USA > Ohio > Huron County > History of Huron County, Ohio, Its Progress and Development, Volume I > Part 23
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The present generation can scarcely form an adequate appreciation of the toilsome labor, privation, danger and last, but not least, the deep sense of isola- tion that the pioneers of the Western Reserve experienced. There was a great deal to be done, and very little to do it with. Food was scarce, and sometimes it was difficult to obtain a sufficient amount to alleviate hunger. It is said that some of the early settlers followed the cows around, and selected leaves and plants that they ate, for greens, knowing that the instinct of the animals would lead them to avoid any thing of a poisonous nature. The pioneers of Fairfield were obliged to make a five days' trip to Cold creek, Margaretta township, to get their milling done. There was but little money in the country, and but little to buy even had money been plenty. Nearly all manufactured implements brought a very high price, and the settlers often managed to do the work of clearing and tilling the soil, with the tools which their descendants would not think of using. Notwithstanding the hard life they led, the severe toil that was necessary to procure even the commonest conveniences of existence the pioneers were happy upon their frugal fare, and healthful,-physically and morally. They passed minor difficulties without noticing them, and met and overcame the more for- midable ones bravely. The first few pioneers lent willing aid to those who came after them, and thus the severity of the settlers' experience was moderated by degrees until the community had attained a fair growth, and the advantages of civilization had been secured.
The first clearing in the township was made by a widow, of foreign birth, named Santple, and the boys in her family of nine children-John, Martha, Betsey, James, William, Anna, Samuel, Nancy and David. They came from Newark, Licking county, Ohio, in the year 1816, and settled on lot thirty-six, in the third section. The widow was a woman of very remarkable ability and of strong con- stitution. The family was very poor, and Mrs. Sample and her boys and girls were compelled to live in a manner which many people would consider impossible. it is related, upon the best of authority, that the boys went bare-footed all of one winter, while they were chopping timber and extending the clearing in which their rude cabin stood. They heated large chips by the fire, and carrying them to the place where they were intending to fell a tree, stood upon them until they grew cold, and then heated them again and again, until their day's work was done. Day after day they labored under this disadvantage, which less hardy peo- ple would regard as insurmountable. The mother of these boys was their equal, if not superior, in energy and spirit, and was ingenious as well. She out-reaped a man in the grain field in 1817, and clothed her family in cloth which she wove from the silk of wild nettles. Mrs. Sample married Jacob Rush, who died soon after. Her daughter Martha married Amos Harkness. The mother removed to the west, and lived to be nearly a hundred years old.
When the settlement was new, bears, deer, wolves and other animals were found in great abundance. The bears made hunting something more than a dilletanti amusement ; the deer afforded food for the table and clothing for the hunters ; the wolves were simply an annoyance, and the minor animals lent variety to the sport of hunting and to the larders of the pioneers' houses. Several bears were killed in the township. We narrate one instance, as it is a somewhat novel one, and although seemingly outside of the realm of probability, if not of
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possibility, is vouched for by those whose word is above suspicion of unreliability. George Eldridge, while passing through the woods, one day, in the northern part of the township, where the Jenning's farm now is, saw, at a little distance, a full grown bear standing upon the trunk of a large fallen tree. He raised his rifle, took a steady aim and fired. The bear fell down behind the tree, and Eld- ridge, not knowing whether he had killed him or not, reloaded his gun. He had no balls and so put in a beech slug. He had no sooner got his gun in readiness for use, then he saw the head of bruin raised above the tree trunk. He fired, and the animal dropped from sight. The hunter prudently loaded a second time and as quickly as possible, for in those days no man felt safe when in the woods unless provided for any emergency. After ramming the second beech slug home, he waited a few seconds and was rewarded with a third shot, which, like the former ones, apparently took effect. Again the bear fell from the log. Reloading the rifle, Eldridge went cautiously forward to see whether the three shots fired had quite ended the animal's life, and on reaching the tree trunk and looking over it, was surprised to find three dead bears instead of one. He had supposed, al! of the time, that there was but one bear in the vicinity, that the first and second shots had only slightly wounded him, and that he had each time, after recovering his surprise, again clambered upon the tree to reconnoiter the enemy. The trio consisted of a she bear and two cubs, more than half grown. The old bear weighed four hundred pounds, and her flesh furnished food for several families. This bear killing episode was commonly looked upon as something reflecting great credit upon Mr. Eldridge. He was a good marksman, but probably his success in this instance depended as much upon "good luck," or the kindness of fate, as upon his ability. Killing three bears in a period of time measured by about as many minutes, and with only three shots, two of them with bits of wood in the place of leaden ball, is a feat not often, if ever, equaled. The adventure became, and was for a long time, the subject of much wonder throughout the neighborhood.
