USA > Ohio > Champaign County > History of Champaign County, Ohio, Its People, Industries and Institutions, Volume I > Part 94
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There appears to have been no other settlers on the site of the town from 1803 until the summer of 1805 when the town was laid out. When the county was organized in 1805 Springfield was the only place resembling a town in the county and consequently served as a temporary county seat. Naturally, as soon as Ward and Vance had the town of Urbana laid out as a new county seat, the settlers began to locate here. It is impossible to trace the order of their appearance in the new county seat, and the town itself remained a part of the township for all civil purposes from the time of its organization until 1816, a period of eleven years. This makes it all the more difficult to determine with any certainty the first settlers of the town itself. The poll-book record of 1811 returned the voters of the town in with those of Urbana township, and even this furnished no clue as to which were living in the town and which in the township.
SALE OF LOTS.
The lots of the new town were placed on sale in October, 1805, but there has been no report of sale of lots found and no list of the buyers of the lots or the prices paid. The county had been given half of the lots and it was from the sale of these lots that the county expected to get enough money to build the first court house and jail and to start the county on its official journey. While it is not known how much money the county secured by the sale of its lots, it is certain enough was received to pay for the county build- ings.
COUNTY SEAT LOCATED IN URBANA.
It can not be stated positively when the county officials took up their resi- cience in Urbana, but, according to the late J. W. Ogden, the county seat was permanently established in Urbana in 1807. While it had been erected as the seat of justice in the fall of 1805, yet the county commissioners had to wait until suitable buildings were provided before they could order the trans- fer of the records from Springfield to the new county seat. It is evident that it would take about two years to build a court house and jail, log though they were, and therefore it is fair to presume that the year 1807 found the county seat permanently established in the little village of Urbana.
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GEORGE FITHIAN ARRIVES.
Who lived here then? No one knows. George Fithian had moved up from Springfield, where he had a tavern, and etsablished a similar house of entertainment in Urbana. His log cabin, a combined dwelling house, hotel and store, stood on the site of the Grace Methodist Episcopal church on South Main street. Fithian appears to have been the first to locate in the town after it was laid out in 1805 and he became one of the prominent figures of the county seat. He served as associate judge and held other positions of responsibility. He eventually moved to Champaign county, Illinois, where he died. William H. Fyffe shares with Fithian the honor of being one of the very first to locate here in 1805 or 1806. He bought the lot at the corner of South Main and Market streets and there opened the first saddlery shop. His son, Joseph Fyffe, is one of several who are said to have been "the first white child" born in the town.
JOSEPH C. VANCE ARRIVES.
Joseph C. Vance, the director of the county, the first clerk, first recorder and first auditor. probably built his house here in the fall of 1805 and cer- tainly not later than 1806. It stood on lot on No. 151, on the north side of East Reynolds street, at the northwest corner of Reynolds and Kenton streets. In his triple capacity of clerk, auditor and recorder, he handled about all of the business of the county, while as director of the county he had charge of the lot sales in the county seat. Judge Patrick makes the statement that Vance built a small hewed-log office adjoining his office for the keeping of his county records, and this statement seems to prove that the county seat was not formally transferred from Springfield to Urbana until sometime in 1807. It also seems to indicate that the official place of business may have been established in Urbana before the court house here was completed.
JOHN REYNOLDS ARRIVES.
John Reynolds came to the village about 1807. although a search of the records in the recorder's office has failed to show when he first acquired property in town. It could not have been later than 1807 or 1808 that he started a store on the corner now occupied by the Douglas Inn, lot 48, south- west corner of Monument Square and Miami street. Reynolds had a com-
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bined store and dwelling house facing the east, his store room occupying the same site now used by the Western Union Telegraphy Company.
The town grew slowly until the opening of the War of 1812, but the impetus it received during the years 1812-15 more than doubled the popula- tion. While it is not possible to enumerate the families in the order of their coming to Urbana prior to 1811, yet there has been preserved a complete list of all of the families who were living in the village in the fall of that year. This list was prepared by Judge William Patrick, who came to the village on August 8, 1811, and lived here until his death in 1891.
The reader, in studying the appearance of Urbana as it existed in 1811, must remember that Judge Patrick wrote his description in 1872 as a contri- bution to the "History of Champaign and Logan Counties" published in that year. All references to the buildings which he represents as occupying the sites of the buildings of 1811 must be interpreted as he saw them in those two years, 1811 and 1872. There are only a few firms occupying buildings in 1917 that were occupying the same in 1871. The nearest approach to a continuity of firms is in the case of the Hitt store of 1872 which is the Hitt & Fuller concern of 1917, and the banks, all of which occupy their sites of 1872. The description of the village of 1811 is reproduced in the judge's own language.
