USA > Ohio > Delaware County > History of Delaware County and Ohio : containing a brief history of the state of Ohio biographical sketches etc. V. 1 > Part 55
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73
: The succeeding years were years of rapid growth and development. The success which had hither- to attended the efforts of Col. Byxbe, gave him a prestige that worked greatly to the advantage of the new town. It was felt that under the power- ful patronage of such a man its future success was assured, and the town at onge gained a flattering notoriety. So marked was this fact that Moses Wright, the founder of Columbus, recognizing it as a business reality, purchased in September of 1808, several village lots. He was destined after- ward to have the shrewdness of his purchase con- firmed at the expense of a close contest for the
-
322
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
success of his own project. This vantage ground was appreciated by the people, and was maintained ; by a generous and far-sighted policy. Persons of talent and enterprise were sought for and cordially welcomed, and a community was built up that was the peer in character and intelligence of those of Chillicothe or Zanesville.
that Abraham street should be the main business thoroughfare, while Williams street should furnish sites for the residences of Delaware's aristocratic citizens. But the people did not seem to fall in with this plan, and showed a decided preference for the northern part of the town. George Storm. coming as early as 1809, bought Outlot No. 45, The year of 1812 brought a serious check to the rapid growth of Delaware. Hitherto the State capital had been, up to 1810, situated at Chilli- cothe, and from that time until 1812 at Zanesville ; and among other towns, Delaware aspired to be- come the site of its permanent location, with reason- able hopes of success. The competition was spirited, and the contest finally narrowed down to a strug- gle between Columbus and Delaware. It was contended by the citizens of the latter place that it was more centrally located, and that it had a and made it his place of residence. Business houses from the first took possession of Sandusky street, between Williams and North streets, while below the run, there were not even residences, save on Abraham street, where it crossed the uni- versity campus. The taxes on the unprofitable lots south of the run became a heavy burden that added force to the popular choice, and, yielding to the decision thus expressed, all these lots ( numbering above 92) were vacated, and the square originally set aside for church purposes was divided into vigorous existence, while its opponents offered eight lots, making just one hundred in the recon- only a spot covered with its native forest on the structed town.
" high bank of the Scioto River, opposite Frank- linton." There were four speculators interested in the location near Franklinton, and it would naturally be supposed that they could bring a greater weight of influence to bear upon the Leg- islature than could Mr. Byxbe alone. But this advantage was by no means so apparent. For some time the contest hung in even scales, and the members had all made a choice save Gen. Foos, of Worthington. On his vote the decision hung, and Delaware expected much of him, but his pe- cuniary interests were centered at Franklinton, and, on the 14th of February, the Legislature passed an act accepting the proposals of the Colum- bus parties. This result was a severe blow to Delaware. Up to the point of the decision, the brilliant prospects of the town had attracted the attention of the ambitious and enterprising, and the village seemed to have seized that flood-tide of affairs which was leading on to fame and fortune. The immediate effect of this turn in the tide was to stop immigration, and the consequent business activity, and Delaware was struck with a paralysis ; son, Thomas Dunham and James Carpenter, as of its enterprise, from the effects of which it took two full decades to recover. The lands of the "new purchase," coming into market a few years after the war, diverted the flow of immigration which set in strongly from the East at that period, and, what was more fatal to the develop- ment of the town, held back by anticipation, and finally diverted into foreign channels, the invest- ments of the larger portion of the town's capitalists. In laying out the town, the proprietors intended
The declaration of war which followed in the wake of the act establishing the capital, with the business activity which it occasioned, did much to relieve Delaware's depression. The town was sit- uated on the most practicable route between the State capital-then temporarily placed at Chilli- cothe-and the scene of military operations about Detroit and Sandusky, and it became, during the war, a place of considerable military importance. The people of the village and township took a deep interest in the questions which brought on the war, and in the stern arbitrament of arms, to which they were referred for decision. Among the earliest troops to be called out was a company of light horse belonging to the State militia, on the muster-rolls of which were found the familiar names of Elias Murray as Captain, James W. Crawford as First Lieutenant, David Prince as Second Lieutenant, and Joseph Prince, Robert - Jamison, Sylvester Root, Morris Cowgill, Alex- ander and William Smith, Ralph S. Longwell, John Slack, J. Harter, Forest Meeker, John Wil- privates. This company was employed as a raid- ing force, and was called out at different times for a period of service not exceeding at any time over forty days. Each man furnished his own horse and equipments, and over his shoulder was slung the inevitable canteen of whisky. A little inci- dent occurred in camp before the company left town, which threatened to bring the war right to the doors of the community. Crawford, to play a practical joke on Jamison, drained the latter's