The center road, north and south, was, as originally cut through the forest, the Ilarrison road. It was made by the General's troops, and subsequently was straightened and improved. In 1825, when the new state road was laid out eleven miles through Fairfield and portions of Ripley and Bronson, the residents of this township gave material assistance to the enterprise. The road cost one hundred dollars per mile. The west, or ridge road, was laid out at an early day.
It is probable that Jonas Leonard, a native of Connecticut, who had settled in Bronson, taught the first school in Fairfield, about 1824. The school house was in the northwest quarter, or third section. The township is now well provided with district schools, and the union schools of North Fairfield afford higher instruction to those who desire it.
The first church in the township was the Methodist Episcopal, in 1822, with a class of less than a dozen members, but owing to the untiring exertions of those few a strong membership soon developed and in time a church edifice was erected. The other denominations came later, and they, too, have prospered.
The first postmaster was Walter Branch. He was commissioned January 1. 1829. He held the office for four years, and then resigned in favor of Horace L. Moulton.
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The first cemetery was laid out in lot eleven, section three, upon the Ridge road, near the northeast corner of the township. The first settlers located in this vicinity, and the little piece of ground was set aside for burial purposes at an early day. There is another cemetery on the same road-lot one, section four : one on the Bronson town line road-lot six, section three, and one in North Fairfield village, just east of the corners.
Among the early settlers were Eliphalet W. Day. He was born in Connecti- cut and settled in Fairfield township in 1818. Aaron Smith settled there in 1820, and Philip Moffitt came in 1819. Spencer Baker also came in 1819. Samuel Foote also in 1819. Havilah Smith became a settler in Fairfield in 1821, and John Cherry came at a little earlier date.
A log liouse could be raised in half a day. The raising would be attended by all the settlers, and glad they were of the chance to have another settler added to the population. They took great pride in doing such a job. During all the chopping and clearing and many log raisings no serious accident occurred until 1828 when Henry Randall had his skull fractured by the falling of a bent at a barn raising, and died within an hour.
The Indians would come to the township and hunt every fall for several years after its first settlement. They claimed to be friendly, but would go to the cribs and take corn without leave, and were otherwise annoying.
NORTHI FAIRFIELD VILLAGE.
The first store in the township was opened at the center in the year 1831, by Ezra Smith, of Macksville, but soon after several enterprising men made efforts to establish a village at what was then known as Greenfield's corners. They were so far successful as to create all that now exists in North Fairfield, and in fact much more, for the village was at one time a flourishing business center, and had bright prospects of future prosperity. William Greenfield, Samson Baker, Walter Branch and Samuel Foote were largely instrumental in securing the loca- tion of various industries at this place. Horace S. Moulton opened the first store at Greenfield's corners, in 1832. Union White, of Fitchville, Woodworth and Holmes, Clark Sexton, A. R. Eastman, and a man by the name of West, began at an early day. D. S. Stevens opened a dry goods store in 1838. Manufactories were established, and the village developed for a few years at a rate, which, had it been long continued, would have produced a little city. A newspaper. The Fairfield Gazette, was established, and had, for a time, a fair patronage. The first copy was issued April 23, 1856, by Robert McCune. Afterwards the paper was under the charge of J. Ralph Robinson, and still later of O. B. Chapman. He moved it to Bellevue. The causes of Fairfield's failure to become all that its residents fondly hoped, were numerous. Chief among them was the building of railroads all around the village, at a distance of ten or a dozen miles, and the failure of the projected Clinton extension, which was (upon paper) a link of a. long chain extending from New York to the great west. Over seventy thousand dollars of Fairfield money went out of existence with this bubble. The Milar. canal was another failure. The largest manufactory in the little village-the chair factory-and the steam mill, built at an early day, vanished in fire-ended
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in smoke. Other evils assisted in thwarting the plans of the would-be founders of a city, and slowly, but surely, the last hope of making North Fairfield a large and live business town passed away. All that was left the people was the reason- able certainty that the village would always be, what it now is, a peaceful and pleasant home, in which there will never be an excess of bustle and din and sordid strife, but always well being, good manners and better morals.
