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 61
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HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
357
guerreotype artist, with the millers, tanners, carding, fulling and woolen mills, saddlers and harness- makers, hotel keepers, newspaper publishers, mer- chants and professional men, who have found mention elsewhere. Beyond the products of her manufact- ories, Delaware makes no pretensions in the way of a wholesale trade, save a wholesale grocery. The business was established in 1855. All lines of merchandise are well represented in a retail way by good, enterprising men, the dry-goods mer- chants, merchant tailors and grocers attaining a prominence in numbers, which the educational character of the town explains.
A very important feature of the business of Delaware, which, though placed last in this de- scription, is by no means least in the consideration of the world, and to which much of the city's.busi- ness prosperity is due, is the ample banking facilities which have been enjoyed from the first. An account of the early efforts to establish a bank here will be found on another page. There was no decided call for its existence at that time, and it is probable that a bank then might have proved more of a curse than a blessing. Since 1845, there have been ample banking facilities conducted under such a management that while similar institutions were breaking up and paralyzing the business interests of the communities where they were situated, Delaware has proved a notable exception, and this bank, known then as the Delaware Branch of the State Bank of Ohio, bas never lost a dollar by bad notes, nor cost its bill-holders a penny from lack of credit. As organized in June, 1845, Hosea Williams was President, B. Powers, Cashier, and Sidney Moore, Teller. This bank was one of cight branch establishments in the State, and had its first place of business in William Little's store. Later a room was fitted up especially for its use in the American House, where it continued busi- ness until it took its present apartments. The charter expiring in 1865, the present organization, the Delaware County National Bank, was formed in April of that year, with Hosea Williams, Ben- jamin Powers, W. D. Heim, Sidney Moore and H. G. Andrews as Directors.
The First National Bank began its existence under the free banking system of Ohio in 1857, through the instrumentality of very much the same men who stood sponsors for the one just noticed. P. D. Hillyer was the first President, and C. Powers, Cashier. It started in the Amer- ican House, and continued until January 1, 1866, when it removed to a building a few doors below
the hotel, which had been erected for the purpose during the previous fall. On January 16, 1864, the bank was re-organized under the national banking system with Benjamin Powers as Pres- inent, and W. E. Moore as Cashier. Mr. Powers has recently resigned the responsible position of President on account of advancing years, and has been succeeded by Cary Paul, Esq.
The Deposit Banking Company was organized December 1, 1867, with a capital of $25,000; H. W. Pumphrey, President, and H. A. Welch, Cashier. The business is growing and prosperous.
The later growth of the city is difficult to meas. ure, in the absence of annual directories, but a painstaking article, which appeared in the Gazette of July 26, 1872, may be valuable as a means by which to make an approximate estimate. The num- ber of buildings is put at 1,289, of which 786 were wooden, 488 were brick, and 16 were stone. Of these-
Stone.
Brick.
Wooden.
Sandusky street contained.
2
98
116
Franklin street contained.
44
89
Washington street contained
16
39
Liberty street contained.
30
55
Union street contained.
7
34
Henry street contained.
10
25
Depot street contained.
2
15
18
Lincoln avenue contained.
12
4
Park street contained.
2
14
22
North street contained
3
97
28
Winter street contained.
5
45
63
Williams street contained.
65
83
Spring street contained.
3
23
Hill street contained.
21
9
Railroad street contained.
10
45
.
and the remaining 215 are scattered over Euclid, Louis, Campbell, Elizabeth, Catherine, Cherry, Estella, Little, Richardson, Frank, Branch, Fair, Ann, Berlin, State, Channing, Wade, Waldo, Hammond, Parker, East, Olentangy, Webb, Janus, Blymyer, Grace, Grant, Griswold, Harrison, Chamberlain, Reid, Half, Oak, Vine, Berkshire, Rheem and High streets.
