USA > Ohio > Erie County > History of Erie County Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 51
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Ceylon on the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad is directly north of Berlin Heights, and grew to its present size in an incredibly short time. It has two stores, two saloons, a hotel, a post-office and a saw-mill. There are six cemeteries in the township, one of which is being washed away by the united force of Chapelle Creek and the lake. The others are at Berlin- ville, Berlin Heights and Harpen's Corners.
Incidents belonging to this history might be given sufficient to fill a book, but a few connected with those who were most prominent in the townships his- tory must not be omitted. Perhaps no man had more influence in shaping the minds of the first decade than the Baptist Elder, Joshua Phillips, to whom we have referred in the previous pages. He came from New York, and alternated his labors in preaching, clearing away the forest and doing mason work. His children became identified with the interests of the country, and one of them had quite a reputation for success in treating climatic diseases, and when in later years he gave up his practice, he became a disciple of Ralph W. Emerson and Parker, and read constantly. He industriously collected many of the facts that make history so interesting and preserved them for later generations.
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Hudson Tuttle, a son of one of the early settlers, still lives at Berlin Height. and both himself and wife are widely known as staunch spiritualists, and lite :- rary characters. Mr. Tuttle has himself devoted much time to writing up the his- tory of this portion of the fire-lands, which he has done in a masterly manner.
CHAPTER XXII.
HISTORY OF FLORENCE TOWNSHIP.
T HE name of this township was originally Jessup, from Ebenezer Jessup. one of the first owners of the soil. It was subsequently changed to Flor- ence. It is situated directly south of Vermillion, and east of Berlin, and is said to be one of the most fertile townships in the county. It was first surveyed in 1807, but was afterward surveyed by Jabez Wright into lots in 1809.
The surface is rolling, and the soil a sandy loam and clay. Fine timber formerly grew in abundance, and white oak, ash, walnut, hickory, beech and maple were obtained here in large quantities. Quarries of sandstone have been · opened in various parts of the township, but one after another have been aban- doned until the only one worked a few years ago was that known as the King Quarry. This was peculiarly adventitious to the settlers, as it supplied them with grindstones.
Vermillion River, which has its rise in a little lake of the same name in Ashland county, passes through this township on its way to the lake. There is but one other water-course in the township; Chapelle Creek, that rises in Townsend, and entering Florence from Wakeman, a mile and a quarter cast of the west town line, empties into Lake Erie.
Wild animals were found here many years after the first settlers came, b .: larger game like bears and wolves, belonged more to the marshy districts, and were seldom seen here. Deer, wild turkeys and smaller game abounded. Tl:c honor of killing the first bear fell upon two of the best shots in the country, Richard Brewer and Christopher Schaeffer. The latter was out with his gun one evening when a bear ran across his path ; as he raised his gun, some snu, fell on it, and obscured the sight and the bear got away. The next morning he obtained the assistance of Brewer and two good dogs, and tracked the bear into Berlin. Here he ran into a log and was wounded by Brewer's shot, whis was the signal for the dogs to make the attack. They were worsted, however, and Brewer grabbed the bear by the fur, and plunged his hatchet into his head. At this, he loosed the dogs and rolled over dead. He was an unusually lar :: one, his flesh on his sides measuring six inches. This man Schaeffer was a famous hunter and killed more bears than any one in the township. He was
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noted for his success in deer hunting, and is said to have killed over a thousand. In one season he killed seventy.
The first settlement was made by Ezra Sprague and family, who came to the mouth of the Huron by water in May, 1809, and then went to Florence through an unbroken wilderness. Here he located and remained till his death. He was from that glorious part of New England which poet and painter have raved over, the Berkshire Hills. There is no reason given why this man should leave a home amid nature's beauty to build up a new home in a new country.
