USA > Ohio > Fayette County > History of Fayette County, Ohio : her people, industries and institutions > Part 5
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Butler county was formed in 1803 from Hamilton. It is within the blue limestone formation, and one of the most fertile sections of Ohio. Ham- ilton, the county seat, is situated on the Great Miami. Its hydraulic works furnish superior water power. Rossville, on the opposite side of the Miami, is a large mercantile town. St. Clair passed through this county on his Indian campaigns in 1791, building Fort Hamilton on the Miami.
Champaign county was formed March 1, 1805, from Greene and Frank- lin. It is drained by Mad river and its tributaries. The soil is fertile, and produces wheat, corn, barley, hay, while beef and wool add to the general wealth. Urbana, the county seat, was laid out in 1805, by Col. William Ward. He was the chief owner of the land and donated many lots to the county under condition that their proceeds be devoted to public improvements. Joseph Vance and George Fithian were the first settlers. The Methodists built the first church in 1807. The main army of Hull concentrated at this point before setting out for Detroit. Many Indian councils were called here and Tecumseh was located for a time near Deer creek.
Carroll county was formed from Columbiana in 1832-33. It produces wheat, oats and corn, and valuable coal and iron. The surface is hilly. Car- rollton is its county seat.
Clark county was formed March 1, 1817, from Champaign, Madison and Greene. Its second settlement was at Kreb's Station in 1796. It is highly cultivated, well watered and very fertile. Tecumseh, the old Indian warrior, was born at the ancient Indian village of Piqua, on the Mad river
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on the site of New Boston. Piqua was destroyed by Gen. George Rogers Clark. Skeletons, beads, gun barrels, tomahawks, kettles, etc., have been found in the vicinity. Springfield, the county seat, is situated on the national road. It has convenient transportation facilities, is handsomely laid out, and is noted for its cultured citizens. It is near Mad river and Buck creek runs ·through it.
Clinton county was formed in 1810. Its surface is undulating, in some parts hilly, and the soil fertile. The county was settled in 1798-99. Wil- mington is the county seat, and was laid out in 1810. The first log house was built by William Hobsin.
Clermont county was the eighth formed in the Northwest Territory by proclamation of Governor St. Clair, December 9, 1800. The soil is exceed- ingly rich, and the surface is broken and, near the Ohio, hilly. Wheat, corn, oats, hay, potatoes, tobacco, barley, buckwheat and rye form the main crops. Batavia, its county seat, is situated on the Little Miami river and was laid out in 1820 by George Ely.
Columbiana county was formed March 25, 1803, from Jefferson and Washington. Its soil is very fertile, producing wheat, corn, oats and potatoes. It is wealthy in mineral deposits, coal, iron ore, lime and freestone being abundant. Its water-line stone is of superior quality. It was settled in 1797. Lisbon is the county seat. The first paper mill in Ohio was erected in this county, on Little Beaver creek, by John Coulter and John Bever.
Coshocton county was organized April 1, 1811. Hills and valleys alter- nate along the Muskingum river. Coal and iron ore add to its general im- portance. Coshocton, the county seat, is built on four wide, natural terraces, at the junction of the Tuscarawas and Walhonding.
Cuyahoga county was formed June 7. 1807, from Geauga county. Near the lake the soil is sandy, while a clayey loam may be found elsewhere. As early as 1775 there was a French settlement within the boundaries of Cuya- hoga. In 1786 a Moravian missionary came to the present site of Cleve- land and settled in an abandoned village of the Ottawas. Circumstances pre- vemed a permanent settlement, and the British tacitly took possession, even remaining upon the lake shores after the Revolution. The first permanent settlement was made at Cleveland in 1796. Job V. Stiles and family and Edward Paine passed the first winter there, their log cabin standing where the Commercial Bank is now located. Rodolphus Edwards and Na- thaniel Doane settled here. In 1813 the town was a depot of supplies and a rendezvous for troops engaged in the war. Cleveland, the county seat, is
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situated at the northern termination of the old Ohio canal on the lake shore. In 1814 it was incorporated as a village, and in 1836 as a city. Its elevation is about a hundred feet above the lake. Ohio City is another important town nearly opposite Cleveland on the Cuyahoga. It was incorporated in 1836.