5
323
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
canteen of whisky and filled it with something less desirable. This was touching Jamison in a tender spot, and he challenged the unknown perpetrator to a personal contest at arms, but, as no one re- ponded to such an invitation, the matter was allowed to drop. The company was ordered to Detroit, and made a raid into Canada. Tearing down some fine farm buildings west of the river, they made rafts of the lumber thus obtained, and crossed to the Canada shore. There they destroyed property of all kinds, burning mills, hay and grain, and re-crossing without loss. Robert Jam- ison lost his horse by running him upon a snag, which entered the breast of the animal, rendering it necessary to shoot him. This loss occurred soon after re-crossing into Michigan, a misfortune which he was forced to bear out of his own resources. A company of infantry, raised by Capt. Foos in the northern part of the county, drew a number of men from Delaware Township and village, and, among others, Erastus Bowe, who settled in Brown in 1809. This company went to Fremont, then known as Lower Sandusky, and helped to build Fort Crogan, Mr. Bowe breaking the ground for that purpose. After Hull's surrender, this com- pany returned to Delaware and was disbanded. This surrender, which brought so many evils to this county in its train, did not affect Delaware so seriously as the more sparsely settled communi- tics. A one-story brick store building stood on the northeast corner of Williams and Sandusky streets, and, about this, a high palisade of strong puncheons had been constructed for cases of emer- gency, but with hardly a thought that such a ne- cessity was likely to arise. It was at this time that Drake took the field with his company, and be- came the innocent author of the disastrous stam- pede which long ago found a place in history. The first intimation of the wide-spread demorali- zation. was brought to Delaware one morning about sunrise, as its citizens were preparing or eating breakfast. The scene cannot be pictured in the vivid light in which it appears in the minds of those who remember it. The news had first reached the Radnor settlement, and from there a mob of frenzied fugitives had set forth, gaining in numbers as it came, and, without a note of warning, burst upon the half-aroused village with the sudden fury of a tornado. The sudden tumult of wagons and the clamor of the fleeing men, wo- men and children, brought out the startled citizens with anxious inquiries, but the panic-stricken people had not a minute to lose. They could only
cry out as they rushed along, " The Indians are upon us ! the Indians are upon us!" and exhort their friends to join the fight. The settlements in the north part of the township joined the rout, and it would not have been surprising if the whole village population had gone also. But compara- tively few of the villagers, however, joined the flight. There was a sudden rallying to the forti- fications, and the men organized for the defense of the place. Scouts were sent out, who soon ascer- tained that the alarm was false, but not in time to save the people who had passed south through the village. Messengers were sent everywhere to ex- plain the cause and stop the fleeing multitude. The stampede reached the Meeker settlement, where Stratford now is, as that family were at breakfast. Mr. Meeker had been out with the ariny from the commencement of hostilities, had reached the rank of Colonel, and had been placed in charge of the transportation of the Northwest- ern army, continuing in that position under Har- rison. After Hull's surrender, he came home, sick with a malarial fever. He found his family alarmed at the prospect of an Indian invasion, but, from his knowledge of the country and the strength of the frontier military force, assured them that there was no such danger to be apprehended. He realized that, in the natural course of the fever, he would become delirious, and he warned the family that whatever the reports they should hear, they should on no account move him, as it would only result in his death. The panic found Col. Meeker in a partially deranged state of mind, still he knew enough about matters to realize the situation of affairs, and kept reiterating his former statements. Twice was the confidence of the family in his judgment overruled by their fears, and twice did they carry him to the wagon pre- pared for flight, but as often returned him to his bed. Their mental torture can hardly be appreci- ated at this day. As they saw persons hurrying by whose judgment had hitherto commanded their respect, the impulse to join the stream of fugitives was almost irresistible, and was ouly checked by a thought of the inevitable result to the father and husband. A messenger was at last dispatched to Delaware, where the welcome news was received that there was no cause for alarm.