The Indians kept the settlers in a constant state of alarm and anxiety, and from the year 1810 to 1815 no new families came into the settlement. By this time a road had been opened from Rocky River to Huron, and those who de- sired could come by the land as well as water. Indians in straggling bands were always coming and going, and life had little cheer. The slightest reports of Indians having been seen in the vicinity filled every heart with alarm, and when war was declared all settlers were apprehensive about their safety. At one time they determined to fortify themselves by assembling in one house, and a block house was selected for this purpose, but some of them thought this movement unwise, and the thing was almost given up, when a circumstance occurred that proved the wisdom of the measure. One of them was moving his family to this house near sundown, and had given his gun to a young man with orders to go ahead and keep a sharp lookout for Indians, while he came on with his team and family.
All went well until they were within half a mile of the fortress, when the re- port of gun was heard, and the young man came running back, saying he had been shot at by two Indians. The settlers knew from this that they might ex- pect an attack that night, and proceeded to do all in their power to protect themselves. The doors were barricaded, and women and children sent into the chamber. Those who had guns stood ready to fire, and the rest armed them- selves with clubs and pitchforks. In the middle of the night the alarm was given, and the Indians approached the building swinging fire-brands in their hands. The settlers had not thought of this mode of attack, and were greatly alarmed at the thought of being forced from the house by fire, or destroyed in the flames. It resulted in no serious danger, and as the young man who said he had been shot at, slept all night, they mistrusted that he must have given a false alarm. What they took to be Indians in the night, must have been sparks blown by the wind.
The trials of those early years cannot be estimated by the citizens of the township to-day. Clothing, food, household conveniences were all meagre, and barely sufficient for their needs. They had no money but that made by cutting larger money into pieces. The first paper money was Oil Creek bank notes, of six and one-fourth, twelve and one-half, thirty-seven and one-half, and fifty cents. This bank soon failed, and all who owned any money lost it.
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Salt was then worth ten dollars a barrel, and two hundred pounds of maple sugar would purchase two barrels of salt. Tea was then worth two dollars and fifty cents a pound; homespun woolen, four dollars a yard, and everything else in proportion.
The organization of the township took place in 1817. Ezra Sprague was first magistrate. The first election was held in the log school-house, near the residence of John Brooke. The number of voters were seventeen.
Schools did not receive much attention during the first years of the history of the township, and the first school-house was built at Sprague's Corners, on land owned by J. Brooks. The first teacher was Ruth Squire, and her school was supported by the parents of the scholars. This school-house was after- wards demolished and rebuilt on the south side of the road. The second school-house was located half a mile west of Birmingham, and this also had a lady for its first teacher. There is a historic account of her tribulations with certain individuals because she insisted on opening the school with prayer.
Churches have been started at various times, until nearly all denominations have been represented in this township. The first meetings were held at the house of Eli S. Barnum, at Florence Corners, under the care of itinerant min- isters. The first religious society organised was under Congregational auspices. This meeting was also held at the house of Mr. Barnum, and was conducted by a missionary named Loomis. This society included members from Vermillion, Wakeman and Clarksfield, as well as Florence. The present Congregational Church was organized January 7, 1832, by a committee of the Presbytery of Huron, consisting of the J. B. Bradstreet, Xenophon Bitts and Samuel Dunton. It had at that time seventeen members, and Uriah Hawley was chosen clerk.
The church building was completed in 1842, costing $2,012. The lot upon which it was located was donated by Jessup Wakeman. For several years this church had to depend on preachers from the neighboring towns. In 1842 the first regular pastor, Rev. Eldad Barber, was called to take charge of it and remained in charge until 1871, almost thirty years. He was followed by Hub- bard Lawrence who remained until 1878, and he was succeeded by Rev. Mr. Hale, and he by Rev. Mr. Wright. The church never became very large, and fifty years after its organization its membership numbered few, if any more, than when it started.
The first Congregational Church of Birmingham was originally presbyterian. It was organized in 1838 by a committee of three from different townships. Seven years later it adopted the congregational form of government, but con- tinued under the care of the presbytery until 1874, when it withdrew. Eldad Barber was the first preacher. Revs. Goodell and Carlisle followed him, and he in turn succeeded them. The last preacher was C. C. Creegan, of Wake- man, and after a time services were abandoned, and the building was occupied by the Methodist Episcopal society.
