USA > Ohio > Huron County > History of Huron County, Ohio, Its Progress and Development, Volume I > Part 3
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These surveying parties encountered many dangers and suffered many hardships. They lived principally on flour and salt pork, although a woman at Huron baked bread for them during the last survey. The party was so large as to frighten the game away and they could not take time to hunt it. We should honor these pioneer surveyors for their labors in providing a way for the future settlement of the country.
After the lands were surveyed it was necessary to divide them among thie various proprietors. In 1808 a committee was appointed to devise some plan, and the following one was adopted. There were thirty townships, each with four sections, making one hundred and twenty sections. The total amount of losses sustained by the original grantees was divided by one hundred and twenty and the quotient, one thousand, three hundred and twenty-four pounds (the
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English division of money being still in use) represented the value of each section. One hundred and twenty tickets were prepared, with the names of claimants whose claims amounted to the total value of one section, written upon each. An equal number of other tickets were prepared with the name of a township and number of a section written upon each. The tickets were put into two boxes and one of each kind drawn by a disinterested person, and the sec- tion thus drawn was the property of the persons whose names were found upon the other ticket. We do not learn how the different proprietors managed to divide the sections. The most of the claims had probably been sold to specu- lators or land companies who obtained possession of large tracts and the actual settlers often selected the land they desired after they had arrived here. This drawing was made on the 9th day of November, 1808. Very few, if any, of the owners of these lands ever lived upon them. Among the names of the pro- prietors or original fire sufferers we find many names which sound familiar to Clarksfield people, such as Barnes, Cunningham, Huested, Knapp, Barnum, Starr, Mead. Gregory, Finch, Wildman, Hoyt, Wood, etc.
Forty-six different persons by the name of Mead were "sufferers" at the town of Greenwich, Conn. On account of the method of making the division of the lands, many of the purchasers of small tracts could not tell where their land lay until they reached the borders of the Firelands and they could learn where their township lay, and when the township was reached they had to find the lot by means of the trees which the surveyor had marked. The location might be good or it might be poor and there was something of a lottery about it. Some of the pioneers who came from the rocky hillsides of New England or New York (like the grandfather of the writer) were not able to judge of the best soil and passed by the sandy land of Berlin township and chose a tract of dense timber with its heavy clay soil, further from the lake shore. By reason of the Firelands being owned by so many different persons, all anxious to sell, the new settlements did not proceed steadily westward from an older settlement. but were isolated from each other. The date of settlement of the different townships shows this:
Huron, 1805.
Ridgefield. 1811.
Vermillion, 1808.
Sherman, 1811.
Danbury, 1809.
Portland, 1809.
Bronson, 1815. New London, 1815.
Groton, 1809.
Peru, 1815.
Florence, 1809.
Fairfield, 1816.
Berlin, 1810. Milan, 1810.
Norwich, 1817.
Margaretta, 1810.
Clarksfield, 1817.
Oxford, 1810.
Greenwich, 1817.
Norwalk, 1810.
Hartland, 1817.
Greenfield, 1810.
Fitchville. 1817.
Perkins, 1810.
Ruggles, 1823. 1 Richmond, 1825. Ripley. 1825.
New Haven, 1811. Lyme, 1811. Townsend, 1811.
Wakeman, 1817.
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Prior to and during the War of 1812 emigration to Ohio was slight. After the war and especially during the years of 1817-18, when there was a revival of trade and those owning property in New England could sell it if they wished to, there was a great tide of emigration. One other cause operated power fully to hasten emigration at this time, viz., the cold summer of 1816. In New Eng- land there were severe frosts every month in the year, and crops were nearly destroyed. Mr. Zabez Hanford, of Wakeman, ( father of Mrs. Marquis D. Ran- dall, of Clarksfield) who lived in Connecticut at this time, made the following entry in his family Bible: "The year of our Lord 1816 being a remarkable year is worthy of record. The spring was very cold and backward with considerable thunder. From the 6th to the 10th day of June, very cold with severe frost. The ground froze to some thickness; the wind generally from the north and dry. Snow fell in Canada on the 10th of this month twelve inches deep. Corn all cut to the ground. The first of August the summer continues to be dry and cold. The corn is now very small with but little hope of a crop. Frosts July 24th, August 27th and 29th, so that clothes spread out were frozen stiff."