URBANA IN 1811 AS SEEN BY WILLIAM PATRICK.
My father arrived In U'rboun, August 9. 1811, and rented of Benjamin Doolittle a double cabin, then standing on Jot No. 175. on what is now East Court street, opposite the First Baptist church, and near the present residence of Mrs. Kellar.
At this point I will attempt a pencil sketch of all the habitations of the old settlers at the date here Indicated, and in order to do so more understandingly will state that the original plat of U'rbana at that day, consisted of two hundred and twelve inlots, xix rods in front, abutting streets running back ten rods; four frac- tional lots around the public square six rods square; and two tiers of outlots on the western border, and one tier on the southern border of the town, aggregating twenty-two lots, varying in size from about one and one-half acres to three acres; for all further general descriptions I will refer to the records. [See accompanying plat.] And as a further prelude I will remark, as the streets now nearly all have new names. that I will adopt them with reference to my localities, and I will take my standpoint in the Public Square, and briefly dot the several localities of the first settlers of that day, as fully as my recollections will enable me.
PUBLIC SQUARE.
On the southeast corner of fractional lot No. 1, Benjamin Doolittle occupied a two-story log house, with a back building attached to west rear for dining room and kitchen, as a tavern stand, and being the same lot now owned and occupied by McDonald and others [Hatton's drug store, 1917].
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Joseph Hedges occupied a small frame with shed roof, called the knife-box, little west of northwest corner of fractional lot No. 4, as a store room of Hedges & Neville, with small family residence in the west end. and being the same lot now owned and occupded by Glenns and others.
John Reynolds owned and occupied a neat white two-story building on the north- east corner of inlot No. 48, fronting east on the Public Square, and used in part as a store room: the balance being his family residence. The store room being on the corner was also by him used as the postoffice, he being the first postmaster of the place. The very same spot is now used for the postoffice in the Weaver House. This whole lot is now owned by Henry Weaver, and as already intimated, is the site of the Weaver House [Douglas Inn. 1917].
Widow Fitch, the mother of Mrs. Blanchard, owned and occupied inlot No. 1. op- posito the Wenver House, and had a small log building on it, which was occupied as a family residence. to which she added in front, facing east on the Public Square, a respectable two-story hewed-log house, using the same soon after as a tavern stand for several years. This site is now known as the Donaldson corner, etc. [Conyer jewelry store. 1917].
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Dr. Davidson occupied a small frame, fronting the square on lot No. 154, on part of the site of L. Weaver's block.
SOUTH MAIN STREET.
Beginning at the southeast corner of the Public Square and going south on Main street I recall the following houses: From the Public Square, south. Alexander Doke owned and occupied inlot No. 104, and bad on it a little south of the present tavern stand of Samuel Taylor, a double cabin residence for his family, and being a black- smith, he had on the same lot a smith shop. This lot embraces all the ground south of S. W. Hitt's store to the corner on market space, and owned now by several individuals [Hitt and Fuller's store, 1917]. All this ground during the War of 1812 was used as an artifteler yard.
W. H. Fyffe owned the south half of inlot No. 55, etc., and occupied the south- cast corner of it as his family residence, it being the same building now on said corner. having since been wentherboarded, and is now owned by his descendants [Inter- urban station, 1917].
George Fithian, the grandfather of Milton Fithian, owned and occupied as a tavern stand, the same building now standing on Inlot No. 63; it has undergone but little improvement In outside appearance, excepting the weatherboarding of the log part of it. This sume tavern was afterward owned and occupied by John Enoch, the father of John Enoch, Jr .. and is now owned by the Second M. E. church as a proposed future site for a church edifice [Grace Methodist Episcopal church, 1917].
George Hitt, on the next abutting lot on west side of South Main street, being No. 71. erected a two-story log house for his family, and being a wheelwright, had a shop near it. The present residence of Mr. Bennett occupies the site of the old dwelling.
Job, Gard. the father of Gershom Gard, owned inlot No. 87. the corner of South Main and Reynolds street, and lived in a hewed-log house near the present residence of Colonel Cody. This lot is now owned by the New Jerusalem church and others.
