USA > Ohio > Hancock County > History of Hancock county, from its earliest settlement to the present time > Part 11
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492190
Jackson.
Cannonsburg.
171
Value of Buildings.
Table showing value of buildings in each town and township:
Township.
Value of Houses.
Value of Mills.
Other Buildings.
Total.
Allen.
$28662 $2200 $23656 $54418
Van Buren.
5220
1535
6755
Amanda.
25800
1800
19570
47170
Vanlue.
23900
6500
3400
33800
Big Lick.
31856
22644
57500
West Independence.
5850
600
9156
15606
Blanchard.
31266
1206
15986
48452
Benton.
7780
1400
9180
Cass.
33727
1400
20132
55259
Delaware.
24630
2800
17800
45230
Mt. Blanchard.
11080
3000
26520
40600
Eagle.
28090
1520
20730
50340
Findley.
67240
4900
30850 102990
Borough.
399110 13300
20900 430310
Jackson.
23842
800
20595
45237
Martinstown.
150
200
350
Houcktown.
4090
575
4665
Liberty.
26200
3100
17600
46900
Madison.
14660
500
10140
25300
Arlington.
1890
1890
Williamstown.
1210
300
120
1630
Marion.
26350
1200
21400
48950
Orange.
29708
273
15575
45556
Portage.
33940
600
21650
56290
Pleasant.
30876
3582
18124
52582
McComb.
21510
2500
1060
25070
Union.
31000
2000
17904
50904
Cannonsburg.
1855
400
250
2505
Rawson.
5995
700
6695
Mt. Cory.
5512
800
6312
Van Buren.
27150
1150
30760
59060
Washington. Arcadia.
18280
4000
2320 24600
Fostoria.
297801
1400
2250|
33430
79310
2900
31060|113270
172
History of Hancock County.
Table showing number and value of churches in the county, with the value of lands thereto belonging so far as could be ascertained.
Township.
No.
Valueof Lands.
Value of Buildings.
Total value.
Allen.
5 $149
$2850
$2999
Amanda.
S
210
5000
5200
Big Lick.
9
345
5600
5945
Blanchard.
6
105
4750
4855
Cass.
2
50
4000
4050
Delaware.
7
5400
5400
Eagle.
5
1750
1750
Findley.
2
60
400
460
Borough.
10 8200
63500
71700
Jackson.
7
6850
6850
Liberty.
4
80
1600
1680
Madison.
3
200
780
980
Marion.
4
44
3100
3114
Orange.
7
76
3800
3876
Portage.
3
341
1800
1834
Pleasant.
3
30
800
Union.
11
228
770 10050
10278
Van Buren.
1740
Washington.
7
8400
8400
173
Table of Distances.
Arlington. 0 5 0 17
Arlington.
Arcadia.
Benton. 1
11
17
Cannonsburg
7
20
Cory. 2
9
21
5
2
Deweyville.
18|18
9
15
14
Findley.
10
9
8
11
12
Hassan. *
8 24
11
5
20
15
McComb.
16
15
73
12
13
3
9
18
MtBlanchard
5
15
14
12
21
22
11
13
19
Oak Ridge. To
Portage Centre. 1
Portage Cen*
18.12
14
13
5
7
19
3
18
12
5
0
Rawson.
18
32
3
3
12
9
73
10
13 10
11
Van Buren.
17
12|17
17
10
7
21
18
19
7
63
17
117
16
14
0
W. Fostoria.
22
,10
26
26
21
15
29
18
20
18
20|17
24 12
13
WIndepen'ce 17
5
19
21
22
21
11
24
18
14 12
18
|16
20 12
7
6
Williamstown. 42 21
15
[15
11
23 14
73
22
7
8 18 22
12 21
14 27 20 0
Deweyville.| | 0 11
Post offices in the county.
Table of distances of towns and
N. Liberty. 3
9
13
12 10
12
18
8
12 16
31
Oak Ridge .*
14
15
1
10
9
5
8
15
34
17
14
Rawson. | O
Van Buren. 0
Vanlue.