Crawford county was formed April 1, 1820, from the old Indian Terri- tory. The entire county is adapted to grazing. The soil is generally com- posed of rich vegetable loam and in some parts the subsoil is clay mixed with lime. Rich beds of shell marl have been discovered. Bucyrus, the county seat, was laid out February II, 1822, by Samuel Norton and James Kil- bourn, original owners of the land. The first settler in the town proper was Samnel Norton. Crawford's sulphur springs are located nine miles from Bucyrus. The water is impregnated with sulphuretted hydrogen and deposits a reddish-purple sediment. In its nature the water is a cathartic, and is diuretic and diaphoretic in its effects. The Annapolis Sulphur Spring is clear and has gained considerable fame by its curative qualities. Opposite Bucyrus is a chalybeate spring of tonic qualities.
Darke county was organized in March. 1817, from Miami county. In this county occurred the lamentable defeat of St. Clair, and the treaty of Greenville. Greenville, the county seat, was laid out August 10, 1808, by Robert Gray and John Dover. In December, 1793, Wayne built Fort Green- ville on this spot, which covered about the same extent as the present town.
Delaware county was formed February 10, 1808, from Franklin. Dela- ware. the county seat. was laid out in the spring of 1808, by Moses Byxbe.
Defiance county was created March 4, 1845, from Williams, Henry and Paulding. The Manmee, Tiffin and Auglaize flow through it. The county is now one of the largest producers of sugar beets in Ohio. Defiance. the county seat, is situated on the Maumee. It was laid out in 1822 by B. Level and H. Phillips. A large Indian settlement occupied its site in very early times. Wayne arrived here August 8. 1794, captured the place, finding about one thousand acres of corn, peach and apple orchards and vegetables of all varieties. Here he built Fort Defiance.
Erie county was formed in 1838 from Huron and Sandusky. The soil is alluvial and yields large crops of wheat, corn, oats and potatoes. It pos- sesses inexhaustible quarries of limestone and freestone. The Erie tribe is said to have once occupied the land and were extirpated by the Iroquois. As early as 1754 the French had built settlements here. In 1764 the county was overrun by Pontiac, who came here with warlike demonstrations, but made peace with the whites. Erie was included in the "fire lands" of the Western
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Reserve. Sandusky City is the county seat and was laid out in 1817, then termed Portland. At that time it contained two log huts. The town is finely situated and is based upon an inexhaustible quarry of the finest limestone. In the "patriot war" with the Canadians, this city was the rendezvous for the "patriots."
Franklin county was formed April 30, 1803, from Ross. It was in early times occupied by the Wyandot Indians. Its first white settlement was made in 1797 by Robert Armstrong and others. Franklinton was laid out in 1797 by Lucas Sullivan. Worthington was settled by the Scioto Company in 1801. Colonel Kilbourn, who was interested in the work, constructed the first map of Ohio during his explorations by uniting sectional diagrams. Columbus, the capital of the state, is also the county seat of Franklin county. In 1810 the sessions of the Legislature were held at Chillicothe, in 1811 and 1812 at Zanesville, removing again to Chillicothe, and in 1816 being located at Columbus. The town was laid out during the spring of 1812. A penitentiary was erected in 1813 and the state house was built in 1814. It was incorpor- ated as "the borough of Columbus" February 10, 1816. The city charter was granted March 3, 1834. It is beautifully located on the east bank of the Scioto. The Ohio Lunatic Asylum, the Ohio Institution for the Education of the Blind and the Ohio Institution for the Education of the Deaf and Dumb are located at Columbus.
Fairfield county was formed by proclamation of Governor St. Clair. December 9, 1800. The soil is varied, being in some parts exceedingly rich, and in others very sterile. Lancaster, the county seat, was laid out by Ebenezer Zane in 1800. In 1797 he opened the road known as "Zane's Trace," from Wheeling to Limestone-now Maysville. It passed through Lancaster at a fording about three hundred yards below the present turnpike bridge.
Fayette county was formed from Ross and Highland in 1810. Wash- ington, its county seat, was laid out in 1810. Colonel Stewart was active in the interests of this section and his memory is sacredly revered. Jesse Milli- kan was prominent in early public affairs.
Fulton county, bordering on Michigan, was organized in 1850. It is drained by Bean creek and other small affluents of the Maumee river. The surface is nearly level and the soil fertile. Wauseon is the county seat.
Guernsey county was organized in March, 1810. It produces wheat. corn and oats. Cambridge is the county seat and was laid out in June, 1806. Mr. Graham was the first settler on the site of the town and his was the only
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dwelling between Lancaster and Wheeling. The first cannel coal found in the county was discovered near Mill's creek.
