USA > Ohio > Guernsey County > History of Guernsey County, Ohio, Volume I > Part 28
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John Laughlin, father of Alexander Laughlin, was born in Fayette county, Pennsylvania, in 1777. He married in his native state and in 1808 started for the West, locating in Richland township, Guernsey county, Ohio. In 1818, he removed to Centre township, where he died in 1851.
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Samuel M. Dilley, son of Robert Dilley, was born in New Jersey in 1794 and in 1816 he, with a brother, came to Ohio, settling in Senecaville, Guern- sey county-at least near where the town now stands.
James Gibson, a native of Ireland, born in 1806, came with his parents to the point that is now known as Gibson station in Richland township. He lived on the old homestead until his death, in 1860. He was both a farmer and merchant and his landed estate consisted of between five and six hundred acres.
John Frame came with his parents from Wills township, settling in Rich- land township in 1830.
George Gooderl, a native of Chester county, Pennsylvania, coming to Ohio in 1817, resided seven years in Belmont county and then located in Rich- land township, this county. He died here in 1880.
Richland township was settled up by the above named persons and fam- ilies and what was once a howling wilderness has come to be one of the rich- est sections in Guernsey county. The present people of the township are happy, contented and generally very prosperous.
TOWNS AND VILLAGES.
The only village plattings of Richland township are Senecaville, a portion of Lore City and New Gottengen.
Lore City was platted June 8, 1903, in both Centre and Richland town- ships, on Leatherwood creek. Hence it has made but little history. A post- office by this name has been in existence since a very early date. It is now a fourth-class office, the postmaster furnishing his own building, light and fuel. At one time the office was held in the depot. For the past thirty years the postmasters have been as follows and in the order here enumerated: Jacob Younger, Joseph Arnold, Albert Morris, Aaron Luzater, Will Cale, Aaron Luzater, Will Cale, William Arndt and Harry Ferguson.
There are three rural mail routes running out from this postoffice, the first of which was established March 1, 1905. During the past year this office has been broken into three times, but no loss of money in any one of the cases. The annual report of the office, June 30, 1909, showed yearly receipts of one thousand five hundred dollars. There are now eight mails daily.
Lore City was incorporated in 1906 and the town officers have been but few, the present mayor, Roland Potts, having served two consecutive terms. The present officers are: Roland Potts, mayor: Cale Cross, clerk; W. H. Ferren, treasurer; C. F. Milligan, marshal. The council is composed of :
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Rufus Totten, F. E. Bird, William P. Lowry, Watt Dugan, James McMahon and O. D. Chester.
The town is without water-works or fire protection. The churches, a history of which appears in the church chapter, are the Methodist and Presby- terian denominations. There is a prosperous lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, mentioned in the history of civic societies.
The 1910 business interests of Lore City are conducted by the following firms : Agricultural implements, John Bond; general dealers, Lou Longstreth, Andy Chegogg; furniture, Lou Chegogg ; groceries (exclusive), William Fer- ren ; millinery, Mrs. Oldham; livery barn, John Bond; drug store, Doctor Arndt. The physicians of the place are Drs. F. E. Bird and H. W. Arndt.
Lore City is situated on the main line of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad and is a sprightly town for its size and age.
SENECAVILLE.
Senecaville is the largest place within Richland township. It is situated on sections 21 and 22, in the southern part of the township. This town was platted on the banks of Seneca creek, by David Satterthwaite, July 18, 1815- hence has a history running back almost a century. It is situated on the line of the Cumberland branch of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad and is within the rich coal mining belt of Guernsey county. The name has been a familiar and household word for three generations, including the pioneer band. The post- office has been kept in its present location since 1893. It appears that not many have held the postoffice at this point, as will be observed by the follow- ing list of postmasters and the Presidents under whom they have been com- missioned: J. M. Rainey, under President James Buchanan; D. M. Bryan- the "War Postmaster"-under Lincoln; Wilson Scott; J. C. Rose; H. F. Gordon, under Grover Cleveland; N. Le Page, under Benjamin Harrison; H. F. Gordon, under Cleveland the second time; N. Le Page, under William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt; G. S. Kaho, under Roosevelt and he is the present postmaster.
One rural route extends out over a distance of twenty-four miles from Senecaville and was established July 1, 1903. The annual receipts from this office at last report was one thousand and twenty-one dollars and seventy- four cents. There are three mails at this office daily, one in and two out. The first mail that reached Senecaville was carried on horseback from Wheel- ing. H. F. Gordon is the present assistant postmaster.