15
10
17
16 18
21
10
Vanlue. 1 9 |33
West Fostoria. | º
West Independence. | ·
Williamstown.
* Post offices. I. Post office, Benton Ridge. 2. Post office, Mt. Cory. 3. Post office, Houcktown.
Arcadia. 19 15 0
Benton. 19 | 0 0 6
Cannonsburg. | €
Cory. 07 0
Findley. 2 0 63
Hassan. | º
McComb. O
Mt. Blanchard. .
North Liberty. |
8 17:14
9
5
14
174
History of Hancock County.
4
HISTORY OF TOWNSHIPS AND TOWNS.
H AVING completed a brief history of the county, I pro- pose to briefly notice the individual organization of the several townships, and characteristics of the several towns. Of course these sketches are incomplete as a full history, and convey only a faint idea of the beginnings of each. But they will serve to somewhat enlighten the at- tentive reader as to the time and manner, and by whom these several organizations were effected, and of their pres- ent condition. All, I presume are interested in any and every thing which pertains to the history of each township, as well as of the general history of the county, and the rise and progress of the several towns, will help to form a correct opinion of our present status. The younger portion of my readers are perhaps in ignorance as to who were the real pioneers of the several parts of the county, and also as to the location even, of the different townships. In these sketches, I have endeavored to give them information on both these subjects. . The extent, population and statistics of each is given, and of the towns the different business in- terests are noted, as well as the churches and schools.
This part of the history of the county will then be of peculiar interest, to the several localities described, as they speak of matters which have come under the personal ob- servation of many who are still living.
175
Land Surveys.
LAND SURVEYS.
Land descriptions, as recited in deeds of conveyance, are but imperfectly understood by many, and to some are simply riddles, not easily guessed. In order that they may be comprehended by all, and easily understood, wherever found, I venture a brief explanation.
In order to make correct surveys and locate lands prior to the settlement of the State, or of the formation of counties, or townships, or of the sub-division of townships into sections, the General Government found it necessary to have a certain and fixed point from which townships and ranges should be counted.
The Ohio Survey, to which we belong, was made in 1819 and 1820, after the fixing by the Government of the first principal Meridian, as it was called, which meridian com- menced at the mouth of the Great Miami River, and run- ning thence north on the line between the States of Ohio and Indiana, to the Michigan line. A line was also estab- lished, running east and west on the 49th Parallel of Lati- tude, and called the base line. This base line runs directly through the center of this county, dividing it into two equal parts, north and south.
Townships were numbered north and south from this base line ; those bordering on the line were called township num- ber one-north or south-number two coming next, and so on. The Ranges, which included a township in width, or exactly six miles, were numbered from the principal merid- ian east, beginning with number one, at the Indiana line, and numbering east. Hancock County is in Ranges nine, ten, eleven and twelve.
176
History of Hancock County.
You will remember that the act organizing the county of Hancock, provided that it should comprise "townships one and two north, and one and two south, in ranges nine, ten, eleven and twelve, east of the first principal meridian." That is to say, that townships one and two north, and one and two south of the base line, and in range nine, ten, eleven and twelve east of the Indiana line should consti- tute the county. As these ranges are just six miles wide, the number of the range being given, it is easy to determine the exact distance from the Indiana line east. For exam- ple, the first range in Hancock County is number nine, then to the west line of the county there would be eight full ranges, or exactly forty-eight miles from the Indiana line to the west line of the county. The townships being just six miles long north and south, their number determines their distance from the base line.
These townships, in their original form, are just six miles square, and any change in the boundary of an original township, does not effect the range, hence we have in this county some townships which include parts of two ranges. Nor would a change in the boundary of an original town- ship change its number either north or south from the base line. To repeat then, the first row of townships running north and south along the first meridian, or Indiana line, is called Range one east, the second row, Range two, etc., and the first row of the townships on the west side of this county is in Range nine, the second in Range ten, the third in Range eleven, and the fourth in Range twelve. The first row of townships north of the base line, running east and west, are numbered one north, the second row number two north. The first row of townships south of base line is numbered one south, and the second row number two south-
177
Land Surveys.