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The Methodists at first held their meetings in the old log school-house one mile from Florence Corners, as early 1816 or 1817, at which Rev. Nathan Smith usually officiated. In the past fifty years this society has grown, and more than one now are flourishing where this feeble one started.
There has also been a Baptist Church started and organized as far back as 1818, by a minister from Richland county, Rev. John Rigdon. At the same time another Baptist Church was organized in Lorain county, when meetings were held in the school house about a mile east of Birmingham. The Baptists from Florence finally united with these, and in July, 1837, by resolution of the church of Henrietta, a branch was organized at Birmingham consisting of nine members. The society was called the Henrietta and Birmingham Baptist Church. In May, 1840, this branch organized into an independent church.
The Church of the Disciples was organized at Birmingham with forty mem- bers in 1845. It continued to prosper, and increased its membership from forty to seventy, when one of its preachers, Sidney Rigdon, became a convert to Mormonism and drew off one-half the church. A building was erected the same year in which the society was organized, costing twelve hundred dollars. For many years there was no service.
The Evangelical Church was formed twenty years ago with a membership of about twenty. They did not build until 1866.
The postoffice was at Florence Corners, in the days when the first mail route through the township extended from Cleveland to the county seat on the Huron River. Eli S. Barnum was first postmaster.
The first store was opened at Birmingham by Erastus Butler, and in the tax reports of 1826 he was the only trader mentioned. His capital at that time was eighteen hundred dollars. Two years later another name was added, that of Cyrus Butler, with a capital of five hundred dollars. The year following Ferris & Wood, of Florence Corners were assessed on seven hundred and fifty dollars. In 1830 J. V. Vredenburg came in with a capital of six hundred dollars; J. L. Wood with six hundred and Charles P. Judson with seven hun- dred.
Iron was manufactured in this township from ore obtained in Vermillion by a pioneer of Florence, Cyrus Butler, who was at one time owner of the old mills at Birmingham, and had a forge near his mills. The works were carried off by a freshet.
An ax factory was also located there for a short time, under the care of a man named Pratt.
Birmingham and Florence Corners are the only villages in the township, and the former has been a place of considerable business activity, but it failed to secure a railroad, and has gradually grown more and more stagnant. The quality of the inhabitants is indicated by the fact that the Prohibition party counts several adherents among their number, and it is said there is not a saloon in the township. 58
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Birmingham has a population at present of about three hundred and fifty. and has two schools well supported. There is a Methodist Episcopal Church, a Congregational Church and an Adventist organization. The first is the only one that has a pastor at the present time.
A handle-factory has been started here and several changes in a business way. It has also a hotel, a blacksmith shop, three stores, one saw-mill and several smaller industries.
CHAPTER XXIII.
HISTORY OF GROTON TOWNSHIP.
T HIS was originally known as the township of Wheatsborough. It was named after Mr. Wheat, who originally owned the greater portion of it, and the name was afterwards changed by request of some of the inhabitants, among whom was Nathan Strong, an old pioneer.
The physical features of Groton are not unlike those of its neighbors, gen- erally level, dotted here and there with oak groves, and settled with thrifty, industrious, farmers, many of whom are Germans. Half the township is prairie. the northern half is covered with scrubby timber. The soil is rich, black muck in the south, with a sprinkling of sand; while the northern portion has a limestone soil, with a substratum of limestone adapted to building purposes. A small stream runs through the township, rising in Lyme and flowing in a northeasterly direction to Oxford. The Indians gave it the name of Pipe Creek, which it still retains. Along its banks and at the bottom is found a soft clay used by the savages for making pipes. In former times a lime kiin was in operation here, but of late years it has been discontinued, and the stone is sent into a neighboring township to be burned, where several kilns are sup- plied by it.
Wild animals formerly abounded here as elsewhere on the fire-lands, and those now living remember the time distinctly when wolves, deer, wildcats. foxes, wild turkeys, racoons and prairie-chickens were hunted and killed here. In an old record is a vivid word-picture of the method by which the natives used to attempt to catch wild turkeys. Mr. Rash relates:
"To see about one hundred Indians surround the same number of wild turkeys, to see the turkeys fly without one of them being killed, and to hear the outlandish gutteral ejaculations of the exasperated red-skins, wishing the turkeys were in a place decidely remote from the happy hunting-grounds. was very funny to the spectators."