Communication by railroad, canals and steamboats did not exist as now and it was difficult to get food from other sections of the country. The follow- ing winter was severe and the spring backward. There was much distress and many people nearly perished from starvation. At this time highly colored stories of the rich soil and mild climate of Ohio were circulated. A sort of stampede took place from the cold and desolate hills of New England to the land which promised so much. One writer says that he well remembered the tide of emi- gration through and from Connecticut on its way west during the summer of 1817. Some persons went in covered wagons-frequently a family consisting of father, mother and eight or nine small children, with perhaps one a babe at the breast-some on foot and some crowded together under the cover with kettles, gridirons, feather beds, crockery and the family Bible, Watts' Psalms and Hymn Book and Webster's spelling book. Others started in ox carts and trudged on foot at the rate of ten miles a day. Many of these persons were in a state of poverty and begged their way as they went. Some of them died be- fore they reached their destination.
The roads over the Alleghenies between Philadelphia and Pittsburg were then rude, steep and dangerous and some of the more precipitous slopes were con- sequently strewn with the carcasses of wagons, carts and oxen which had been 'shipwrecked' in their perilous descents. The scenes on the road-of families gathered at night in miserable sheds called taverns, mothers frying, children cry- ing, fathers swearing-were a mingled comedy of errors. Even when they arrived at their new homes * * * frequently the whole family-father, mother, chil- dren-speedily exchanged the fresh complexion and elastic step of their first abodes for the sunken cheek and languid movement which marks the victim of intermittent fever.
The above sketch will show that our ancestors did not always find the path to a new home in the wilderness one of roses.
Henry Howe, the Ohio historian, in "The Family Magazine" of 1837 says: "The frontispiece of the present number represents a halt for the night of an emi- grant with his family ; one, perhaps, who has left his native soil and the inheritance
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HISTORY OF HURON COUNTY
of his fathers, and seeks in the far west for that independence in his worldly cir- cumstances which he has tried in vain to gain from the stony and barren patri- monial homestead; or perhaps one who has looked on his rapidly increasing fam- ily, and, ambitious of doing something for his children while he is in the prime oi life, or anxious to see them settled comfortably around him, that his old age may be cheered by their presence, has resolved to go to the far west, the land which is represented as flowing with milk and honey, the land which repays with an hundred fold the labour expended upon it, and the riches of whose bosom far exceed those in the mines of Peru. Resolved to emigrate, the emigrant collects together his little property, and provides himself with a wagon and two or three horses, as his means permit ; a rifle, a shot gun and an axe slung over his shoulder ferm part of his equipments, and his trusty dog becomes the companion of his journey. In the wagon are placed his bedding, his provisions, and such cooking utensils as are indispensably necessary. Everything being ready, the wife and children take their seats, the father of the family mounts the box, and now they are on the move. As they pass through the village which has been to them the scene of many happy hours, they take a last look at the spots which are hallowed Ly association ; the church with its lowly spire, an emblem of that humility which befits a Christian, and the burial ground where the weeping willow bends mouin- fully over the headstone which marks the parents' grave; nor do the children forget their playground nor the white schoolhouse where the rudiments of edu- cation have been instilled into their minds.