These townships are divided into sections of one mile square, and numbered from one to thirty-six. The numbers always beginning-with number one in the north-east corner of the township, thence west to the line, and then back on the next row of sections, and so on. These sections were divided into halves and quarters. A section comprises six hundred and forty acres, a half section, three hundred and twenty, and a quarter, one hundred and sixty acres. Bear- ing in mind what has been said, there would be no difficulty in determining the location of the surveys, even though the name of the township was not given.
The rule of the Land Department of the General Govern- ment prohibited the Deputy Surveyor, who fixed the bound- aries of the townships, from sub-dividing the same into sec- tions. This was done in order that any errors might be detected in the surveys, and to prevent fraud in measure- ments. The following exhibit will give the dates of the surveys of the townships, and also of the sub-divisions, and by whom made. These surveys are given as they are re- corded in the Secretary of State's Office at Columbus, O.
Township one (1) south, Range nine (9) east .- Union. Survey commenced May 23, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne, D. S. Sub-divided into sections June 4, 1819, by John Collett, D. S.
Township two (2) south, Range nine (9) east .- Orange. Survey commenced May 27, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne. Sub- divided into sections June 5, 1819, by John Collett.
Township one (1) south, Range ten (10) east .- Eagle. Survey commenced May 8, 1819, by James Holmes, per Alex. Holmes. Sub-divided into sections Aug. 14, 1819, by John Collett.
Township two (2) south, Range ten (10) east-Van Buren
178
History of Hancock County.
and west, half of Madison. Survey commenced May 29, 1819, by Alex. Holmes. Sub-divided into sections July 3, 1819, by John Collett.
Township one (1) south, Range eleven (11) east .- Jack- son and west one mile of Amanda. Survey commenced May 31, 1819, by Alex. Holmes. Sub-divided into sections Aug. 1.7, 1819, by John Collett.
Township two (2) south, Range eleven (11) east .- East end of Madison and a portion of Delaware. Survey com- menced June 1, 1819, by Alex. Holmes. Sub-division com- pleted July, 1819, by John Collett.
Township one (1) south, Range twelve (12) east .- Aman- da. Survey commenced June 2, 1819, by Alex. Holmes. Sub-division completed Dec. 5, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne.
This sub-division did not include the Reserve, which was sub-divided in Sept., 1832, by C. W. Christmas.
Township two (2) south, Range twelve (12) east .- Dela- ware. Survey commenced June 2, 1819, by Alex. Holmes. Sub-division completed Aug. 14, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne.
Township. one (1) north, Range nine (9) east .- Blanch- ard. Survey commenced May 22, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne. Sub-division completed Dec. 29, 1820, by J. Wam- pler.
Township two (2) north, Range nine (9) east .- Pleasant. Survey commenced Oct. 17, 1819, by Samuel Holmes. Sub- division completed Dec. 7, 1820, by J. Wampler.
Township one (1) north, Range ten (10) east .- Liberty and west half of Findley. Survey commenced May, 22, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne. Sub-division completed Nov. 1820, by J. Wampler.
Township two (2) north, Range ten (10) east .- Portage and west half of Allen. Survey commenced Oct. 15, 1819,
179
Survey of Townships.
by Samuel Holmes. Sub-division completed Dec. 15, 1820, by J. Wampler.
Township one (1) north, Range eleven (11) east .- Mar- ion and east half of Findley. Survey commenced May 24, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne. Sub-division completed Nov. 6, 1820, by J. Wampler.
Township two (2) north, Range eleven (11) east .- Cass and east half of Allen. Survey commenced Oct. 14, 1819, by Samuel Holmes. Sub-division completed Dec. 23, 1820, by J. Wampler.
Township one (1) north, Range twelve (12) east .- Big Lick. Survey commenced May 24, 1819, by Sylvanus Bourne. Sub-division completed-except Big Spring Res- ervation-Sept. 21, 1820, by John Glasgow. Big Spring Reservation completed Sept. 22, 1832, by C. W. Christmas.