During the early history of Delaware as a vil- lage, every citizen was a member of the fire depart- ment. At the first alarm every one rushed out with pail in hand to the scene of action, and so effective did they prove that but two or three fires of any importance occurred during the first twenty- five years of the town's existence. As the town became more thickly settled, there was a growing
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HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
358
apprehension, on the part of the citizens, that these primitive measures would, sooner or later, prove an insufficient protection, and the Council, through the columns of the Patron, called a meeting of the citizens at the court house, to consider the question of purchasing a fire engine. This meet- ing was called June 17, 1831, but the village, with its proverbial deliberation, did not secure these safeguards until 1834. The engines pro- cured were small, rectangular boxes, with a pump worked by levers, at which four men, by crowding, could find room to work. They were mounted on " very small wheels, but, in case of necessity, two men could lift them by the handles provided for the purpose, and place them where they chose. It is related that Thespian Hall once took fire, and the flames, breaking through the roof, were rapidly getting beyond control, when one of the engines was quickly unshipped and carried up the stairs, which were built outside the building, within easy reach of the flames, which were quickly subdued. The department was well supplied with pails, and two lines of men were formed from the water sup- ply to the engine, and thus passed along the water and returned the empty pails. In October of this year, the Council devised a plan for the organiza- tion of a fire department, which for years operated these hand engines. The town was divided by Win- ter street into two districts; the north one was known as No. 1, and the south one as No. 2. In each of these districts a company, consisting of a Captain, one or two subordinate officers, and twenty-five men, was organized ; Henry Moore being Captain in District No. 1, and Edward Potter, a tailor, Captain in the other district. The Captain of the first engine on the ground, at any fire, took command of the whole department, a regulation which added a strong incentive to prompt action on the occasion of an alarm. Four wells were constructed for the use of the department, and supplied with pumps ; one at the junction of North and Sandusky streets, one at the junction of Winter and Sandusky streets, another at the junction of Williams and Sandusky streets, and the fourth at the junction of Winter and Washington streets. In the mean- while, it was made the duty of the Captains of the respective companies to house and take care of the engines belonging to their company. In 1838, the Council decided to' build two engine-houses, and secured a site on William Mansen's lot, on the south- west corner of Williams and Sandusky streets, for one, and on the court-house lot for the other. It was late in 1839, however, before they were completed,
and they cost the corporation, exclusive of painting, $57.45. The town soon outgrew the capacity of these small engines, and, in 1846, the Council purchased a larger hand-engine, selling afterward these smaller ones : one of which is yet to be seen in Mr. Anthoni's brewery. The engine purchased was one of Hunneman's patent, for which they paid $675. In the bill we find enumerated in addition, one long and two short pipes, six torches. with handles, one signal lantern, one bell and irons to engine, 300 feet of leading hose, twelve pairs of brass coupling, and two boxes of packing. bringing the whole amount up to the sum of $978.50.
In submitting this statement, the committee of the Council add, "One-half of the amount we paid out of the engine-fund, the balance we gave a town order for, due six months from the 23d of last October, payable at the Delaware Bank with the current rate of exchange. The transportation from Boston here on the engine, hose, etc., amounted to $86.01 ; a part of the amount was paid out of the engine-fund, the balance was advanced by Mr. Latimer ; for the same he has received an order on the Treasurer. We also got the engine insured in Columbus, for which we paid $9.12 ; the same was included in Mr. Latimer's account." At the same time, the Council provided a hose reel and hook and ladder truck, with ladders, pikes, books, and spanners, at a cost of $147.58. So large an addi- tion to the department necessitated the providing of new accommodations, and the west end of the Williams street market-house was fitted up for that purpose. A re-organization of the companies took place, and a Fire Association was formed, consisting of the company organized to take charge of the new engine, called the Olentangy Engine Company, the Neptune Hose Company, the Rough and Ready Hook and Ladder Company, and the Protection Company, which still worked one of the smaller hand engines. Besides the company officers, there was a Chief Engineer and two Assistant Engineers. The Protection Company soon gave up its organi- zation. Later, the different companies joined to- gether for a festival to raise funds for uniforms, with what result the following report of the com- mittee having the matter in charge will show. They say, " the engine Olentangy and hose cart Neptune were taken to Templar hall, and by the ladies beautifully decorated with evergreens and flowers. The tables were most bountifully spread with 'good things,' and, with the aid of the Dela- ware String Band and vocal performers who kindly volunteered their services, the occasion passed off