The road is at first comparatively smooth and their journey pleasant ; their way is chequered with divers little incidents, while the continual changes in the appearance of the country around them, and the anticipation of what is to come prevent those feelings of despondency which might otherwise arise on leaving a much-loved home. When the roads are bad or hilly the family quit the wagon and plod their way on foot, and at night they may be seen assembled round the fire made by the roadside, partaking of their frugal supper. The horses are un- harnessed, watered and secured with their heads to the trough, and the emigrants arrange themselves for the night, while their faithful dog keeps watch ; or if the close of the day finds them near a tavern or farm house, a bargain is struck for the use of the fireplace and part of the kitchen, and the family passes the night on the floor. Amid all the privations and vicissitudes in their journey they are cheered by the consciousness that each day lessens the distance between them and the land of promise, and that the fertile soil of the west will recompense them for all their trials. The roads become more and more rough, the swamps and little forest streams are rendered passable by logs placed side by side, and the bridge, thus formed are termed "corduroy" from their ridgy and striped appearance. The axe and the rifle of the emigrant or "mover" as he is termed in the west. are now brought daily, almost hourly into use. With the former he cuts down saplings or ycung trees to throw across the roads which, in many places, are almost impassa- ble: with the latter he kills squirrels, wild turkeys or such game as the forest affords him, for by this time his provisions are exhausted. If perchance a buck crosses his path and is brought down by a lucky shot, it is carefully dressed and hung up in the forks of the trees, fires are built and the meat cut into small strips and smoked and dried for future subsistence. The road through the woods now
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OLD COVERED BRIDGE ERECTED 1836, MONROEVILLE
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HISTORY OF HURON COUNTY
becomes intricate, the trees being merely felled and drawn aside so as to permit a wheeled carriage to pass, and the emigrant is often obliged to be guided in his route only by the "blaze" of the surveyor on the trees, and at every few rods to cut away the branches which obstruct his passage. The stroke of his axe rever- berates through the woods but no answering sound meets the woodman's ear to assure him of the presence of friend or foe. At night in these solitudes he hears and sees the wolves stealing through the gloom and snuffing the scent of the in- truders, and now and then the bloodshot eye of the catamount glares through the foliage. At length the emigrant arrives at the landmarks which indicate to him the proximity of his own possessions. A location for the cabin is now selected. near a small stream of running water, and if possible, on the south side of a slight elevation. No time is lost. The trees are immediately felled, and shortly you can perceive a cleared space of ground of perhaps a few rods in circumference. Stakes, forked at the top, are driven into the ground, on which are placed logs, and the chinks between these are stopped with clay. An inclosure is thus thrown up hastily, to protect the inmates from the weather.
The trunks of the trees are rolled to the edge of the clearing and surmounted by stakes driven crosswise into the ground; the tops of the trees are piled on the trunks, thus forming a brush fence. By degrees the surrounding trees are killed by girdling. Some that are fit to make into rails are cut down and split, while others are either left to rot or are logged up and burned. The next season a visable improvement has taken place. Several acres have been added to the clear- ing. The emigrant's residence begins to assume the appearance of a farm. The brush fence is replaced by a worm fence. The temporary shanty is transformed into a comfortable log cabin, and although the chimney is built of only small sticks piled together and filled in with clay, and occupies an end of the cabin, it shows that the inward man is duly attended to, and the savory fumes of venison and other good things prove that the comforts of this life are not forgotten, and that due respect is paid to that important organ in the human economy-the stomach. In a few years or even months, the retired cabin, once so solitary, be- comes the nucleus of a little settlement ; new portions of ground are cleared, cabins are erected, and in a short time the settlement can turn out a dozen efficient hands for a raising bee, logging bee, etc. A saw mill is soon in operation on one of the neighboring streams, the log huts receive a poplar weather-boarding, and as the little settlement increases, a church and school house appear ; a mail is estab- lished, and before many years elapse, a fine road is made to the nearest town ; a stage coach, which runs once or twice a week, connects the place to the populous country to the east of it. A generation passes over. The log buildings have all disappeared. In their places stand handsome edifices of brick or wood, painted of a pure white, and the settlement has all the conveniences and refinements of its parent settlements on the Atlantic frontier. The emigrant himself is now an aged man. His locks are silvered by time. His toils are over. Some fine summer's evening he may be seen seated in the porch of his dwelling, his frank, open coun- tenance beaming with delight as he relates the tale of his early adventures to his little grandchildren, who, clustering about his knees, drink in every word with in- tense interest.