Township two (2) north, Range twelve (12) east .- Wash- ington. Survey commenced Oct. 28, 1819, by Alex. Holmes. Sub-division completed Oct., 1820, by John Glas- gow.
180
History of Hancock County.
ALLEN TOWNSHIP.
T. 2, N. R. 10 E. T. 2, N. R. 11 E.
AREA 15,360 ACRES. POPULATION 1,025.
This township is on the northern line of the county, and was the last township organized in the county. It was formed of territory taken from the townships of Cass and Portage.
On the 3d day of June, 1850, the Commissioners of the county, " Ordered that a new township be erected of the following territory, and called Allen Township. Said terri- tory of Allen to be composed of Sections 5, 6, 7, 8, 17, 18 19, 20, 29, 30, 31, 32, of township two (Cass) north, Range eleven east, and Sections 1, 2, 11, 12, 13, 14, 23, 24, 25, " 26, 35 and 36 in township two (Portage) north, Range ten east.
" Ordered that there be legal notice posted up in the new township of Allen, for the election of the following named officers for said township, to-wit: Three Trustees, one Clerk, one Treasurer and one Assessor."
This township was named in honor of Ethan Allen, of Revolutionary fame, and is bounded north by Wood County, east by Cass Township, south by Findley, and west by Por- tage Township. The Bellefontaine and Perrysburg State Road runs directly through its centre, north and south.
The first entry of land, in this township, was made on the 25th day of August, 1826, by John Gardner, and was the
181
First Lund Entries.
west half of the north east quarter of section 13. On the 1st day of June, 1829, Nathan Frakes entered the west half of the south-east quarter of section 12, the farm now owned by Sam'l Spitler.
In December, 1828, Major Bright entered the east half of the south-west quarter section 36, and a year later, George C. Collins, of Hamilton County, entered the east half of north-east quarter of section 36.
These entries were followed in 1832 by others, made by Henry Barnel, George Ensminger, Elias Bryan, Wm. Wilkes, Christian Ensperger and others.
The first settlement was made in 1826 or 1827 by Nathan Frakes and one Miller, west of Van Buren, on the farm now owned by S. Spitler, and by Miller on the farm now owned by J. Kempher. In 1827, John Trout, Elias S. Bryan and John Burman came, and they were followed by Christian Barnel, (father of John, Adna, G. C. and Elijah,) who came from Perry County, and located on the Spitler farm, Frakes having purchased and removed to what is now the Infirmary Farm. John Barnel, son of Christian, came in the following year, and is still a resident of the township. He too, moved to the Spitler farm, and his father, with his family, moved to Findley. Then came Charles Baker, of Fairfield, the En- sminger's, of Wayne, Hugh and John Gilchrist, Jos. How- ard and others. All of these families settled around and near the site of the present town of Van Buren.
The timber in this township was poplar, walnut, oak, ash, sugar, beech, hickory, &c. Poplar was very plentiful in the south part of the township, but it has nearly all disappeared, as a few years ago it was considered more valuable than any other kind of wood, and was used very largely for building purposes.
182
History of Hancock County.
The soil in the south part of the township is in part what might be termed a sandy clay. In parts, however, it is almost all clay, whilst elsewhere it is entirely sand. On the north side of the township, between the ridge and Wood County line, it is a black loam, mostly vegetable matter. But all parts of the township are easily tilled and very pro- ductive.
The middle branch of the Portage River passes through this township, and is the most considerable stream in that part of the county, and which has water the year around. It passes out of the township at the north-west corner. There are no other runs or creeks in the township, yet there are natural drains in sufficient number, to make all surface drainage necessary.
The first election held within the bounds of the township, was in 1833, at which time both of the townships of Cass and Portage voted. There were then but eleven votes cast. The following are the names of the voters: John Burman, John Trout, Elias S. Bryan, James Wiley, Hugh Gilchrist, John Barnel, Charles Baker, George Ensminger, Michael Ensminger and Peter Hockenberry. Of these eleven, John Barnel is the only one now living. The first election in the present township was held in 1850, in accordance with the order before recited.