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INCORPORATION.
Senecaville is incorporated and its present officers are: Mayor, J. S. Moorehead; clerk, H. M. Beemer; treasurer, G. F. Pollock; councilmen, S. H. Moorehead, J. L. Dilley, John Stevens, J. T. Day. J. R. Davidson ; city marshal, Frank Morrison.
The churches of Senecaville are the Methodist, Presbyterian, Wesleyan, and Free Methodist.
The lodges here represented are Odd Fellows, Master Mechanics and Knights of Pythias.
BUSINESS INTERESTS IN 1910.
Today the business interests of Senecaville are in the hands of the fol- lowing persons: Physicians, Dr. C. Bates and Dr. R. H. Cleary : dentist, H. M. Shafer; grist mill; one bank, the First National; the general stores are conducted by John Keller and the Morris Coal Company : furniture, Thomas Morrison ; grocery, J. M. Rainey ; hardware, Brown and Lepage ; hotel, Mrs. Brown ; millinery, Mrs. E. D. Fell and Clara Dilley ; milling, Campbell Broth- ers; livery barns, John Connor, F. H. Campbell; planing mill, with lumber yard, Charles Spaid ; meat market, Thomas Morrison. The only drug store in the place was owned by I. K. Hill, who died in October, 1910, but it will soon be reopened. Natural gas is piped in from West Virginia, by the Ohio Light and Fuel Company.
Robert Thompson, in 1895. gave the following account of this township : He was born in Fayette county, Pennsylvania, in 1808 and moved with his parents to Senecaville in 1811, when there were but three log cabins. David Satterthwaite and William Thompson were the earliest settlers in that section. Ephraim Dilly also came about that date. James Richardson was proprietor of the first tavern. The first church in Senecaville was the Presbyterian. The first store stood on ground later occupied by the Methodist Episcopal church.
The same writer in 1886 wrote for the local press: Senecaville was laid out in 1814 or 1815. There were salt springs on the edge of the creek near the Greenwood bridge, from which brother William boiled salt at a furnace containing about thirty-six kettles. It is doubted whether there were any other salt works this side of the Ohio river. People came a long ways to pro- cure it and paid three dollars a bushel for the same.
Many rough characters were about here then and a favorite sport election days was to get drunk and then fight until one side said "Enough."
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Coffee was then fifty cents a pound and it was only used when the preacher came. A pound might last six months. Pork was worth one dol- lar and a quarter a hundredweight and calico from twenty-five to thirty-seven and a half cents a yard.
As there was no communication by rail, the produce collected was taken to Baltimore in huge covered wagons drawn by six horses. The journey took about three weeks each way.
Senecaville was named from Seneca creek and that was named from the springs of coal oil which oozed forth on the waters. Seneca oil was so named from the Seneca Indian tribe in New York and Pennsylvania, who many ages ago used this oil for its medicinal qualities. Later, it developed to be what we now so well know as petroleum.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
MILLWOOD TOWNSHIP.
The southeastern township in Guernsey county is known as Millwood and it was organized about 1834. It contains twenty-four sections of land and is four miles north and south by six east and west. It is rich in agricultural and mineral resources. The Baltimore & Ohio railroad passes through this township on its east and west course, with three station points, which are described later in this article. There are many small streams running through the territory now being described as Millwood township. The township is bounded on the north by Oxford township, on the east by Belmont county, on the south by Noble county and on the west by Wills township. It is a well developed section of Guernsey county and was settled by a class of industrious, enterprising and religious people who have certainly left their imprint on the present dwellers of the southeastern portion of Guernsey county.
No better record of its first settlement can now be given than to name the aged persons-those exceeding seventy-six years of age-who were living within its borders in 1876. These names include men and women who were the first settlers and who were the parents and grandparents of many of the present population and will recall to the citizens of the township many a scene of early days in Millwood and Quaker City. This list is as follows: Mary Hall, Henry Hall, John D. Hall. Noah Hartley, Sarah Hartley, Michael Creighton, Samuel Ruth, Isaac Spencer, William Rose, James R. Johnson, Priscilla Johnson, George Emerson, Hannah Hague, Jesse Coles, Washington Clary, Nathan Hall, George Falmer, Thomas Mills, Elizabeth Mills. Josiah Outland, Francis Linn, William Crouse, James Fillett, Jacob S. Brill, Albina Sayre, John Rimer, Isaac Webster, James Hart, Mary Wolford, William Hyde, Joseph Dunlap, Elizabeth Brill, John Hague, James Whitcraft, John Stotts, George F. Fox, Ann F. Harvey, Susannah Arnold, Michael Aubmire, Sarah Perego, Clarissa Shuman, John Shuman, Samuel Carter, John Addison, C. McCormick and Hannah Scott.