359
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
pleasantly and satisfactorily to the citizens and firemen." The net receipts of the entertainment were $199, which was divided among the various companies for the purpose for which it was raised. These festivals were of frequent occurrence after- ward, and were equally pleasant and profitable. Early in 1856, the Fire Association expressed their opinion through a conimittee, that the safety of the town required the addition of another engine to their force. At this suggestion, another com- pany was formed called the Washington Fire Com- pany No. 2, which was supplied with an engine and hose-reel in the October following. This machine was bought from Hunneman & Co., of Boston, and was designated on the bill as a fire engine with five-inch cylinders, vacuum chambers to the suction part, with four sections of suction- hose, copper strainer. wood-saddle, torches, axes, etc., costing 81,184.88, with the freight, $136.58 additional. In the meanwhile, the Council had been considering the question of building two en- gine-houses to accommodate the two machines. By March. 1857, there were two substantial brick structures. one on the corner of the parade ground, still standing, and one on the corner of Franklin and North streets, which has since been torn down, built at a cost of some fifteen hundred dollars. This sufficed for the needs of the city for seven years, when the east part of the town put in a claim for an engine company. In response to this call, the Council in 1864, bought of the city of Cleve- land, a second-hand engine at a cost of $800, and a company was formed to man it. This was but part of the work to be done, and the company began to talk seriously of disbanding before the Council got ready to build a house for their accom- modation. They began to erect an engine house early in 1868. and by the 1st of August it was ready for the company, costing the village the sum of $3,294.76. The town had thus three service- able engines, three hose-reels, a hook and ladder wagon, and companies to operate them. But there was something more needed to make them effective, which we gather from a report of the Chief Engi- neer on February 1, 1869. There was but 1,700 feet of hose, 400 feet of which had become unreliable on account of its long use, and 500 feet was rubber. There was a scareity of water available for the use of engines, a large part of the town being depend- ent upon private wells and cisterns, a very poor re- lianee in time of fire. There were but nine public cisterns, and they were many of them in poor con- dition. The engineer asked for a new wagon for
the hooks and ladders, and a bell for the engine- house east of the river. In the following year. a new element was introduced in the fire depart- ment, which has worked a wonderful change. On December 15, 1870, the city bought a brass-plated Silsby Rotary Engine of the third size, and the old market-house was fitted up for its reception. A team was bought, and George H. Aigin ap- pointed engineer. In 1874, another Silsby Rotary Engine was bought, a nickel-plated machine of the second size. Aigin was transferred to the new engine, which was named the W. E. Mooore, No. 2, and W. E. Kruck was appointed engineer of the first engine bought, the Delaware No. 1. Hitherto the hose reels had been managed by volunteer com- panies, but in this year, a horse hose-reel was bought which displaced the old force. In 1876, the hook and ladder wagon was fitted for horse-power, and the whole fire department was put on a first-class basis. The old shed on the east side of the market-house was inclosed for the hook and ladder, the engines were put in front part of the main building. while the horses were comfortably housed in the rear of the machines. The department is composed of seventeen men, six with the hose-reels, six with the hook and ladder truck, and the rest with the engines, save the Chief who manages the whole. The annual appropriation is $3,500, out of which, besides the expenses of teams, etc., are paid yearly salaries to two engineers and two drivers, the others receiving 50 cents per hour of service. This small complement of men is made to serve the apparatus by the engineer of the Delaware No. 1, acting as the driver of one of the reels. There are but four horses, two for the engine, one for the hose reel. and one for the ladder wagon. The whole apparatus is in one building, and, in case of necessity, the team is sent back for the second engine, and the ladder team goes after the other hose-reel, and the second engineer takes charge of his engine. There is no code of signals, and the alarm is given by the usual outcry when the bells tap the number of the ward. The department have two engines, two hose-reels, a hook and ladder wagon, one hand engine in good repair, and 4,000 feet of fabric hose. Four men are constantly on duty, and the department is furnished with all the conveniences of such establishments in cities. The teams are well trained, the engines are supplied with the Dayton Champion swinging harness, fire torches, etc. The water facilities seem to be unexcelled for a place where the only dependence is upon local reservoirs. There are fourteen cisterns, with a
360