Greene county was formed May 1, 1803, from Hamilton and Ross. It produces wheat. corn, rye, grass seed, oats, barley, sheep and swine. The Shawnee town was on the Little Miami and was visited by Capt. Thomas Bullit in 1773. When Daniel Boone was captured in 1778, he was brought to this town and escaped the following year. General Clark invaded this county and the Indians reduced the town to ashes. Nenia, the county seat, was laid off in the forest in 1803 by Joseph C. Vance. The first cabin was erected in April, 1804, by John Marshall. The Rev. James Fowler built the first hewed-log cabin. David A. Sanders built the first frame house. Nine miles north of the town, on the Little Miami river, are the Yellow Springs, which are impregnated with sulphur.
Geauga county was formed in 1805 from Trumbull. It is situated at the head of Chargrine, Cuyahoga and a part of Grand rivers, on high ground and is subjected to snow storms more frequently than any other part of the reserve. Its first settlement was made in 1798 at Burton. Chardon is four- teen miles from Lake Erie and is six hundred feet above it. It was laid out as the county seat in 1808.
Gallia county was formed April 30, 1803. from Washington. The sur- face is generally broken. Its first settlement was made in 1791 by a French colony at Gallipolis. This colony was sent out under the auspices of the Scioto Company. This town is now the county seat.
Hamilton county was the second established in the Northwest Terri- tory by proclamation of Governor St. Clair, January 2, 1700. Its surface is generally rolling. It produces the ordinary farm products and a great variety of fruits and vegetables for the Cincinnati market. This county was the second settled in Ohio and the first within the Symmes Purchase. Settlers arrived at the spot now occupied by Cincinnati and three or four log cabins were erected. Gen. Arthur St. Clair arrived here in January, 1790. The army of Wayne encamped here later, at Fort Washington. Mr. Maxwell established, in 1793, the "Sentinel of the Northwestern Territory," the first newspaper printed north of the Ohio river. In 1796 Edward Freeman be- came its proprietor and changed the name to "Freeman's Journal." January II, 1794, two keel-boats sailed from Cincinnati to Pittsburgh, making regu- lar trips every four weeks. In 1801 the first sea vessel built at Marietta came down the Ohio. Cincinnati, the county seat, was incorporated January 2, 1802. It was chartered as a city in 1819. The city is beautifully laid out and
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delight fully situated. Its public buildings are elegant and substantial, includ- ing the court house and many literary and charitable institutions.
Cincinnati is a large manufacturing city and possesses fine water-power facilities. It communicates with the world by means of the Ohio river, rail- ways and electric lines. North Bend is another prominent town in this county, having been the residence of Gen. William H. Harrison, and the site of his burial place. The town was of considerable importance in the early settlement of the state. About thirty yards from Harrison's tomb is the grave of Judge Symmes.
Hancock county was formed April 1, 1820. The surface is level and its soil is fertile. Blanchard's Fork waters the central and southern part of the county. Findlay, the county seat, was laid out by ex-Governor Joseph Vance and Elnathan Corry in 1821. It was relaid in 1820. William Vance settled there in the fall of 1821.
Hardin county was formed April 1, 1820, from the old Indian Terri- tory. : \ portion of the surface is level and the remainder undulating. Fort Mc Arthur was built on the Scioto river but proved a weak stockade. Kenton is the county seat, situated on the Scioto river.
Harrison county was formed from Jefferson and Tuscarawas, January 1. 1814. The surface is hilly, abounding in coal and limestone. Its soil is clayey. In April, 1799, Alexander Henderson and family settled in this county, and at the same time Daniel Peterson and his family resided at the forks of Short creek. The early settlers were much annoyed by Indians and wild beasts. Cadiz is the county seat and was laid out in 1803 and 1804 by Messrs. Briggs and Beatty.
Henry county was formed from the old Indian Territory April 1, 1820. Indian corn, oats, potatoes and maple sugar constitute the main products. The county is well supplied with running streams and the soil is unusually rich. The soil is superior for grain. Fruit thrives and all varieties of vege- tables are produced in large quantities. Simon Girty, notorious for his wicked career, resided in this county. Girty led the attack on Fort Henry in September, 1777. He demanded the surrender of the fort, and menaced its inmates with an Indian massacre in case of refusal. The action began, but the fort gained the victory. He led a ferocious band of Indians and com- mitted the most fiendish atrocities. Napoleon, the county seat, is situated on the Maumee river.