North Fairfield village contains four of the five churches which have come into existence in the township, and most of the manufactories.
The first tavern was built about 1835, and is still standing, a part of the Fairfield house. The first landlord was Otis Thornton.
Although North Fairfield failed to get the courthouse and the steam railroad it now has a fine electric line running north and south-the Sandusky, Norwalk & Mansfield. The village contains some fine residences, has a good country trade and supports a printing office.
FITCHVILLE TOWNSHIP.
Fitchville township is supposed to have received its name from a man named Fitch, who was quite a large land-holder within its limits, and who resided in Connecticut.
The land is generally rolling or sufficiently so to make it easy of drainage and good tillage. The soil is various, some portions, being well supplied with clay, others quite sandy, and many of the ridges quite gravelly. The township was formerly well timbered with beech, maple, white-wood, black walnut, oak, hickory, white ash, black ash, bass wood and elm. The Vermillion river heads at a lake near Savannah, Ashland county, enters this township near the southeast corner, passes through near the center, and leaves it a little east of the center.
This stream furnished water power and was of great service to the early settlers. As early as 1825 there was a sawmill built near there which did much towards supplying the settlers with lumber.
There was a flouring mill erected at the center at an early date, and there was also an establishment for wool carding and dressing cloth. The flouring mill was later run by steam and furnished considerable flour for the eastern market.
The first settlement made in this township was in the summer of 1817, by Peter Mead, Abraham Mead and Amos Reynolds. They made their beginning on the east line of the township. Early in the season of 1818 an addition was made by the arrival of the Palmer family. In 1819 a few more were added to the number of settlers by the arrivals of Gilbert Martin, W. W. Watros, Abijah Pal- mer and Charles Lyon. In 1820 came Jotham Curtiss, J. N. Pickard, Henry Pickard. Absalom Coleman and Hiram Curtiss.
Owing to the fact that most of the original owners of the township put up .the price of their lands too high, the township did not fill up fast with settlers, until after 1830.
The first school in the township was taught in a little log building, a short distance south of the center. The building served the double purpose of school house and place of worship for many years.
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The first Sunday school in the township was held by Allen Johnson, at his house, in 1825, the pupils being Edward and Benjamin Green, Barnard Johnson. Louisa Johnson and Sarah Palmer. Mr. Johnson's assistants were Ebenezer Osborne and Zetta Green.
The people of Fitchville sought early to establish in their midst the institu- tions of religion and education to which they had been accustomed to in their eastern homes. There is, perhaps, not another example in the county of such an early establishment of a church after settlement. The pioneers entered the wilder- ness in 1817, and in the summer of 1819 the first church was organized.
In early times, Hartland, Fitchville and Greenwich, were grouped together, or attached for civil and judicial purposes. Hartland was detached about 1820, and connected with Clarksfield. Fitchville was detached, in 1828, from Green- wich and organized as a separate township.
The principal cemetery of Fitchville, which occupies the summit and slope of a gently rising hill, upon the Norwalk road, in the north part of Clinton incor- poration, was laid out about 1826, or the following year. Alvah Palmer, who died in 1827, was the first person buried there, and Louisa Green the second.
