History of Licking County, Ohio: Its Past and Present, Part 20

Author: N. N. Hill, Jr.
Publication date: 1881
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 826

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The narrative of Mr. Little also states that, when Granville was first settled, it was supposed that Worthington would be the capital of Ohio, between which and Zanesville, Granville would make a great half-way town. At this time, wild animals, snakes and Indians abounded, and many are the marvelous stories preserved regarding the destruction of the animals and reptiles - the Indians being bound by their treaty to remain peaceful. Space forbids their repetition here. Suffice it to say that, as the whites increased, the Indians, animals and snakes disappeared, until now one is as much a curiosity as the other.

The remaining settlement in the southwest- ern parts of Ohio, made immediately after the treaty-fall of 1795 or year of 1796-was in what is now Madison County, about a mile north of where the village of Amity now stands, on the banks of the Big Darby. This stream received its name from the Indians, from a Wyandot chief, named Darby, who for a long time resided upon it, near the Union County line. In the fall of 1795, Benjamin Springer came from Kentucky and selected some land on the banks of the Big Darby, cleared

the ground, built a cabin, and returned for his family. The next spring, he brought them out, and began his life here. The same summer he was joined by William Lapin, Joshua and James Ew- ing and one or two others.

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While the southern and southwestern parts of the State were filling with settlers, assured of safety by Wayne's victories, the northern and eastern parts became likewise the theater of activities. Ever since the French had explored the southern shores of the lake, and English traders had car- ried goods thither, it was expected one day to be a valuable part of the West. It will be remem- bered that Connecticut had ceded a large tract of land to the General Government, and as soon as the cession was confirmed, and land titles became assured, settlers flocked thither. Even before that time, hardy adventurers had explored some of the country, and pronounced it a "goodly land," ready for the hand of enterprise.

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The first settlement in the Western Reserve, and, indeed, in the northern part of the State, was made at the mouth of Conneaut* Creek, in Ash- tabula County, on the 4th of July, 1796. That

*Conneaut, in the Seneca language, signifies " many fish."

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When Springer came, he found a white man named Jonathan Alder, who for fifteen years had been a captive among the Indians, and who could not speak a word of English, living with an Indian woman on the banks of Big Darby. He had been exchanged at Wayne's treaty, and, neglecting to profit by the treaty, was still living in the Indian style. When the whites became numerous about him his desire to find his relatives, and adopt the ways of the whites, led him to discard his squaw- giving her an unusual allowance-learn the English language, engage in agricultural pursuits, and be- come again civilized. Fortunately, he could remem- ber enough of the names of some of his parents' neighbors, so that the identity of his relatives and friends was easily established, and Alder became a i most useful citizen. He was very influential with the Indians, and induced many of them to remain neutral during the war of 1812. It is stated that in 1800, Mr. Ewing brought four sheep into the com- munity. They were strange animals to the Indians. One day when an Indian hunter and his dog were passing, the latter caught a sheep, and was shot by Mr. Ewing. The Indian would have shot Ewing in retaliation, had not Alder, who was fortunately present, with much difficulty prevailed upon him to refrain.

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day, the first surveying party landed at the mouth of this creek, and, on its eastern bank, near the lake shore, in tin cups, pledged-as they drank the limpid waters of the lake their country's welfare, with the ordnance accompaniment of two or three fowling-pieces, discharging the required national salute.

The whole party, on this occasion, numbered fifty-two persons, of whom two were females (Mrs. Stiles and Mrs. Gunn) and a child, and all deserve a lasting place in the history of the State.

The next day, they began the erection of a large log building on the sandy beach on the east side of the stream. When done, it was named "Stow Castle," after one of the party. It was the dwell- ing, storehouse and general habitation of all the pioneers. The party made this their headquar- ters part of the summer, and continued busily engaged in the survey of the Reserve. James Kingsbury, afterward Judge, arrived soon after the party began work, and, with his family, was the first to remain here during the winter follow- ing, the rest returning to the East, or going south- ward. Through the winter, Mr. Kingsbury's family suffered greatly for provisions, so much so, that, during the absence of the head of the family in New York for provisions, one child, born in his absence, died, and the mother, reduced by her suf- ferings and solitude, was only saved by the timely arrival of the husband and father with a sack of flour he had carried, many weary miles, on his back. He remained here but a short time, re- moving to Cleveland, which was laid out that same fall. In the spring of 1798, Alexander Harper, William McFarland and Ezra Gregory, with their families, started from Harpersfield, Delaware Co., N. Y., and arrived the last of June, at their new homes in the Far West. The whole population on the Reserve then amounted to less than one hun- dred and fifty persons. These were at Cleveland, Youngstown and at Mentor. During the summer, three families came to Burton, and Judge Hudson settled at Hudson. All these pioneers suffered severely for food, and from the fever induced by chills. It took several years to become accli- mated. Sometimes the entire neighborhood would be down, and only one or two, who could wait on the rest "between chills," were able to do anything. Time and courage overcame, finally.