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HISTORY OF HURON COUNTY
The first roads through the forest were mere trails and could only be followed by a line of blazed trees, made by chopping off the bark from a spot on one side of the tree, and not burning it by fire as some men supposed. The next step was to chop the brush and small trees from the line of the road, leaving the large trees to be girdled. In miry place logs of wood, from twelve to fifteen inches in diameter and twelve or more feet in length, were laid side by side, crosswise of the road. Although the logs were of a uniform size when laid, some would sink into the mud more than others ; one end of a log might be supported by a stump or large root and held up while the other end would sink in the mud and thus the road became very uneven in time. The roots of the large trees, around which the driver must pick his way, added to the unevenness of the road and a wagon would rock as much as a ship in a storm and the horses be almost thrown from their feet. Some of these logs are to be found in the roads to this day, though placed there fifty. sixty or seventy years ago.
When the settler had selected the location for his house, near a spring. if pos- sible, and this fact accounts for the crookedness of some of the earlier roads which wound along the banks of streams, near which the springs were found, he first cleared away the brush and trees from a space large enough so that none of the standing trees, when they were afterward felled, would endanger the safety of the house or occupants. Word would be sent to his neighbors, (everybody within a dozen miles might be considered neighbors) to come to the "raising." An experienced man was selected for the "boss" and an expert axman for each corner to cut the notches in the logs so as to make them fit together. As soon as logs enough to make a commencement had been cut and hauled, the work of building the house began. The logs were laid butt and top alternately, to keep the walls level. When the walls were breast high, skids and handspikes were used. The la- borers were divided into two parties and there was a strife to see which side would get their walls up first. Accidents sometimes happened from the slipping of the log, and the ever present black jug did not always help matters. Sometimes the floor of the house was "Mother Earth," but it was generally made of puncheons. which were planks or slabs two or three inches thick hewed on one side with a broadaxe and laid on sleepers. It was far from being tight or smooth. When the walls were as high as the eaves, a log was placed on each end wall, but long enough to project a foot or so beyond each side wall. These were called the "eave bearers" and supported the "butting poles." The logs forming the gable ends. called "trappings," were of basswood or some other soft timber, which was easily chopped off to make the slant of the roof. Poles called "ribs" were laid length- wise to support the roof. If the settler was in a hurry the roof was made of bark, but it was usually made of "shakes," which were shingles three or four feet long split from a straight grained tree by a tool called a "frow." The first course of shakes was laid on the ribs against the butting pole. A "weight pole" was laid lengthwise of the roof near the upper end of the first course of shakes and kept from rolling down by short pieces of wood called "knees," resting against the but- ting pole. This weight pole made the butting pole for the next course, and thus the roof was carried to the peak. No nails were used and the roof would shed water first rate and last many years.
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When the logs were cut out to form a doorway a piece of plank or puncheon was set up at each side and pinned to the ends of the logs by wooden pins to forin a door casing. The door was made of puncheon, or plank if a sawmill was in reach, fastened together with a cross piece at top and bottom, pinned on with wooden pins. The wooden latch was on the inside of the door and was raised from the outside by means of a leather string which was passed through a gimlet hole in the door. The door could be locked on the inside by pulling the string inside, and from this circumstance came the accepted symbol of hospitality, "the latch string hangs out." The windows were made by sawing out a section of one of the logs and fastening some upright sticks in the opening. To these sheets of paper were pasted and well greased with lard or bear grease. They let in a kind of sub- dued light, but were not much needed for the door and huge chimney let in plenty of light in the summer and in the winter the light of the fire was sufficient.