The first school house was built in 1836, on the farm now owned by Peter Whetstone. It was of the round log, clap- board roof, huge chimney kind, of course. There are now nine school houses in the township, all brick but one, which is a frame. The enumeration of youth of school age amounts to three hundred and thirty-three.
The first church was built at Van Buren by the Presbyte- rians, Rev. George Van Emon Pastor. Amongst the first
183
First Marriage-First Mill.
members were Samuel Huntington, John Leader, some 'of the Mooreheads, of Portage Township, and the Campbells, of Wood County. This organization still exists. There are now four church buildings in the township. One Presbyte- rian, one Baptist, one German Lutheran, one United Breth- ren, and all located in the town of Van Buren.
The Baptist church was organized in 1855, and Henry Roder and wife, Samuel Kagry, E. Smith were some of the first members. Previous to the building of the church, ser- vices were held at the house of Henry Roder, and as a branch of the Findley church.
The first marriages were those of a Mr. Beeson and Miss Trout ; and Francis Rumor and Miss Ensminger. The first death was that of a child of John Trout.
John Burman built a mill on the creek east of Van Bu- ren, at an early day, which was the first built in the town- ship. But as it was propelled by water, and during a great portion of the year the water was so low in the creek, as not to furnish power, the mill was of not much benefit to the early settlers, who had to patronize the Teatserth Horse mill at Findley, or go to Perrysburg, or Sandusky City for flour and meal.
John Barnd, Esq., to whom I am indebted for much val- uable information, relates the following incidents :
A very distressing accident occurred at a very early day, in the settlement of this township, by which two persons lost their lives. John Gilchrist and his little son, a boy about twelve years of age, and his brother, Hugh Gilchrist, were out in the night season hunting coon. When about one and a half miles north-west of Van Buren, on the farm now owned by Hugh McMurray, a coon was treed, and it be- came necessary to cut the tree down in order to get it.
184
History of Hancock County.
This they did, but before it fell, John and his son took the dog, who was restless, and, to keep him from getting under the tree as it fell, went in the direction the tree was to fall, and at a distance they thought out of reach of the falling tree. When the tree fell, it struck another, which in falling killed the boy outright, and broke the thigh of his father. When Hugh found them, it being in the night season, he could not move them without help, and this was some dis- tance away. Having procured it they took his brother to his home, where he died two days after. John left a wife and five children, all young. They were very poor, and were assisted by the neighbors.
In October, 1833, Mr. Barnd, with a neighbor, went into what was known as the " Wild Cat Thicket," to cut a bee tree, which had been found by Mr. Barnd. At that date wild bees were very abundant, and every pioneer, were he so minded, could always keep his table well supplied with honey. It so happened that in this instance, the bees were in a very large poplar tree, perhaps five feet in diameter. Others besides Mr. Barnd and his friend knew of the tree, for attempts had been made to chop it down, but its great size had been discouraging, and it had been abandoned Mr. Barnd himself had, after examining it, about concluded that there was too much labor in the cutting, for the pay he was likely to get, and had concluded to spare the tree, and lose the honey. Whilst looking up at the bees, busy at work in the body of the tree, he discovered another swarm at work in a large limb still higher up. This, he says, gave him courage for the undertaking, and they two worked with a will until the tree fell. The limb broke off at a distance of about twelve feet from the body of the tree, and at that place honey could be seen. On cutting into the limb at several
185
Narrative of Mr. Barnd.
places, it seemed to be filled with honey. He and his friend took the buckets they had with them, and filled them from the body of the tree, went home, got their wives, and with them took buckets and tubs, and returned to the tree, where they procured the honey from the limb, which amounted to sixteen gallons.
Mr. Barnd says that when he came to the county, the " Wild Cat Thicket," which extends through this township, was so densely covered with an undergrowth, as to be hard- ly passable, and although game was plenty elsewhere, it could not get through this thicket. The timber or brush was then quite small. A few large trees only were stand- ing.