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
capacity of from 250 to 1,200 barrels each. There are two reservoirs made by damming Delaware Run ; one on Washington street, 30x60 feet by 3 feet deep, the other on Main street, 25x30 feet and 18 inches deep, which may be re-enforced from that on Wash- ington street, if desired. Near the dam are two large stone reservoirs, fed by the river, which are practically inexhaustible. Since the re-organization of the department, in 1874, there has been an average of a little over eleven fires per year, with an average of about three false alarms. The department, by its promptness and efficiency, has now the respect of insurance men, and, during the six years of its present efficiency, there have been no serious losses which 'better management of the department could have saved. In 1871, at the burning of the flax-mill, east of the river, the engines were on the ground ready for work in thir- teen minutes, which speaks well for their drill. Their present officers are : Chief Engineer, William J. Davis ; Captain of the Hose, Daniel Jones ; Captain of the Hooks, C. V. Owston; Engineer of the W. E. Moore, No. 2, George H. Aigin ; Engineer of the Delaware No. 1, W. E. Kruck ; Driver of Engine, Jackson Cunningham ; Driver of Hose, Walter F. Watson.
In the original plan of the town, the square bounded by North, Sandusky, Winter and Frank- lin streets, was set off for church purposes, includ- ing the cemetery. It was subsequently vacated, and property in various parts of the town was given to different churches. A few graves, in the meanwhile, were made in what is now known as the Court House Square, but then known as Brier Hill. April 4, 1811, a part of Lot No. 5, situ- ated on the southeast corner of North and San- dusky streets, was sold to the Trustees as a burying- ground for the consideration of $50. The bound- aries began at the northwest corner of the lot, thence one and one-half rods south, thence east seventeen rods, thence south six rods, thence east eighteen rods, and thence north seven and one-half rods to the street, including an acre of ground. This was not used, however, for this purpose, as the Trustees bought a plat of one acre of Dr. Lamb, situated east of Henry street, where the railroad now passes. This began to be used as early as 1812, and, the following winter and spring, num- bers of soldiers were buried there. Many of the old settlers were buried there without anything to mark their graves, and the place of their burial was long ago lost. In excavating for the railroad, all vestiges of remains were taken up and re-buried
in the later cemetery just north of the old one; and it is related. that among others was found the remains of a military officer so well preserved that his rank was identified by his clothes. The place had long since been left to nature, and what Trowbridge has said of another cemetery, may with peculiar fitness be said of this:
" Plumed ranks of tall will cherry And birch surround The half-hid, solitary Old burying-ground.
All the low wall is crumbled And overgrown, And in the turf tumbled, Stone upon stone."
-
About 1820, some two acres of ground was secured east of Henry street, adjoining the old cemetery on the north, and, with later additions. it has increased. until now it borders on the run. This was bought by an association, who paid for it by buying the burying-lots. In 1850, it became evident that more room and better facilities must be had for this purpose, and a committee was appointed by a meeting called for that purpose, to investigate the subject. The report of this con- mittee was made to a meeting held in the court house June 29, 1850, and was written by the Chairman, Dr. R. Hills. It shows the marks of patient investigation, and we quote the historical part of it as the best evidence on the subject extant: "The old ground (the one of 1820), orig- inally appropriated, consisting of about two acres. has long since been taken up, and the only exten- sion since made has been that of a few lots on the north from the private grounds of Mr. Chamber- lain, and of about two acres on the south from the lands of Dr. Reuben Lamb. These extensions have all been made, and the lots been laid off and sold, by the aforesaid private owners. It is ascer- ยท tained that all the land thus appropriated has been taken up, with the exception of three or four lots. It is ascertained, also, that in the inclosure of Dr. Lamb, immediately adjoining the burial ground south, about midway between the road and the river, and about six rods south of the present burial ground, there is an old burying-ground (the one of 1812), of rectangular form, which, with an alley of one and one-half rods in width running out to the road, amounts to one acre. The owner- ship of this ground is vested in Delaware Township. and a deed to the Trustees, duly recorded, is now in the possession of Dr. Lamb. This ground, thiekly populated with the dead, is uninclosed,
5
361
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
separately, and is now, and for many years has been, used by Dr. Lamb (in connection with the surrounding grounds), as a meadow and pasturage. The monuments in this ground are all broken down, and, with the exception of three, are com- pletely defaced and obliterated. It is not long since one of your committee found the widow of one of our earliest citizens [probably Mrs. Joab Norton], seeking in vain in this pasture for the grave of her husband.