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GROTON TOWNSHIP.
The Indians of this township were mostly members of the Senecas, and in many respects differed from the Wyandots and neighboring tribes. These were one of the nations included in the Iroquois Confederacy, and noted like them for the wisdom and genuine simplicity of character which has ever given them a place in history. The Seneca Red Jacket, the Cayuga Logan, and the Oneida Shenandoah are proof of the eloquence that distinguished them, while the fact that matrons were represented in their public councils, and exercised a veto influence in questions of peace and war, prove their advance and cultiva- tion in all that make men and nations great.
Groton township is number five in range twenty-four, and is bounded on the north by Margaretta, south by Lyme, in Huron county, east by Oxford, and west by the townships of York and Townsend, in Sandusky county. Its organization dates to June 2, 1834, when an election was held at the house of William McCord, and the following were elected for the first officers: Trustees, Nathaniel Chapman, Bishop Stebbins, Nathan Strong; clerk, Hiram Deyo; treasurer, Stephen Crippen; justice of peace, Stephen Crippen ; constable, Joshua Lace ; fence viewers, George Cook, Orange Potter, Elaphall Toppen ; poor-masters, James Bemiss, James Morecraft.
The first settlement in Groton township was made on Pipe Creek by Jona- than Sprague, Squire Richey, and others in 1809. In 1811 Captain Seth Harrington, for many years one of the most prominent men of his township, moved in from Conneaut, Ohio, with his family. He was originally from Rhode Island. He had a family of ten children. Among other early settlers were Hiram Blackman, George Furguson, Alexis Jackson, William James, Phineas Dunham, and others.
Squire Richey felled the first tree and built the first log-house. These log- cabins were very primitive affairs, but much more comfortable than those that had been built on the fire-lands by the wandering squatters who preceded them. These had built bark huts, with four posts and a ridge-pole. Layers of bark were wound round the sides of the post, over-lapping, so as to shed rain, and the roof was laid on in the same way. The trials of the early settlers were very great. Not only were they in danger from Indians, but they suf- fered from scarcity of food and clothing. There was not a family in this re- gion during the years 1809 and 1810 who did not endure these hardships in some form. Wild meat could be procured, it is true, but living entirely upon this developed feebleness and disease on every one except the savages. For many years after the war of 1812 clothing was made from the skins of wild animals, and caps of raccoon skin, with the fur outside, jackets and pantaloons of deer skin, and other garments to match were universally worn. There were no tanneries to dress leather, and when wet these articles became hard as a board, so that if thrown on the floor they rattled like tin kettles. A man draw- ing on these garments in mid-winter, felt about as comfortable as if wearing
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pieces of stove-pipe. Besides all these inconveniences, the season became sickly, and for several years privation and distress followed the settlers.
Touching stories are found in the ancient records of events in Ohio during those early days, and we read with astonishment and wonder at the motive that induced those men to take their families to the new country where suffer- ing and danger awaited them. One young man with his family settled in thick woods, cleared his small patch of ground, became sick and died. Soon after a hunter passing the clearing saw everything still and mistrusted there must be something wrong with the family. He opened the door, and was startled by the appearance of a woman sitting by the fire, pale and emaciated, holding in her arms a sickly babe. She burst into tears and at length said, "There is my little Edward," pointing to the bed, "I expect he is dying. And here is my babe, so sick I cannot lay it down, and I am so weak I can hardly sit in my chair. O, that I was back in my own country, where I could fall in the arms of my mother !" Tears rolled down the cheeks of the hunter as he walked away for help.