The full extent of the disastrous stampede can never be known. A large part of the fugitives did not cease their flight until they reached Chilli- cothe, and many never returned to their farms, The disposition of Harrison's troops soon put to
-
324
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
rest any apprehensions of an Indian invasion, if any such were afterward entertained, and placed Delaware in an important relation to the new cam- paign then being inaugurated. The forces under Gen. Winchester and others were centered along the line of Urbana, St. Mary's and Fort Defiance, while the troops, artillery and supplies from Penn- sylvania came by way of Canton, Wooster and Mansfield, to Fort Meigs, the place of rendezvous, `while the Virginia and Kentucky re-enforcements came by way of Chillicothe, along the various roads leading through Delaware County. On the 19th of November, 1812, the headquarters were at Franklinton, but they were soon moved nearer the army in the field, and when the campaign, which had been carried on into the winter, ended, in February, 1813, we find Gen. Harrison at Fort Meigs. From that place, on the 11th of that month, he writes to inform the War Department of his disposition of the troops for winter quarters ; and in regard to the season he writes as follows: "The present is precisely the season, in common years, when the most intense frosts prevail in this country, giving the most perfect security and facility in passing the lakes, rivers and swamps with which it abounds. For the last twelve or fifteen days, however, it has been so warm that the roads have become entirely broken up, and, for a considerable distance in our rear, absolutely im- passable for wagons or sleds, and can with great difficulty be traversed with single horses." The greater part of his troops, save a few detachments for garrison duty, he concentrated at Fort Meigs, and retired with his headquarters to Delaware, where he occupied rooms in the house of Col. Byxbe, then known as a hotel. Early in March, Gov. Isaac Shelby, of Kentucky, came in command of his State's contingent, and with his staff, one of which, an aide-de camp, was John J. Crittendon, took up his quarters at Barber's old tavern. His troops were encamped on the west bank of the river, just south of the old cemetery, on ground which is now partly covered by the railroad. A little later, the Virginia troops arrived, and went into camp just north of the village. During the stay of the troops, the town was full of activity. The store and stills were well patronized, and settlers found a ready market for everything they had to sell. Col. Meeker kept his mills running night and day, grinding wheat for the army, while Erastus Bowe and Solomon Smith, acting for Col. Byxbe, scoured the country in quest of corn, hogs and cattle. Mr. Byxbe was a large contractor for the army,
supplying the troops in town all the beef they used, using the unoccupied part of the square on which his house stood as a corral. The manner of buying hogs was unique. The principals in the transaction selected an average hog, which was killed, dressed and weighed, and the herd bought on that basis. Not only was the surplus stock ab- sorbed by the army, but the surplus men also. A recruiting station was opened at Delaware, and many, through sentiments of patriotism, or moved by the glittering attraction of the enlistment money, joined the march to "glory or the grave." Several instances of immigrants enlisting on the first day of their arrival in the town occurred. while many were made drunk and entrapped after the old British custom, by the advance payment of a shilling. When the troops about Delaware moved north, there was a great dearth of trans- portation. Gen. Harrison had sold all of his teams and pack animals, to save wintering them. and there was great difficulty in supplying their place. Those of the settlers, therefore, who had teams, were " pressed into the service." It is re- lated of Elam Vining, Sr., that, being thus impressed into the service of the Kentucky troops. he went with them one day's march. The next morning, he had driven but a short distance when his wheels ran off and his wagon began to fall to pieces. There was no apparent help for it, and the Kentuckians, cursing him for his lack of pa- triotism and his Yankee shrewdness, unloaded and left him. He was not long in finding the missing parts of his wagon and making his way back to the town. But all were not so loath to follow the fortunes of Harrison's army in the final campaign. and many from Delaware, as officers or privates. went with it to Canada. Erastus Bowe, though not fully recovered from the effects of disease con- tracted early in the service, became connected with the Commissary Department, and continued to the end of the war. Col. Meeker rejoined the army as soon as recovered from his illness, and occupied an important position on Gen. Harrison's staff. He was in close attendance upon the Gen- eral, occupying the adjoining markee, when Harri- son was shot at in his tent by a would-be Indian assassin, and witnessed, with the rest of the army. Perry's battle off Put-in-Bay Island, boarding the victorious fleet with Harrison when the conflict was over. But the burden of the war was not borne alone by those who fought its battles. There was a part played in the cabin that was not less truly heroic. Up to this time the States had sent
Y
1
32.