Alexander McComsy. father of Matthias MeComsy, owned and had a cabin for his family on the southeast corner of South Main and Reynolds streets, on outlot No. 18. now vacant and owned by William Ross.
William and John Glenn owned inlots No. 124. 125, 126, and 127, on which they
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had sunk a tanyard, with a rough log shop for finishing; this is now what is called the lower tannery, in the present occupancy of Smith. Bryan & Co. William Glenn then owned and had a cabin residence on lots No. 134 and 135, now owned by John Clark. George Collins and others.
NORTH MAIN STREET.
From public square, north. John Shyrach owned inlot No. 163 upon which his family lived in a respectable two-story, hewed-log house, near the drug store of Flsler & Chance. Years afterward it was burned. This property embraces the row of business buildings now occupied from the corner of North Main and East Court streets, to J. H. Patrick's hardware store.
Randal Largent occupied a small rough cabin on lot No. 24, on the northwest border of a pond, between it and what is know as the "Hamilton House." on the ground now occupied and owned by J. H. Patrick as his residence.
Samuel McCord had nearly opposite to last mentioned place, his family residence on lot No. 173, being a story and half hewed log house, which was many years after burned down.
N. Carpenter lived in a small one-story log cabin on the corner of inlot No. 32, near the present residence of John Smith, corner of North Main and West Church street&
John Frizzle occupied a large double two-story log cabin as a tavern-stand, front- ing east on North Main street, on Inlot No. 40, near present residence of C. T. Cundiff.
EAST MAIN OR SCIOTO STREET.
From public square, east. Joseph Vance owned lot No. 155, and was erecting in the fall of 1811 the present two-story frame and part of the back building in which his son. Judge Vance now dwells as owner of the premises described.
Frederick Gump occupied a small one-story cabin on east half of inlot No. 160, near the present site of the Episcopal church.
David Vance owned lot No. 97, and bad on it a small story-and-half hewed-log house, occupied by Solomon Vail, and being the same house, with some additions, now owned and occupied by Joseph S. Kiger.
WEST MAIN OR MIAMI STREET.
From public square. west. David Parkinson owned and occupied a two-story log house, and had a smith shop near It. both fronting the street on inlot No. 2. now opposite the Weaver House, near the livery-stable and Fisher's rooms.
Zepbaninh Luce owned Inlot No. 50, and occupied it with his family in a double log house, standing on the ground now occupied by Doctor Mosgrove's Inrge brick residence. Mr. Luce was also the owner of inlots No. 51, 52, 53 and 54, and on the first two sunk a tanyard. and had finishing shop on same, which he used during the War of 1812 as issuing commissary office, he holding that post.
Lawrence Niles (hatter) occupied a hewed-log house on east part of inlot No. 3, being the same property now owned and occupied by William Sampson, having been repaired in such a manner as to present a neat two-story house. His family, like many new settlers, after living here a few years, became dissatisfied, and without waiting to dispose of their property moved west, seeking new adventures, and were never heard of afterward. It was supposed they were either all drowned, or murdered by the savages.
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EAST MARKET STREET.
East from South Main. James Fithiun occupied a two-story hewed-log house, with an addition of a one-story on west side of it (the latter being used in the War of 1812, as a quartermaster's office), on lulot No. 105, being the present premises of Mrs. Dr. Stansberry; the log buildings above described were moved east on to lot No. 109, prop- erty of estate of Samuel McCord, and very recently torn down.
Simon Kenton, as jailor of Champaign county, occupied one family room below and the rooms above in the old jall building, on lot No. 107, as his family residence. Here two of his daughters, Sarah, afterward Mrs. John McCord, and Matilda, afterward Mrs. John G. Parkison, were married. This lot is now owned by two of the Lawsons.
Frederic Ambrose, by trade a potter, afterward sheriff and county treasurer, owned and occupied inlot No. 111, and lived in a cabin on southeast corner. with a shop near it ; this lot is now owned by Havery [ Harvey] Stump.
Wilson Thomas, colored, right south on the opposite side of the street on inlot No. 121, owned and occupied a small cabin near the present residence of Mrs. Jacob Fisher. Toney, n colored man, whose full name I have forgotten, but who was somewhat distinguished in the War of 1812, according to his own statements, occupied an old cabin in the northeast corner of E. B. Patrick's inlot No. 112. fronting East Market street.
Peter Carter, colored, husband of old Fannie. owned inlot No. 113, and had a cabin in the rear, which stood on the ground now occupied by the present African Methodist Episcopal church building.