Game was very abundant, and the second year that Mr. Barnd was in the township, he killed forty-five deer, be- sides large quantities of smaller game, yet he did not con- sider himself a hunter, as he had his farm to attend to.
The first frame building erected in the township, was the Presbyterian church, which was built by John Kelley. The first brick building was that of John Trout, on the south the town of Van Buren. Old Johnny Appleseeds was through this part of the county, and there are still standing several appletrees of his planting, some of which are on the farm of Mr. Barnd.
At a meeting of the Pioneer Association of Hancock County, held a few years ago, Mr. George W. Trout, read a paper, giving an account of the emigration of his father's family to the county, and of some of his recollections of frontier life. I take the liberty of making some extracts from that paper.
Mr. Trout commences by saying that "On November 12, 1828, my father, John Trout, with his family, left Somerset,
13
186
History of Hancock County.
Perry County, Ohio, for the regions of Hancock. We passed through Thornville, Newark, Johnstown, Sunbury, Delaware and Marion, thence into the Wyandotte Reserve, where we remained one night, at the house of a widow Walker, a half-breed Indian, formerly the wife of an Indian. Here we had sight of the first Indians we ever beheld. We took dinner and fed our teams the next day, at a tavern in Upper Sandusky, kept by one Armstrong. Mrs. Armstrong was an Indian. We crossed the Tymochtee Creek near the dwelling of John James. From this place we sent back our four horse team, and father and my brother Ephraim pro- ceeded to Van Buren, or rather to the settlement near there, as at that time and for many years thereafter, there was no town, to procure teams to take us the balance of the jour- ney. After procuring the necessary teams, on their return, taking the Indian trail, they cut their way back, by way of the Big Springs. We were eleven days, anxiously awaiting their return. We again took up our line of march, and on the following night, stopped with Peter George, in what was then known as the 'Swamp Settlement.' On leaving Mr. George's, we were told to strike the river as far up as possi- ble on account of high water. This we did, and came to the river at a point called ' Ashery Ford,' but even here the wa- ter was so high, that in crossing, it ran into the wagon box. That night we camped in the woods, having failed to reach any settlement.
" The next day, by dint of hard traveling, by a road we had to make as we went, we, at sunset. arrived at the house of a Mr. Powell, about three miles above Findley. On the next day, about noon, we reached the old 'Fort,' passing on the way, a school house, which was a very insignificant log-
187
Narrative of G. W. Trout.
cabin. There were then but sixteen buildings in the place, and these seemed to have been built in mud and water.
"Though the town was then in its infancy, its people showed, by the generous assistance afforded us in crossing the river, they at least possesed noble hearts. We crossed the river in a 'Pirogue,' and passed the night in a shanty near where Carlin's mill now stands. We still had seven miles to. go. Mother, brother John and myself started on foot, and so continued our journey as long as the logs in the way fur- nished a passage over the water. But presently we reached the end of this natural bridge. Here, luckily for us, a Mr. Foster came to our relief. He took mother on the horse he had brought with him. All that was left for John and I was to wade, and we did wade until we reached Mr. Fos- ter's house, We had by this time become quite cold, for it had snowed the night before.
Having been refreshed by the kindness of Mr. Foster and his family, we continued our journey, urging our cattle through the mud and over the logs, and at last, about the middle of the afternoon, tired out, we arrived at the house. of Mr. Miller, on the farm on which Samuel Spitler now re- sides. In the evening. the balance of our party arrived with the horses, but no wagon. The wagons had got stuck in the mud about three miles back, and the horses were un- able to extricate them. It required all the next day to se- cure the wagons and bring them in, for it was sunset on December 15, when they arrived at the cabin on the hill. These cabins were of the rudest build, and plainest sur- roundings. On the morning after the first night in our cabin, our first inquiry was, who are our neighbors, and how far are we from any place. We were on the eastern frontier of our immediate neighborhood. Miller, Bryan and Frakes.
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