The Hartley family deserves special mention in this connection. Wil- liam P., the eldest, was born in Berks county, Pennsylvania, in 1786 and when he reached manhood he moved to Warren county. New Jersey, and there followed school teaching for thirty years. He married, in 1817, a daughter
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of Jonas Parke and in 1837 they moved to Guernsey county, Ohio. They had eight children. James, their eighth child, was first lieutenant in the One Hun- dred and Twenty-second Regiment and was killed at the battle of Cold Har- bor. William P. Hartley, Jr., was born in New Jersey in 1821 and lived nearly all of his days in this township. He was sheriff of Guernsey county in the seventies, was a Democrat and in church affiliations was of the Chris- tian faith. The Hartleys are still numerous and influential in these parts of Ohio.
Of the Hall family, it may be said that Isaac Hall was the second son of John Hall, who came from North Carolina in 1805, and purchased a tract of land near where now stands the village of Quaker City. He married in 1807 and they were the parents of eight children, of whom Isaac W. was one. He was born in 1810 and educated in the common schools of his county. In 1839 he engaged in mercantile business at Quaker City, then styled Millwood. He married three times and was the father of three children, two of whom matured. Mr. Hall was the originator of the National Bank at Quaker City. In religion he was a Friend and in politics a Republican.
John P. Hall, another son of the old pioneer John Hall, was born and brought up to farm labor in the old-fashioned way of bringing up children. In 1841 he married in Belmont county and raised a family. In 1880 he owned a fine farm of about three hundred acres in Millwood township.
Of this numerous Hall family, there were, Eli, John D., Cyrus, Amos and other prominent members, who made each a distinct history here for them- selves.
John Smith, son of William and Elizabeth Smith, of Yorkshire, England. where he was born in 1814, when an infant came to this country. His father was a mason and worked on the Capitol at Washington. The family con- sisted of seven children. John was reared on a farm and in 1840 married Margaret Temple, who became the mother of eleven children. Mr. Smith was a Democrat in politics and in religious belief of the United Presbyterian church faith. His homestead was two and a half miles north of Quaker City.
James White and John R. Hunt, as well as Hugh Keenan, were settlers of Millwood township at an early time.
The Cowden family were also representative citizens here. W. N. Cow- den was the only son of David Cowden, who came to America with his father, William Cowden, from Ireland in 1810. David upon his arrival purchased a tract of land a mile and a half northeast of Quaker City, and in 1835 mar- ried Margery Kennon, sister of Judge William Kennon, of Belmont county. Among the children born of this union was William Newell Cowden, who
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entered Muskingum College. He was, in 1882, largely interested in sheep raising and wool producing. He owned over five hundred acres of land in Millwood township and for several years was president of the Quaker City Fair Association and vice-president of the Quaker City National Bank. He was an elder in the United Presbyterian church and a very pronounced Demo- crat in his politics.
Thomas McFarland, another one of the quite early settlers in Millwood township, came from Ireland with the father's family in 1835. He resided at various places until after his marriage, when he settled here. He married Mary Ann Graham in 1840 and reared a family.
Jesse Doudna, eldest son of Noas and Hannah ( Webster) Doudna, was born in 1808, in Belmont county, Ohio. . He purchased a six-hundred-acre tract of land. In 1862 he married Rachel L. Benson, who was born in Mary- land in 1827. Mrs. Rachel (Lancaster) Benson was the daughter of Jesse and Mary Lancaster, of England, a minister to the Society of Friends, after whom Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was named. Jesse Doudna died at Spencer Station. He was an extensive farmer and stock raiser.
John Doudna, another son of Noas Doudna, above mentioned, became a well-to-do farmer of Millwood township.
Robert McCormick, son of Robert and Catherine ( Brill) McCormick, of Tyrone, Ireland, became prominent here. His father landed in Phila- delphia in 1800 and clerked in a store five years. In 1805 he moved to Somer- set, Pennsylvania, and there taught in the district schools. He married and reared a large family of children. He came to Guernsey county in 1815, and bought land here and farmed during the summer seasons, teaching school in the winter. Robert, Jr., was brought up on his father's farm and educated in the common schools. . He married Sarah Brill, by whom several children were born. He became a large land owner in this township.