A number of the first settlers made their homes upon the line of the north and south center road, and this was the first route of travel upon which any labor was bestowed in the township. The next was the road running cast and west through the center. The road from Wooster to Norwalk was laid out in 1826, but there was scarcely any improvement made upon it until 1832, and it was by no means easy of travel. The route most traveled by the early residents of Fitchville, when they wished to go to Norwalk or beyond, was a trail which led from Abijah Palmer's, in a northwesterly direction, to a point about a mile west of Olena, and thence westerly to the old State road, which passes through the center of Fairfield and Bronson townships.
The enterprise of running a line of stages through from Wooster to Norwalk was undertaken at this time by Union White, J. C. Curtiss, and an Ashland man. They commenced by running a two-horse hack each way twice a week, but afterwards a four-horse stage coach was put on the route by a man named Myers, to whom was also given a contract for carrying the mail. In 1834. and for many years after, the people had the satisfaction of seeing this heavy stage, often well loaded with passengers, dash swiftly or wallow slowly, as the case might be, through the settlement.
Before the people of Fitchville had a postoffice of their own, they were ob- liged to go to Norwalk for their mail matter. About the year 1828 the first post- office was established in the township, and Rundel Palmer commissioned as postmaster. He kept the office in his dwelling house.
The first tavern built in the township, was the Clinton House, which was named after the incorporated village of Clinton. It was built in 1833, by Hiram A. Curtiss. It was a frame building, of fair size, two stories in height. This was, for a number of years, the only place for the entertainment of the wayfarer and the stranger, and was well patronized. After Curtiss, Hiram Odell was, for a time, the landlord of this house, and he gave place to Union White and his brother, Daniel.
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A few years after the building of the Clinton House, probably in 1837 or '38. Union and Daniel White, erected the large hotel since known as the Mansion House.
The Fountain House was built by Rundel Palmer for a dwelling house, bus was converted into a hotel and conducted as such by his sons, Isaac and Nathan, for five years.
J. C. Curtiss built the next hotel, the present residence of his son, S. W. Cur- tiss, and was its proprietor for a number of years. This house was known as Washington Hall.
The first white child born in the township was Varney P., son of Peter and Alice Mead.
The first death was that of Deborah, wife of Abraham Mead. She died July 23, 1823. Another of this family, Mary Mead, died in November of the same year, aged seventeen.
Robert Golden and Rosannah Washburn, a sister of Joseph Washburn, were the first couple married.
The Meads built the first log house, and Ludovicus Robbins the first framed dwelling. The latter was about the year 1827, upon lot seventeen, section three.
In the fall of 1830, Union White came into the township, erected a small building, and opened a store, which was the first in the township. His stock was from the store of Buckingham & Sturgis of Norwalk, who had an interest in the business. In the spring of 1832, their interest was purchased by J. C. Curtiss, and the firm name became White & Curtiss. The first purchase of goods by this firm was in New York, and they were transported by the Hudson river, New York and Erie canal, and Lake Erie, to Huron, from which point they were hauled in wagons to Fitchville, at an expense of from three to four or five shil- lings per hundred weight. From New York city to Huron the transportation cost from one dollar and fifty cents to two dollars per hundred. The goods bought were of the kinds for which it was known there would be a ready market, such as staple groceries, and the commonest kinds of calico, sheeting, etc. Brown sheeting was sold at from twenty to twenty-five cents per yard; calico from two to four shillings, and satinet from six to four shillings. Iron was eight cents per pound; nails from nine to twelve cents; tea from ten to fourteen shillings; pepper, four shillings ; coffee, two; loaf sugar from two to two and sixpence, and whiskey from four to five shillings per gallon. There being but little money in circulation these articles were very generally paid for in deer, coon and muskrat skins and black salts, which were made from ashes by almost every family. Messrs. White & Curtiss bought these salts in large quantities and manufactured them into pearlash, which they sent to the eastern market.
The first circuit preacher was Dennis Goddin. He formed the first class for the Methodist church at T. B. White's house.
The village of Clinton, within this township, was laid out in 1832, and for several years was the principal business place for the southeast part of the county, but railroads made great changes and Clinton is almost forgotten.