WEST MARKET STREET
West from South Main. Edward W. Plerce, a very highly educated lawyer, with- out family, had a hewed-log office near the present residence of Mrs. E. P. Fyffe, on inlot No. 61. He possessed sterling talents, but from some cause had much mental affliction, and in the winter of 1816 was found dead in the woods between here and Springfield. much torn up by wolves as then supposed. Persons of that day who professed to know the fact said that In his very early life he had the misfortune to exchange shots in a duel, and killed his adversary, which was the secret of his mental malady. This I give as a matter of information only.
EAST WATER STREET.
From South Main, east. Daniel Helmick owned inlots No. 136 and 137; on the latter he had a double cabin as the residence of his family, and on the corner of the former in front of the Second Methodist Episcopal church, was his hewed-log cabinet shop. Hle afterward built the brick house now owned by J. C. Jones.
Nathaniel Pickard owned and occupied lots No. 142 and 143, and erected for his family residence a hewed-log cabin, standing immediately west of Moses B. Corwin's present brick residence.
WEST WATER STREET.
West from South Main. William Ward, Sr., the old proprietor of the town. then lived in a double-log cabin standing near the present residence of Mr. Smith, southeast corner of West Water and High streets, on a block of lots, Nos. 83. 84, 85, 86. 91. 92. 93, 94, and now the property of Messrs. Smith, Donaldson and others.
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EAST REYNOLDS STREET.
East from South Main street. Joseph C. Vauce owned and occupied inlots Nos. 152 and 153, and erected on the premises a two-story log house as a family residence; he also erected a small hewed-log office, he being the first clerk of the court of common pleas and surveyor, etc.
WEST REYNOLDS STREET.
West from South Main street. Isaac Robinson, a brick mason, occupied a cabin on one of outlots on south side of the street, but I am now unable to locate it.
John Gilmore, a brick mason, occupied a cabin on outlot No. 8, now enclosed in the private park grounds of Col. John H. James, In which his superb family mansion is situated.
FAST COURT STREET.
East from North Main street. Anthony Patrick, as already stated, occupied a dou- ble cabin nearly opposite the Baptist church on inlot No. 175, owned then by Benjamin Doolittle.
Jacob Tharp occupied a cabin on lot No. 105, near the site of the present Baptist church.
WEST COURT STREET.
West from North Main street. Capt. William Powell occupied a small frame tene- ment on west side of Inlot No. 14, being the present premises of Duncan McDonald.
Stout occupied a small roughly built frame, which stood near the present residence of Miss Nancy Jennings on inlot No. 22.
EAST CHURCH STREET.
East from North Main street. Samuel Trewett, the grandfather of Nathan Reece, occupied inlot No. 194, and lived In a hewed-log one-story cabin near the present resi- dence of Robert Bell. He was a local Methodist preacher.
WEST CHURCH STREET.
West from North Main street. John Huston, a rough carpenter, built a story-and-a- half hewed-log cabin and occupled it on inlot No. 26, being the present premises of Will- lam Scorab.
Daniel Harr, the father of Newton Harr [and the grandfather of Mrs. Duncan B. McDonald, now a resident of U'rbanal was here with his then small family, and as I have no other building in my eye for a family residence, I am inclined to the opinion that he occupied a small enbin on inlot No. 27, the present premises of W. H. Colwell ; if he did 80 occupy, it was only temporarily. [Daniel Harr and Elizabeth Ross were married May 30, 1805, the first marriage recorded in the county.] I remember soon after he improved the north half of Inlots Nos. 55 and 56, and erected the two-story frame now owned by W. L. Studybaker on South Main street and occupied the upper part and rear buildings as his family residence. and front as a store room of Harr and Rhodes-the Intter being the father of Nelson Rhodes, Esq.
Henry Bacon, if memory serves me. owned and occupied a small frame building on the ground now owned by Mr. Osborn on inlots Nos. 38 and 39; he afterward erected the brick building known as the Insurance Office on inlot No. 8, and occupied it as a dwelling.
Here are thrown hastily together a pen sketch of the populations in Urbana In 1811. comprising forty-five families, describing from memory the kind of tenements with their
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localities as nearly as possible. There may be some errors, but It is believed they are few. One sad reflection presents itself now ; all these have gone the way of all the earth. There may possibly be an exception, but the writer of this is not aware of any. [It must be remembered these lines were written in 1872.]