Highland county was formed in May. 1805, from Ross, Adams and Clermont. . It is a wealthy, productive county. Its first settlement began in
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1801, at New Market by Oliver Ross, Robert Keeston, George W. Barrere. Bernard Weyer and others. Simon Kenton made a trace through this county in early time. Hillsboro is the county seat and was laid out in 1807 by David Hays on the land of Benjamin Ellicott. It is situated on the dividing ridge between the Miami and Scioto. The Hillsboro Academy was founded in 1827.
Hocking county was formed March 1, 1818, from Ross, Athens and Fairfield. Its surface is broken and hilly, but is level and fertile beside the streams. The Wyandots once occupied this tract and built a large town herein. In 1798 a few white families ventured to settle. Logan is its county seat and is situated on the Hocking river.
Holmes county was formed from Coshocton, Tuscarawas and Wayne January 20, 1824. The southwestern portion is broken. Thomas Butler was the first settler in 1810. Millersburg is the county seat and was laid out in 1830.
Huron county was organized in 1815. Norwalk is the county seat.
Jackson county was organized March, 1816. The country is rich in minerals and abounds in coal and iron ore. Jackson, the county seat, was laid out in 1817. The old Scioto salt works were among the first worked in Ohio by the whites. Prior to this period the Indians came some distance to this section to make salt. When Daniel Boone was a prisoner he spent some time at these works.
Jefferson county was proclaimed by Covernor St. Clair July 29, 1797, and was the fifth county established in Ohio. Its resources in coal are also extensive. The surface is hilly and the soil fertile, producing wheat, corn and oats. The old "Mingo" town was on the present farms of Jeremiah Hallock and Daniel Potter. The troops of Colonel Williamson ren- dezvoused at this point when they set out in their cruel Moravian campaign and also the troops of Colonel Crawford, when they started on the campaign against the Sandusky Indians. Here Logan, the powerful and manly chief of the Mingo nation, once resided. He took no active part in the old French war, which closed in 1760, except that of a peacemaker. He was a stanch friend of the whites until the abominable and unprovoked murder of his father. brother and sister, which occurred in 1774 near the Yellow creek. He then raised the battle cry and sought revenge.
However, Logan was remarkably magnanimous toward prisoners who fell into his hands The year 1793 was the last spent in Indian warfare in Jefferson county. Fort Steuben was erected on the present site of Steuben-
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FAYETTE COUNTY, OHIO.
ville, the county seat. in 1789. It was constructed of block-houses, with palisade fences and was dismantled during Wayne's campaign. Bezaleel Wells and Hon. James Ross laid the town out in 1798. It was incorporated February 14, 1805. It is situated upon an elevated plain. In 1814 Messrs. Wells and Dickerson built a woolen manufactory and introduced Merino sheep to the county.
Knox county was formed March 1, 1808, from Fairfield. It is drained by the Vernon river. Mount Vernon was laid out in 1805. The early settlers found two wells on the Vernon river built of hammered stone, neatly laid and near by was a salt-lick. Their direct origin remains a mystery. Gilman Bryant, in 1807, opened the first store in Mount Vernon. The Indians came to Mount Vernon in large numbers for the purpose of trading in furs and cranberries. Each Saturday the settlers worked on the streets, extracting stumps and improving the highway. The first settler north of the place was N. M. Young, who built his cabin in 1803. Mount Vernon is now the county seat, beautifully situated on Vernon river. Kenyon College is located at Gambier. This institution was established under the auspices of Bishop Chase in July, 1826, in the center of a four-thousand-acre tract belonging to Kenyon College. It was chartered as a theological seminary.
Lucas county is of comparatively recent origin. This county is situated in the Maumee valley, which was the great arena of historical events. The frightful battle of Wayne's campaign, where the Indians found the British to be traitors, was fought near Fort Miami in this county. Maumee City was laid out in 1817 by Major William Oliver and others. It is situated on the Maumee at the head of navigation. The surface is one hundred feet above the water level. This town, with Perrysburg, its neighbor, is exceedingly picturesque and was in early times frequented by the Indians. The French had a trading post at this point in 1680, and in 1794 the British Fort Miami was built. Toledo, the county seat, is on the left bank of the Maumee and covers the site of a stockade fort, known as Fort Industry, erected in 18co. An Indian treaty was concluded here July 4, 1805, by which the Indians re- linquished all rights to the "fire lands." In 1832 Capt. Samuel Allen gave an impetus to the place and Major Stickney also became interested in its ad- vancement. Speculation in lots began in 1834. The Wabash & Erie canal interest arose in 1836. Mr. Mason and Edward Bissel added their energies to assist the growth of the town. It was incorporated as a city in 1836. It was the center of the military operations in the "Ohio and Michigan war." known as the "boundary conflict."