TRUE PIONEER HALL, ETC.
To speak more specifically of Mr. Hall, the first settler in this now well developed township, it may be stated that he came from North Carolina in 1805, with his father's family, and located three miles west of Barnesville. On August 4, 1806, having reached his majority, he took up the grubs on a tract of land preparatory to erecting a cabin, on the northwest quarter of section 13, in what is now Millwood township. He spent the first night by the root of a white oak tree, near his building site. He erected a scaffold near by, on which he kept his provisions and cooking utensils, which consisted of a
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knife and fork, a pewter plate, one spoon, a pot and skillet. He also had some salt and pepper, a flitch of bacon, a loaf of bread and a sack of corn meal. He had a tray that was of an oblong shape, about twenty inches cross the smallest way, made out of the half of a buckeye log split in two, that answered to lay provisions in, and was covered for safe keeping. The balance of his provisions were made up of game, killed as needed, which could be had in abundance at almost any time. Sometimes he slept on a scaffold under the sturdy boughs of an oak. His nearest neighbor was John Reed, to the east, who lived by the old high trestle on the Central Ohio railroad of later years. His next nearest neighbor was Joseph Williams, five miles westward down the Leatherwood valley.
The land office, then at Steubenville, included in its sales the lands of this township. John Webster and family came on August 10, 1806, and entered ten half sections of land,-Congress lands,-being eighty acres for each of his ten children. The present Baltimore & Ohio road runs precisely along where Webster's double log house stood.
In the summer of 1807, John and William Webster built a mill on Leatherwood creek, above the present Quaker City depot grounds. John Webster died in eighteen months after his settlement, aged fifty-seven years.
A certain species of wild nettle grew in great abundance about this local- ity, and at an early day from it was spun material that took the place of linen threads and with this a fabric was woven and finally made into clothing.
The first settlers near Quaker City were from Pennsylvania, North Caro- lina, New Jersey and Maryland, and were Friends, or so-called Quakers. In 18II there were of this class fifty-nine persons. The Friends' first meeting house was erected in about 1812. Services were at first held at private houses, but the church later built stood on the hill east of Quaker City. William Mott, in 1821, taught school there.
SHROUD AND COFFIN.
Jesse Cole, of Millwood township, has a reputation in his community, that should, in honor to the old gentleman, be extended beyond the bounds of Millwood township. He was born near Reading, Pennsylvania, and is in his eighty-fourth year. He claims that he has yet sixteen more years to live, as it is his intention not to shuffle off this mortal coil until he reaches the even one hundred. Mr. Cole settled in Millwood township in 1823. In due time he was married and raised a large family of boys and girls. After the death of his first wife, he removed to the neighborhood of Sarahsville, Noble county,
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where he built a cabin and kept bachelor's hall. This was necessary because his children had all married and had homes of their own. While there he got along very well, until he was taken with a bad spell of sickness. It would have gone hard with him, he says, were it not for an excellent old maid, who lived within "hollerin'" distance of his cabin. This kindhearted creature took the best care of the widower, and finally brought him through all right. During the worst of his sickness he thought his time had come, and that the right thing to do was to prepare himself for burial. To this end, he got the old maid to prepare his shroud and hang it away in a convenient place, and on his recovery he tenderly cared for it, and when he married his second and present wife, he handed the garment over to her for safe-keeping. About eight years ago, he made further preparation for his last journey on earth. While in a good state of health, he went to Quaker City, and gave orders to one of its citizens to take his measure for a plain but substantial walnut coffin, to be ready at a certain date. At the appointed time, in company with a son, he took the coffin home on a sled. On its arrival, it was carefully raised to the loft of the loom house, where it now sets safely, beyond the gaze of the curious, pa- tiently awaiting the time when its owner will be laid therein for an eternal rest. An evilly disposed person some time since circulated the report that the family had made kindling wood of the coffin, and also that it was a receptacle for dried apples, but we are glad to be in a position to state positively that there is not a vestige of truth in either rumor. May the years be many and happy before the old gentleman shall need either the coffin or the shroud .- Jefferson- ian, August 20, 1885.
TOWNS AND VILLAGES.