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
their raw products to England to be manufactured, and not even a candle-wick was made at home. The first result of the war was to cut off the sup- ply of manufactured cottons, forcing the women to resort to all sorts of makeshifts to supply their lack. The flax and wool of their own growing, in the deft hands of the women, supplied the family with clothing. Thread and candle-wicking were made from the same material, and many an inci- dent is related of the misadventures occasioned by the faulty wicking.
the bar of the house, and the host was generally found an interested witness of the race. This was the raffling ground of the community ; here the " crack shots " contested superiority in marksman- ship. and an oak just south of the cabin stood for years the scarred monument of their skill. This old tavern performed its more dignified functions just as well. Here the announcements of husking and logging bees found their widest circulation. and when the public met to arrange a grand hunt or to deal out retribution to a violator of the un- written law of the community, they deliberated here. It was in this cabin that the first court dis- pensed justice ; here the first county and towu elections were held. and here in time of war float- ed the flag of the Kentucky troops. There was also what may be called its domestic side, when winter's long evenings brought out the latent charms of the broad fireplace, and
While thus busied with the public questions of the hour, the little town did not forget the more domestic, but not less essential, duties of the farm and fireside. Among the first petitions presented to the newly formed Commissioners' Court, was one asking for the laying-out of a road along the west bank of the Olentangy, from the treaty line to the south line of the county. In the fall of the following year, a road was laid out from the west " Winds and loiters, idly free, The current of unguided talk." end of Williams street, through New Baltimore (Delhi), to the treaty line. Other roads were laid out on the east bank of the river, uniting with the Here quietly dropped in the older members of the community, and. basking in the genial glow of the fire with a glass of toddy and a well-filled pipe in either hand. the merry song or thrilling frontier tale went round. Another charm about the pioneer tavern. which acted powerfully upon old and young Sallie," and many a housewife was treated to a lect- ure on the art of cooking, with Sallie for a text. She was chambermaid as well, and on occasion at- tended the bar or assisted the weary traveler to dis- mount, bringing in his saddlebags, and frequently when " Bill," the stable hand, was off spending his time with idle fellows, "toted" the horse to the barn. Such qualifications would naturally raise their possessor high in the estimation of the com- munity, but she added to these a gift before which all the others paled into insignificance in the admi- ration of her friends. She was a master shot with the riffe, and it was this gift that secured to her the title of " Captain." The spring had been famous as a deer lick, and, notwithstanding the nearness of the settlers, these creatures occasionally ventured in at nightfall to steal a draught of the invigorating waters. It was on such an occasion that Capt. Sallie left the tavern in search of the cows. With her ear intent on the bell which they wore, she slowly picked her way along toward the west, when, looking back over the hill whence she had come, she discovered a doe with her fawn drinking at the spring. The cows were forgotten road on the other side of the river at the various fords. The first road laid out has always been the main thoroughfare for through travel, though its exact location has been somewhat changed during later years. As first constructed, it followed the : river as closely as the character of the soil and the alike, was the cook. She was known as " Capt. angles of the river would permit. Passing through Delaware, it followed the course of Henry street, which was then the main thoroughfare and the site of the original trail. On this street, three or four rods southeast of the spring stood, Barber's cabin. and he doubtless found a warrant in his own indolent nature for turning inn-keeper, without much thought as to the local advantages for such an en- terprise. Whether he hung out a sign or made it known by charging for his hospitalities, is not cer- tain ; nor does it matter greatly. The people in- dorsed the enterprise and buoyed it on to such suc- cess that it became autocrat. not only of the break- fast table, but of all social questions affecting the community. It was but natural that this should be the great news emporium of the town. Here the male gossips exchanged their wares and vied with each other in eliciting the first and fullest digest of news from the traveler guest of the house. About the door the young men "swapped horses," and many a neck-and-neck race down the " cherry-bottom road " resulted from a conceited banter and a wager of "the drinks" on the speed of some favorite animal. This brought traffic to
326
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