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Lorain county was formed from Huron, Cuyahoga and Medina on December 26. 1822. The soil is generally fertile and the surface level. A curious relic has been found in this county, bearing the date of 1533. Elyria is the county seat and was laid out in 1817. The first settler was Heman Ely. Oberlin is situated about eight miles southwest of Elyria. Oberlin College has attained a wide reputation.
Logan county was formed March 1, 1817. The surface is broken and hilly near the Mad river, but is generally level. The Shawnee Indians were destroyed in 1786 by a body of Kentuckians under Gen. Benjamin Logan. The whites surprised the towns. However, they returned after the work of destruction had been completed and for many years frequented the section. On the site of Zanesville was a Wyandot village. By the treaty of September 29, 1817. the Senecas and Shawnees held a reservation around Lewistown. April 6. 1832, they vacated this right and removed west. Isaac Zane was born about the year 1753 and was, while a boy, captured and afterward adopted by the Wyandots. Attaining the age of manhood, he had no desire to return to his people. He married a Wyandot woman, who was half French. After the treaty of Greenville he bought one thousand eight hun- dred acres on the site of Zanesville, where he lived until the year 1816, when he died, lamented by all his friends. Logan county was settled about the year 1806. During the War of 1812 it was a rendezvous for friendly Indians. Bellefontaine, the county seat, was laid out March 18, 1820, on land owned by John Tulles and William Powell. Joseph Gordon built a cabin and An- thony Ballard erected the first frame dwelling. Gen. Simon Kenton is buried at the head of Mad river, five miles from Bellefontaine. He died April 29. 1836, aged eighty-one years and twenty-six days. This remarkable man came west to Kentucky in 1771. He probably encountered more thrilling escapes than any other man of his time. In 1778 he was captured and suf- fered extreme cruelties and was ransomed by the British. He soon recovered his robust health and escaped from Detroit the following spring. He settled in Urbana in 1802. He was commissioned brigadier-general of the militia and in the War of 1812 joined General Harrison's army. In the year 1820 he removed to Mad river. General Vance and Judge Burnet secured him a pension of twenty dollars a month.
Licking county was formed from Fairfield March 1, 1808. The surface is generally level, diversified by slight hills in the eastern portion. Coal and iron ore of good quality add to the wealth of the county. Newark is the county seat, and is situated at the confluence of the three principal branches
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of the Licking. In 1801 it was laid out by Gen. William C. Schenk, George W. Burnet and John M. Cummings, who owned this military section of four thousand acres. In 1862 Samuel Elliott and Samuel Parr built hewed-log houses. The picturesque "Narrows of the Licking" are in the eastern part of the county.
Lawrence county was organized March 1, 1816. There are many high and abrupt hills in this section, which abound in sand and freestone. It is rich in minerals and the most important section of Ohio for iron manufac- ture. Coal is abundant and white clay exists in the western part suitable for pottery purposes. The county was settled in 1797 by the Dutch and Irish. The iron region extends through the west part of this county. Ironton is the county seat.
Lake county was formed from Geauga and Cuyahoga March 6, 1840. The soil is good and the surface rolling. As early as 1799 a settlement was formed at Mentor. Painesville. the county seat, is situated on Grand river in a beautiful valley. Painesville was laid out by Henry Champion in 1805. At Fairport the first warehouse in this section and probably the first on the lake, was built by Abraham Skinner in 1803. This town has a fine harbor and has a light-house and beacon. Kirtland, southwest from Painesville. was, in 1834, the headquarters of the Mormons. At that time they numbered about three thousand. The old Mormon temple is of rough stone. plastered over, colored blue, and marked to imitate regular courses of masonry.
Madison county was organized in March, 1810. The surface is gener- ally level. Jonathan AAlder was much interested in the settlement of the county. He, like some other whites, had lived with the Indians many years and had formed a lasting affection for them, and had married a squaw. He became dissatisfied with his Indian wife and this caused him to look up his own family. He succeeded through the assistance of John Moore. He left his Indian wife and joined his people.
This county was first settled in 1795. Benjamin Springer made a clear- ing and built a cabin. Joshua Ewing brought four sheep to this place and the Indians exhibited great astonishment over these strange animals. When the hostilities of 1812 began. the British offered inducements to the Indians to join them and they consulted Alder regarding the best policy to adopt. He advised them to preserve neutrality until a later period, which they did, and eventually became firm friends of the Americans. London is the county seat and was laid out in 1810-11 by Patrick McLene.
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