"The other grounds are very imperfectly inclosed, in part by a common board fence, and partly by a low, dilapidated rail fence. The condition of the ground itself is deplorable. Many of the monu- ments, for the want of a little care, are broken and defaced and greatly obliterated, and much the larger portion of the whole are leaning from an upright position, in all directions and in all de- grees. In the original grounds there was a straight carriage road running through the middle from west to east, and narrow foot-alleys through the rest of the grounds, but it would require a sur- veyor with compass and chain to find their loca- tions; and your committee are informed that in the additions on the south, the lots are so care- lessly laid off, that instead of having alleys, the lots in some instances are lapping on each other. In addition to these facts, it is evident to any who visit the grounds, that, either by authority or without it, hogs and cattle have been permitted to trample upon and root up these homes of the dead to an extent shameful to the living. It is evident to your committee that two things have become absolutely and essentially necessary. First, the preservation of the old grounds in at least a re- spectably decent condition; and, second, the pur- chase or appropriation of more burying-ground either here or elsewhere." This report was accepted and practically adopted. The old ground has been surrounded by a neat fence, and the whole bears a well-kept appearance. On July 13, 1850, a joint-stock company was formed, and, later, the Kilbourn farm of fifty acres, just south of town, was bought, and named the Oak Grove Cemetery. On July 24, 1851, the dedicatory exercises were held, when the following programme of exercises was presented: Invocation, by Rev. Henry Van Deman; music, original ode, by B. F. Cushing ; reading Scriptures, by W. C. French; prayer, by Rev. Dr. Thomson; music, original
ode by Dr. R. Hills: preliminary address, by Dr. R. Hills, President of the Association; dedicatory address, by Prof. F. Merrick ; music, original ode by J. Larimore; benediction, by Rev. E. H. Pilcher.
The grounds thus dedicated lie one mile south of the central part of the village, on the west side of the turnpike. It is nearly square in shape, being eighty rods on the road by one hundred east and west. About one-half has been cleared off, and has been cultivated; the rest is in its natural state, save where the hand of art has removed the signs of natural decay. The surface is undulating. abounding in situations, which are being admirably improved for the purpose to which it has been devoted, while through the northern portion runs a little rivulet which passes through the entire length of the grounds from west to east, reaching out its branches into all parts of the tract. The grounds were transferred to the city in 1862, and are now cared for by a special tax, as are the other departments of the city. The appropriation is quite generous, which, expended by good taste, has rendered Oak Grove Cemetery a place where the last earthly home of loved ones may be made in "a sweet, secluded spot, where the green lawn beneath the sylvan oak or spreading elm, the cool shade, the rippling water and the rustling leaves. the cheerful song of the wild bird, and all the voices of nature in her own beautiful home, con- spire to render it a place where all may refresh wearied nature, and find food for profitable medita- tion." The scene, on a lovely summer's day, is fit to inspire in every heart the sentiment expressed in the closing ode of the dedicatory exercises:
" Beneath these shades, how sweet to sleep, And know affection's care Hath made this home, this resting-place, And laid our bodies there. These evergreens shall emblems be Of that bright state above, When truth and mercy concentrate, In one eternal love.
"Great God of love ! we dedicate These hills and vales to Thee, To hold Thy dead of every name ; ' God's Acre' let this be, And may the souls whose bodies lie Within this beauteous calm,
Be resting in the bosom of The heavenly Paschal Lamb !"
362
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
CHAPTER XII .*
DELAWARE CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS-THE UNIVERSITY-MONNETT HALL-OHIO BUSINESS COLLEGE.
"'Tis education forms the common mind."
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