on the instant, and, with the instinct of a huntress, she made her way rapidly and silently to the cabin. Taking down the rifle, she gained a favorable posi- tion, and, first shooting the fawn, she secured then both. The shots brought out the people of the tavern, and the trophies were carried in. "This successful shooting within the limits of the new town," says an old chronicler in speaking of this incident, " was a great event. and honors fell thick and fast on the shoulders of Sallie. She was dubbed Capt. Sallie at once. She was, of course, greeted by everybody, and the feat soon made her famous." Not long after this, Sallie and Billy, who, it was generally understood, were soon to be " hitched." were out on a nutting expedition. They had not cleared the ground now included in the university campus, when, as Billy was making his way into a thicket, an animal from a low-branching oak sprang upon him, and. fastening its teeth and claws into his flesh, bore hini to the ground. As may be imagined, Sallie was not slow in coming to the rescue, grasping the rifle which stood against a tree as she ran. But thoughi an adept in the use of a gun, and repeatedly told by Billy to shoot, she still hesitated, paralyzed by the fear of injuring her friend. Finally, Billy got the savage brute in a favorable position, and a sure shot from Sallie's rifle stretched the animal dead on the ground. A glance revealed the fact that the attack had been made by a huge wild cat, that had probably been treed by the dog, and was startled into the attack . by the sudden appearance of Billy. In the mean time, the revulsion of feeling was too much for Sallie's nerves, and she lay upon the ground white and faint as any other woman. The story of this adventure gained for Capt. Sallie increased renown, while the scene of action was dubbed " Wildcat Hollow," a name it bore for many years. But the pioneer tavern, with its homely cheer and mild wassail, its culinary triumphs and tender romance, has long since passed away, and the sward, radiant with the beauty of nature unadorned, dimples in the sunshine as innocent of the tragedy of human life enacted above it as though it had never borne up the busy haunts of men. This tavern changed hands frequently at first, from Barber to Spauld- ing, and then to Robinson, under whose adminis- tration it passed its palmiest days. For several years it stood without a competitor, but the grow- ing importance of the town began to demand some- thing more pretentious, or, as has been suggested. the people who lived principally north of the run, " became tired of walking the log that bridged the
stream, especially on their return, when they often had to straddle it, or wade the run holding on to the log," and demanded better facilities. Be it as it may, the new brick house which Col. Byxbe put up just east of his first dwelling was known for a time as a hotel, and a small brick structure built near it was the post office. Here the traveler guest was received with such blandishments as few could use to greater advantage than Mr. Byxbe. It be- came of great advantage to the resident proprietor to meet and impress every available new-comer with a hopeful view of Delaware's future. In modern phrase this would be called judicious adver- tising, and it was probably with this object in view. rather than moved by any pecuniary motive, that he opened his house for the entertainment of the public.
The tavern business early assumed a position of considerable importance. It was a profitable busi- at that time, and one in which the most distin- guished citizens did not hesitate to engage. The frontier position of the place, and the peculiar constitution of the court, combined to bring a good many persons into town for temporary pur- poses. The consequence of this fact was a num- ber of public houses, which would now be consid- ered out of all proportion. . A long wooden building was built at an early date, where the Bank of Deposit now stands, where Solomon Smith first entertained the public, but Mrs. Byxbe, desirous of entertaining those who came to attend court, persuaded Col. Byxbe to buy him out, and for some time, continued the business. He was succeeded in the same business, after an interval of some months, by Ezra Griswold, in 1821. = In the meanwhile, Aaron Welch built a tavern op- posite the Episcopal church, on Winter street, where he entertained the public several years, and. in 1816, built a large brick structure on Sandusky street. Mr. Welch died before it was completed, but it served its purpose for years, and, shorn of part of its dimensions, it is now owned and occu- pied by Mrs. Kilbourn. Cotemporary with the later years of Mr. Welch, as tavern-keeper, was Elem Vining, Sr., who occupied for several years the Messenger House, on the southeast corner of Will- iams and Sandusky streets. Another hotel stood on the northeast corner of Winter and Sandusky streets. An early proprietor was Maj. Strong, and another was a Mr. Hinton-a distant relative of Otho Hinton, of later fame-who was succeeded by a Mr. Dunbar. It was during the time of the latter gentleman, in 1817, that President Monroe,
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.