The great chimney was generally built against one end of the house. The lower part was made of small logs or of stones and the upper end of thin pieces of wood laid up in clay, and the whole chimney was well plastered on the inside with clay. Some chimneys would be built only part of the way up, and left for a more convenient time for finishing, which never came. Sometimes the chimney was built up on the inside of the house with the lower part built of stones. Sometimes the settler would not take the trouble to cut out a section of the wall for the back of the fireplace, but would wait until the logs were burned through. It is related that in such a cabin a bear once suddenly made his appearance at the opening back of the fireplace attracted by the savory odor of a kettle of corn mush which was standing one side of the fire. The woman of the house was alone, so without any ado, he thrust his head through the open- ing and proceeded to eat the mush and then went away. The fireplace generally had a hearth of stones, but sometimes a portion of the cabin next the fireplace was not floored over and the fire was built on the ground. In such a case it was possible to do what boys are now sometimes told to do: "Sit on the floor and hang your feet off." Building a fire in these fireplaces required some degree of skill. As large a log as could be handled was first rolled to the back side of the fireplace, and was known as the "backlog." The "andirons" were placed at the front of the hearth and a smaller log, called the "forestick," was laid upon them. The space between the logs was filled in with fine stuff and the fire kindled. The blacklog of green timber would last for several days, and was often hauled into the house by a horse. The andirons were used to allow a draft under the forestick. They were made of wrought or cast iron, and the more expensive ones were of brass and were ornamental when kept brightly polished. The furniture of the fire- place was not complete without the long handled shovel and tongs, as well as bel- lows. The shovel and tongs were sometimes ornamented with brass to corres- pond with the andirons. The fire would be covered with ashes at night, but if not properly done might go out in the night and then a boy might have to be sent to a neighbor's to "borrow fire."
An iron crane was fastened to one side of the fireplace in such a way that it could be swung out from over the fire. The kettles were hung on the crane by hooks of different lengths or on a "trammel." according to the condition of the fire. In some of the more primitive fireplaces there was no crane, but a
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HISTORY OF HURON COUNTY
stick of timber called the "bearing stick" was placed across the chimney ten feet or so above the hearth, and a chain was fastened to it so as to hang down over the fire. The hook to support the kettle was hooked into a link of the chain at the proper height to suit the fire, and this arrangement answered the purpose very well. although not as convenient as a crane. Potatoes were roasted in the ashes, and no modern way of roasting excels it for quality of the "finished pro- duct." The next improvement was the "bake kettle" or "Dutch oven" with its three legs and a cover with a raised rim. Live coals were drawn out on the hearth and the kettle was set upon them, while more coals were heaped-not on an enemy's head-but on the cover. and thus the contents of the kettle were cooked. After this came the "tin oven." or "reflector," which was set on the hearth in front of the fire and the heat was reflected from its polished back and it would "bake roast or broil." As the frame and brick house superseded the log house, while the fireplace was in use, the brick oven built at the side of the fireplace was a great improvement.
The oven was heated by building a fire in it or shoveling in some coals. When heated. the coals and ashes were swept out and the heat retained by the oven was sufficient to do the baking. The men folks had to look out and pro- vide a supply of "oven wood." generally of white ash split fine, and have it dry for baking day. A long handled flat shovel was used for taking the bread, etc., from the oven. Last of all came the modern stove.
The spaces between the logs of the house were filled with triangular strips of wood, or moss, and well plastered with mud. Every man was his own mason. With a cord or so of blazing hickory wood in the fire place, these houses were fairly comfortable, but the objection to that kind of heat was that it was too much on one side : the face would scorch while the back was freezing.
There was a loft to the house, reached by a ladder on the outside of the house or in one corner of the room. It was an airy place for a person to sleep on a winter night, for the numerous cracks let in plenty of fresh air as well as snow. In some houses the roof extended down over the eaves far enough to form a porch or "stoop." A passable bedstead could be made by inserting one end each. of a side and end pole into holes bored into the logs at the proper distance from one corner of the room. the other ends of the poles being supported by a forked stick for a leg. The other side and end would be fastened to these and strips of basswood bark wound around the poles to support the tick. Probably the most of the settlers of this town brought their beds with them and were not reduced to this primitive method. The first settlers of this town could not hring very many articles of furniture with them and depended upon the trees of the forest to furnish the material for ordinary furniture and dishes. The table furniture consisted largely of a few pewter plates, dishes and spoons, but mostly of wooden bowls, trenches and noggins. Gourds and hard shelled squashes made serviceable dippers or other dishes, and spoons could be made from horn. The table might be made of a wide slab hewed smooth on the top with a broad-ax. with four legs inserted in auger holes. For seats. benches and three-legged stools were used. One writer says that it was necessary to have three-legged stools, for more than that number of legs could not touch the floor at once.
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