Amusing stories are told by the pioneers, of the make-shifts so necessary at that time, and in the light and comfort of the present they are sometimes heard to say, " Ah! those happy days of primitive simplicity when all family pride was forgotten in general friendship and kindness of personal attachment." Could any amount of conventional elegance compensate for the hearty hos- pitality related in an old history when a visit was gotten up by the ladies to call on a neighbor who lived at a distance. The hostess at once began prep- arations for tea. She had but one fire-proof vessel, an old bake oven, and of course it would take some time. Some pork was fried in the kettle first to get lard, then cakes were made and fried in the lard, then short-cakes were made and baked in it, then it was used as a bucket to draw water, which was after- ward heated in it and the tea made in it. It is needless to say that at these times it was not customary for the young ladies to go barefoot.
The first frame house was built by Seth Harrington in 1817, and was occu- pied by himself and wife until his death, a few years since.
The first child born in this township was a daughter of George Furguson, named Ann. She afterward moved to Michigan and married a man named Phillips. The first death in the little settlement was that of a man named Standish Wood. There were no undertakers on the fire-lands then, and sorrow lacked even the accompaniments that made it more bearable. Instead of ele- gant coffins and plumed hearse, the bereaved were obliged to see their loved ones buried in rudest simplicity, and this first funeral is mentioned as an instance of the extremity to which the early settlers were reduced. The coffin, in this instance, was made from the boards of a wagon box, and those that were not used at this time were kept for another occasion. When the wagon box was at length used up, Seth Harrington and George Sprague made several coffins from oak trees, split into puncheons and dressed down to look like boards.
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Money was a minus quantity. Dollars and cents did not estimate the value of people and their surroundings as at present, and when small change was needed a silver dollar was cut into four or more pieces, and this was usually done in such a manner as to add twenty-five per cent to its real value.
The post-office was at Cleveland, and all mails for the fire-lands were re- ceived here, until a route was established between Cleveland and Detroit, which was to pass through Groton and vicinity. John Paxton carried the mail in 1814.
The first physician was Dr. W. Hastings, who commenced practicing in the early part of 1810. After the War of 1812 he moved to Knox county, Ohio, where he was elected member of the Legislature. He returned to Groton with his family in 1815. His wife died in 1848, and their descendants still reside in the country. They had eight children, all sons. Ephraim removed to San- dusky county in 1825, where his son, W. G. Hastings, was for many years en- gaged in business in Parkertown, but now resides in Sandusky city. Ephraim continued to reside in Groton. The rest of the family are scattered all over- some in California, and one when last heard from was in Australia. The doc- tor continued to practice until his death in 1864, at the ripe age of eighty-nine years. He practiced forty years in the family of Seth Harrington.
The first magistrate was elected in 1816, and as Squire Richey, has lived in history in connection with a story told of a young couple he met (while riding over the prairie), who were going to his house to be married. He dismounted, and on the broad prairie, with heaven's blue above them, proceeded to unite them in the holy bonds of wedlock.
The first school was taught by Elijah Fleming in 1818, and was supported by subscriptions that amounted to fourteen dollars a month, and the school was supported by the prominent families of the township, viz., the Paxtons, Magills, Harringtons and others. This school was a mere hint of what the fu- ture decades would do on educational lines, and the pretty brick school-houses now found every few miles, show that the prophecy has been more than real- ized. There is nothing of which Ohio has juster cause for pride than her school buildings and educational laws.
The farms of Groton are surpassed by none in other townships. Large, finely cultivated, well fenced, and stocked with good cattle, the owners have homes they are justly proud of. Among those whose names deserve a place in the history of Groton, are the early settlers Amos McClouth, Samuel Be- miss, Charles Rash and Worthington Nims.
Amos McClouth came into the township in 1817, with three other families. They came from the beautiful Berkshire hills of Massachusetts, and must have found in the level landscape of Ohio, and the russet colors of her forests in au- tumn a great contrast to the gorgeous scenery they left behind. Mr. Mc- Clouth, however, remained in his new home, and out of a family of ten child-
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ren only three were living in 1880. He himself died in 1870 at the age of s ... . enty-six. He held several prominent positions in the county and was at one time clerk of Court of Common Pleas. Although there were Indians in the neighborhood of the new settlement, there was no cause of fear and no hosti !- ities were known.
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