Millwood township has had several village plattings, including old Mill- wood (now Quaker City ), Spencer's Station and Salesville. The first village platted was Millwood, by Jonah Smith, on section 20, township 9, range 7, in what was then styled Beaver township. The date of filing this plat was February 18, 1835. It retained this name many years, but before it was in- corporated, in 1871, it was changed to Quaker City, it being in the midst of a very large and thrifty settlement of Friends (Quakers).
Salesville was platted in 1835 by George Brill, on section 32. township 9. range 7. It was on the "Clay Pike," as then known. It was incorporated in 1878, as a village.
Spencer's Station was platted in 1892, as a railroad station. Being near Quaker City, it has never grown to much extent.
Of Salesville, it may be stated that the settlement at that place was begun
1
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in 1806-one hundred and four years ago. The pioneers there were for the most part from the states of Virginia and Pennsylvania, with now and then a family from the Old World. The lands in this section of Guernsey county were found to be of great richness and fertility. Through them flowed the waters of the Leatherwood creek, skirted by wide, beautiful bottom lands. The waters of this and other streams flowed with enough fall to furnish an abundant power for water mills and factories. Springs of water gushed out from hillsides here and there, all of which made the surroundings attractive to the home-seeker of that long-ago day. Prominent among the first settlers may be now recalled the Brills, Pulleys, Frames, Williams and kindred. The religious sentiment was here divided among many creeds and church polities. But all had a deep religious feeling and all wanted a place in which to worship the true and living God, hence agreed to erect a large log meeting-house, which was accomplished and designated as the "Temple," by which it was always known. Here, in 1816, when this house was erected, of hewed logs on the hill overlooking the present village of Salesville, a quarter of a mile from the banks of the Leatherwood creek, settlers met regularly to worship, in their own chosen method. This was the beginning of church life and activity in this part of Guernsey county. Some were Methodists, some United Brethren and other denominations were well represented.
SALESVILLE OF 1910.
Today (October, 1910) this place has a population of about two hun- dred and fifty. The postoffice was at first held in the depot, since which time it has been on the move. It has, however, been at the present location, in the store of S. C. VanKirk, for ten years. Three rural routes run from this postoffice, averaging twenty-four miles each. The annual office receipts are seven hundred and fifty dollars at this time. Five mails are daily re- ceived here. In an early date of this office mails came by stage lines, on the old pike. As far back as the memory of the oldest residents can reach the following have served as postmasters, in their order: Louis Turnip- seed, thirty to forty years ago; W. R. Gardner, G. H. Bates, Thomas Dur- bin, M. R. Perry, George W. Brill, S. C. VanKirk.
The history of the Salesville municipal incorporation dates back to 1878 and is classed as a village. The mayors have included these: Louis Turnipseed, W. A. White, J. A. Perry, Jasper Dollison, W. H. Long, Sumpter Long, R. D. St. Clair.
The present village officers are: Mayor, R. D. St. Clair; clerk, John G. Stoneburner; treasurer, S. C. Van Kirk; marshal, W. E. Ankrum.
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There is no organized fire department, but a hand pump is kept in readi- ness for emergencies. The churches of Salesville are the United Brethren and Methodist Episcopal.
BUSINESS FACTORS OF 1910 ..
Agricultural Implements and Hardware-B. H. Runyan.
Boarding House-Mrs. Otie Tillett.
Hotel-Central Hotel, Mrs. M. Mendenhall.
General Dealers-Sol. Rimer, Stoneburner & Dillon, E. E. Atkinson. Grain Dealer-S. C. VanKirk.
Livery-Jacob Linton.
Millinery-Miss Mary St. Clair.
Physician-Dr. W. A. White.
QUAKER CITY.
Quaker City, originally Millwood, was incorporated in 1836 as Mill- wood, and as Quaker City between 1864 and 1870. It now has a population of approximately one thousand. The postoffice being established, and then the name changed to Quaker City, has since made the place better known to the world. The postoffice has been in its present location since 1890, before which date for many years it was on the opposite side of the street, just before that date in the B. J. Johnson building, and still earlier in the old Lochary building. There are six rural routes extending out from this postoffice, all of which are over twenty-four miles long. There are seven mails daily now at this office. The record of postmasters is not fairly clear, but it is known that the following have held the position in about the order given here: Patrick Lochary, Millard Marsh, A. H. Hamilton, H. B. Cox, J. M. Gallagher and W. W. Dowdell.
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