ing ; whercupon, it is stated, the council dispersed. As they were of different tribes, their religious customs were not uniform. All, however, acknowledged the existence of a great Good Spirit. Some believed in the transmigration of the soul ; others, that at a period after death the spirit wanders to the pleas- ant hunting-grounds, where ganie is plenty and the streams abound in fish. Sometimes the white settlers would be aroused at night by the noise proceed- ing from an Indian camp, created by their midnight devotions, consisting of singing and dancing on the beloved square and beating upon the sacred drum. Their mode of burying their dead was likewise not always the same. Sometimes they wrapped the corpse in the skin of some wild animal, and placed it in a grave in a sitting posture with the face towards the east. No coffin was used ; gen- erally the trinkets and weapons that had been the property of the deccased were interred with the body. Sometimes, as was the case in the burial of an Indian child in Windsor, in the year 1806 or 1807, a large hollow tree was found, an opening made, and four sticks firmly fastened in the ground within the hollow, so as to protrude about eighteen inches, and then other sticks placed across, and the body placed upon thesc cross sticks. After which the entrance was neatly filled by fitting closely and fastening tightly a block of the required size, so as to pro- tect it from the wild animals of the forest. They were generally of a peaceful nature, and not disposed to molest the white settler. Some instances, however, might be given where they were somewhat troublesome. We have space but for one Indian story, which is as follows :
The Indian is proverbially fond of whisky; and one day, in the year 1800, when Mr. Phelps was at work about one mile distant from his cabin, a party of seven or eight braves came to his dwelling and requested that Mrs. Phelps would give them some whisky. As her husband had frequently given them to drink, she did not hesitate to yield to their request. After drinking what was set before them, they demanded more. Mrs. Phelps wisely concluded that they had had enough, and refused to give them more. Offended, they threatened vengeance and went their way. That night she told her husband what had happened, and said she was afraid to remain at home alone the next day. The next morning Mr. Phelps took his ox-bell and gave it to his wife, saying, " I must go to my work. You take this bell, and if the Indians come to-day, and are insolent and imperious in their demands, you mount the wood-pile and ring this bell with all your might. I will jump upon the back of old Bald-face, who will soon bring me to the house." In the afternoon the Indians came, demanding whisky. Mrs. Phelps drew a quantity and placed it before them. They drank, and demanded more, threatening to scalp her if she did not obey. She took her child and se- creted it behind some shingles to the rear of the house, and, grasping the old cow- bell, she sprang upon the wood-pilc and rang it with all her might. Returning to the house, the Indians, with savage threats and horrid impreeations, told her that
unless she instantly acceded to their demands they would kill her. She stub- bornly refused, all the while looking intently for the appearance of "old Bald-face." Pretty soon horse and rider are in sight, coming with furious specd. Springing from liis horse and in at the door, with a cudgel in his hand, Mr. Phelps beheld an Indian brandishing a tomahawk above the head of his wife, another holding her, while the others were endeavoring to draw the plug from a whisky-barrel which they had rolled into the room. Mr. Phelps was a powerful and active man, and with one heavy blow of his cudgel he felled to the floor the Indian with the tomahawk; another blow dispatched number two; a third Indian shared the same fate. The others laid down their arms, threw themselves on their knees, and begged for their lives.
STORIES.
A volume of no mcan dimensions could readily be filled with the stories of bold and daring adventures which the early Windsor settlers had with the wild beasts of the forest. We have room for a single incident only. The one we select is no better, perhaps, than scores of others, and, indeed, is not so perilous as some that might be related ; yet it evinees the same bravery and fearlessness that character- ized all the Windsor pioncers in their encounters with the wild and ferocious animals of the forest.
David Rawdon, in the winter of 1832, while hunting deer in the west part of Hartsgrove, which was then an unbroken forest, came upon a bear-track. Eagerly following it, he found Bruin in her den. Her place of refuge was between the bodies of two large trees that had been uprooted by the wind, near the bank of a creek. The roots of the trees formed a protection on one side some seven fcet in height. The bear, percciving that she was discovered, arose from her lodging- place, when she immediately received a ball on the right side, forward of the hip. With a sudden and furious bound, she leaped over the arched roof of her den and plunged into the forest, trying to secrete herself in the whortleberry marsh. Mr. Rawdon followed her. The bear again retreated, Mr. Rawdon following, some of the time creeping on his hands and knces through the dense underbrush, so thick that he could not follow the track on his feet. He followed her to the trunk of a large tree. As he arose on one side of the log Bruin rose on the other, placing her paws on the log, directly in front of him, with her mouth close to his head, stretched wide open, ready to tear him to pieces. Jumping backward a few feet, he fired again, but, frustrated by his excitement, it inflicted only a slight wound. The bear turned and again retreated. Following some thirty rods he came up with her and, aiming carefully, gave her a shot which yielded him the conquest, and Bruin was vanquished. The hide of this bear was nine fcet in length by five feet in width, and the bear was weighed and turned the scales at four hundred pounds.
.
STATISTICS FOR 1877.
Wheat.
155 acres.
2,249 bushels.
Oats.
499
15,896
Corn .....
335
21,880
Potatoes.
115
7,572 64
Orcharding ..
201
13,465
Butter ..
33,125 pounds.
Cheese (estimated).
250,000
Maple-sugar
19,229
Population in 1870 was 871.
Votes cast in 1876 : Hayes, 204; Tilden, 45.
HARTSGROVE TOWNSHIP.
THIS township is designated as number nine of the fifth range. Its name was originally Matherstown, in honor of Samuch Mather, Jr., who claimed to be the owner. However, the record of the drawing of the Connecticut land company, in 1798, diseloses the fact that Wm. Hart, of Connecticut, was really the rightful owner, as number nine of the fifth range was drawn by him. A contest at law arose between these two claimants, which continued for many years, but finally terminated in favor of the heirs of Mr. Hart. The result of this litigation was to delay the settlement of this township until the year 1822, a later period than the date of the settlement of any other township in the county, and also to effect a change in its name from Matherstown to Hartsgrove, in honor of the rightful owner.
Hartsgrove, in its natural state, was a heavily-timbered traet, well supplied with springs and running streams of elear water, and the forests were filled with wild animuals of all kinds, affording a rich field for those who were fond of hunting. This region, in fact, was for many years the hunting-ground of the settlers of the neighboring townships, as well as of the Indians. While adjoining localities were denuded of their timber and gave evidence of the advance of civilization, this township, for more than twenty years after the arrival of the first settlers, remained an unbroken wilderness. And some of the most interesting and exciting incidents which history records as the experience of the settlers in their contests with wild and ferocious animals, have had their origin in this forest hunting- ground.
Rev. William Jarvis, of Chatham, Connecticut, married the daughter of Rich- ard W. Hart, a son of Wm. Hart, whereupon the father of Mrs. Jarvis conveyed to her the north half of the township, amouuting to about eight thousand acres of land.
Judge Mills, of Saybrook, Connecticut, was constituted the agent of Mr. Hart for the remainder of the lands of the township, and served in this capacity until the death of the latter, when nearly one-half of the remainder was conveyed to Mrs. Jarvis and her sister, Hetty B. Hart. This happened about the year 1837 or 1838, at which time General Charles Stearns and William Jarvis (2d) because the agents of the grantees. The two acted jointly until 1840, when Gen- eral Stearns, being elected sheriff of Ashtabula County, removed to Jefferson. Since this date, or in March, 1841, Wm. Jarvis (2d) was made sole agent, and has served in that capacity until the present time.
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