It may be proper here to point out the public buildings of the town. The jail has already been noticed. The court house was a large log building on lot No. 174 on East Court street, which has undergone a change, and is now the property of Duncan MeDon- ald, and is used as a family residence. During the War of 1812-15, it was converted into an army hospital, and in it many deaths occurred from a prevalent epidemic malady of that day denominated "cold plague", and the bones of the victims now rest in the old town graveyard. And may God in His merciful Providence avert that unhallowed cupidity, that is now instigating municipal desecration upon their silent abode. This building having been appropriated to the use above indicated, the upper part of the jail was fitted up for the purpose of holding the courts, and was so used until the new court house in the public square was finished in about the year 1817. This latter tem- ple of justice remained as county court house until the clamorous raids of the popu- lace culminated in the erection of our present one, standing on inlots Nos. 16 and 17. about the year 1839.
SUMMARY OF JUDGE PATRICK'S ARTICLE.
The foregoing pages have given an extended description of the Urbana of 1811 and it is doubtful if there is another city in Ohio that can boast of as accurate a description of itself in that year. Not only has the judge named the heads of the families, but he has also indicated their exact location in the town by giving the lot on which they were living. There is a case or two where the evidence seems to indicate that the judge was in error. The records show that Joseph Vance built his house and his subjoined court house on lot 151. the northwest corner of East Reynolds and Kenton streets. The appended summary shows (1) the number of the lot occupied: (2) the con- secutive numbering which corresponds with the location of the families on the accompanying plat of the city as it was laid out in 1805; and (3) the names of the heads of families grouped by streets.
Public Square, Now Monument Square.
Lot Map No. No.
Head of Family or Place of Business.
Fr. 1
I Benjamin Doolittle.
Fr. 4
2 Joseph Hedges.
48
3 Jno. Reynolds.
I
4 Widow Fitch.
154 5 Dr. Davidson.
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Ohio Street now South Main Street.
Lot Map
Head of Family or Place of Business. No. No.
104 6 Alexander Doke.
55
7 W. H. Fyffe.
63 8 George Fithian.
71 9 George Hitt.
87 .10 Job Gard.
OL 18 II Alexander McComsy.
124-27 12 Tannery of William and John Glenn.
134-35
13
William Glenn.
Erie Strect now North Main Street.
163
14 Jno. Shyrach.
24
15 Randal Largent.
173
II Samuel McCord.
32
17
N. Carpenter.
40
18
Jno. Frizzle.
East Main now Scioto Street.
155
19 Joseph Vance.
160
20 Frederick Gump.
97
21 Solomon Vail (owned by D. Vance).
West Main now Miami Street.
2
22 David Parkinson.
50
23 Zephaniah Luce.
3
24 Lawrence Niles.
First South now East Market.
105 25 James Fithian.
107
26 County jail.
27 Frederick Ambrose.
121
28 Wilson Thomas (colored).
112
29 Toney (colored).
113
30 Peter Carter (colored).
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First South now West Market.
Lot Map
No. No. Head of Family or Place of Business.
61
31 Edward W. Pierce.
Second South now East Water.
136-37 32 Daniel Helmick.
142-43 33 Nathaniel Pickard.
Second South now West Water.
83-86 34 William Ward.
South Street now East Reynolds.
151
Joseph C. Vance.
South Street now West Reynolds.
OI. 19 36 Isaac Robinson.
OL 8 37 John Gilmore.
First North now East Court.
175
38 Anthony Patrick.
165
39 Jacob Tharpe.
First North now West Court.
14 40 Capt. William Powell.
22
41 Stout.
Second North now East Church.
194 42 Samuel Trewett.
Second North now West Church.
26
43 John Houston.
27 44 Daniel Harr. 38-39 45 Henry Bacon.
The first two lots in the above list. indicated as "Fr." are fractional lots on the public square. The lots indicated as "OL" are outlots. The Meth-
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odist church had a large log structure on lot No. 207 on North street, now Ward street. It seems that the first building erected for a public school was on lot No. 102, on Scioto street.
DESCRIPTION OF URBANA PLAT OF 1805.
The site of the original plat of Urbana was owned by William Ward and surveyed into two hundred and twelve inlots and twenty-two outlots by Joseph C. Vance. This plat was recorded at Springfield, then the temporary seat of justice of Champaign county, on October 1, 1805. Accompanying this orig- inal plat was the following description (copied verbatim) :
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