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GREEN FIELD TOWNSHIP.
Greenfield township was organized about the year 1815, and then embraced the townships of New Haven, Greenfield, Peru, Norwich and Fairfield, for town- ship purposes, and continued so until each of the above townships contained a sufficient number of inhabitants for separate organization. In the year 1819, the name of this township was changed to Berlin, and continued by that name until 1822, when the name of Greenfield was restored. The reason for giving it the name of Berlin, was owing to there being a Greenfield township in Highland county, with a postoffice of the same name. At the restoration of the original name of the township, the postoffice was called Lafayette, and Joseph Cook was the first postmaster. The office continued to be called Lafayette until 1835, when the name was changed to Steuben.
The surface of the township is generally undulating. The Huron river enters it about a mile west of the southeast corner, runs a winding, but, generally, northwest course through the township, and leaves it a little less than a mile east of the northwest corner. There are several small tributaries, the largest of which is the west branch, which drains the western part of the town.
The original varieties of timber, east of the river, were principally white wood, black walnut, beech and maple, with some white oak, butternut and bass- wood. West of the river, white and black oak, hickory, beech and maple were the leading varieties. The soil is a loam of a sandy or gravelly nature, east of the river, and a clay loam west of it.
There is a stone quarry on the east bank of Huron river. It was first opened by Ezra Smith, at an early date. The quarry underlies a considerable tract of land, with a dip to the southeast, extending into Fairfield township, and is sand- stone of the newer formation. The stone varies from an inch to twelve inches in thickness, and is largely used for building and flagging.
The history of Greenfield has for several reasons a peculiar interest. The time that has passed since the pioneer first walked into the wilderness by the side of the Huron river is almost four score and ten years. Strange and start- ling scenes have been enacted upon its brink, before and since then. The first person that came into the township of Greenfield, for the purpose of settlement, was William McKelvey, Jr., who arrived from Trumbull county in the year 1810. Ile purchased one hundred and six acres of land of Caleb Palmer, of New Haven township, on lot number twenty-five, in the second section of this township, paying for it in work. In 1811, he cleared eleven and a half acres and sowed it to wheat. He had harvested his crop and was putting it in stacks when the news of Hull's surrender reached the settlement. He immediately returned to Trumbull county, where his father and the rest of the family were then living, and joined the army as a volunteer for six months. In the spring of 1814 he returned to Greenfield, bringing, with a four-horse team and wagon, his brother-in-law, Truman Gilbert, and his family. His wheat had been burned during his absence, evidently by the Indians. The loss was considerable, as breadstuffs were then high. He afterwards bought fifteen bushels of the wheat left in stack by Erastus Smith, on his flight to Trumbull county, for which he paid forty-five dollars, threshing it himself.
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The township records prior to the year 1828 have been lost, and the follow- ing facts relative to the first election for township officers were furnished by one who was present.
The election was held at the house of Erastus Smith in the spring of 1816. Joseph Cook was elected township clerk : Eli Halladay, Bildad Adams and Nathan Warner, trustees ; William McKelvey, constable; Erastus Smith, justice of the peace. Having no use for a treasurer none was elected.
According to the "enumeration of the white male inhabitants of Greenfield above the age of twenty-one years," as returned to the county clerk by Seba Mather, lister, for the year 1819, the number of such inhabitants was one hundred and thirty. Peru was then attached to Greenfield, and is included in the enumer- ation.
Hanson Read built the first house in Greenfield in the spring of 1811.
Franklin Read, son of Hanson and Elizabeth Read, was the first white child born in this township. The date was April 25, 1812.
The first marriage was that of William Smith to Miss Lovina Pierce, daughter of Alden Pierce, in 1817. Erastus Smith, justice of the peace. performed the ceremony.
The first purchasers of the land derived their titles to their farins, in the first and fourth sections, from Isaac Mills, of Connecticut : in the second section from Abecham D. Baldwin and Walter Bradley, of Connecticut, and Tilley Lynd, of Homer, New York.
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