It was not until 1798, that a permanent settle- ment was made at the mouth of Conneaut Creek. Those who came there in 1796 went on with their surveys, part remaining in Cleveland, laid out that

summer. Judge Kingsbury could not remain at Conneaut, and went nearer the settlements made about the Cuyahoga. In the spring of 1798, Thomas Montgomery and Aaron Wright settled here and remained. Up the stream they found some thirty Indian cabins, or huts, in a good state of preserva- tion, which they occupied until they could erect their own. Soon after, they were joined by others, and, in a year or two, the settlement was permanent and prosperous.

The site of the present town of Austinburg in Ashtabula County was settled in the year 1799, by two families from Connecticut, who were in- duced to come thither, by Judge Austin. The Judge preceded them a short time, driving, in company with a hired man, some cattle about one hundred and fifty miles through the woods, follow- ing an old Indian trail, while the rest of the party came in a boat across the lake. When they ar- rived, there were a few families at Harpersburg ; one or two families at Windsor, twenty miles southwest; also a few families at Elk Creek, forty miles northeast, and at Vernon, the same distance southeast. All these were in a destitute condition for provisions. In 1800, another family moved from Norfolk, Conn. In the spring of 1801, sev- eral families came from the same place. Part came by land, and part by water. During that season, wheat was carried to an old mill on Elk Creek, forty miles away, and in some instances, half was given for carrying it to mill and returning it in flour.

Wednesday, October 21, 1801, a church of six- teen members was constituted in Austinburg. This was the first church on the Reserve, and was founded by Rev. Joseph Badger, the first mission- ary there. It is a fact worthy of note, that in 1802, Mr. Badger moved his family from Buffalo to this town, in the first wagon that ever came from that place to the Reserve. In 1803, noted revivals occurred in this part of the West, attended by the peculiar bodily phenomenon known as the " shakes " or " jerks."

The surveying party which landed at the mouth of Conneaut Creek, July 4, 1796, soon completed their labors in this part of the Reserve, and ex- tended them westward. By the first of September, they had explored the lake coast as far west as the outlet of the Cuyahoga* River, then considered

*Cuyahoga, in the Indian language, signifies "crooked."- Howe's Collections.

"The Indians called the river 'Cuyaboghan-uk,' 'Lake River ' It is, emphatically, a Lake river. It rises in lakes and empties into a lako."-Atwater's History of Ohio.

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by all an important Western place, and one des- tined to be a great commercial mart. Time has verified the prophecies, as now the city of Cleve- land covers the site.

As early as 1755, the mouth of the Cuyahoga River was laid down on the maps, and the French had a station here. It was also considered an im- portant post during the war of the Revolution, and later, of 1812. The British, who, after the Revolution, refused to abandon the lake country west of the Cuyahoga, occupied its shores until 1790. Their traders had a house in Ohio City, north of the Detroit road, on the point of the hill near the river, when the surveyors arrived in 1796. Washington, Jefferson, and all statesmen of that day, regarded the outlet of the Cuyahoga as an important place, and hence the early at- tempt of the surveyors to reach and lay out a town here.

The corps of surveyors arrived early in Septem- ber, 1796, and at once proceeded to lay out a town. It was named Cleveland, in honor of Gen. Moses Cleveland, the Land Company's agent, and for years a very prominent man in Connecticut, where he lived and died. By the 18th of October, the surveyors had completed the survey and left the place, leaving only Job V. Stiles and family, and Edward Paine, who were the only persons that passed the succeeding winter in this place. Their residence was a log cabin that stood on a spot of ground long afterward occupied by the Commercial Bank. Their nearest neighbors were at Conne- aut, where Judge Kingsbury lived; at Fort McIntosh, on the south or east, at the mouth of Big Beaver, and at the mouth of the river Raisin, on the west.

The next season, the surveying party came again to Cleveland, which they made their headquarters. Early in the spring, Judge Kingsbury came over from Conneaut, bringing with him Elijah Gunn, who had a short time before joined him. Soon after, Maj. Lorenzo Carter and Ezekiel Hawley came with their families. These were about all who are known to have settled in this place that summer. The next year, 1798, Rodolphus Ed- wards and Nathaniel Doane and their families set- tled in Cleveland. Mr. Doane had been ninety- two days on his journey from Chatham, Conn. In the latter part of the summer and fall, nearly every person in the settlement was down with the bil- ious fever or with the ague. Mr. Doane's family consisted of nine persons, of whom Seth, a lad six- teen years of age, was the only one able to care for

them. Such was the severity of the fever, that any one having only the ague was deemed quite fortunate. Much suffering for proper food and medicines followed. The only way the Doane family was supplied for two months or more, was through the exertions of this boy, who went daily, after having had one attack of the chills, to Judge Kingsbury's in Newburg-five miles away, where the Judge now lived-got a peck of corn, mashed it in a hand-mill, waited until a second attack of the chills passed over, and then returned. At one time, for several days, he was too ill to make the trip, during which turnips comprised the chief article of diet. Fortunately, Maj. Carter, having only the ague, was enabled with his trusty rifle and dogs to procure an abundance of venison and other wild game, His family, being somewhat acclimated, suffered less than many others. Their situation can hardly now be realized. " Destitute of a physician. and with few medicines, necessity taught them to use such means as nature had placed within their reach. They substituted pills from the extract of the bitternut bark for calomel, and dogwood and cherry bark for quinine."

In November, four men, who had so far recor- ered as to have ague attacks no oftener than once in two or three days, started in the only boat for Walnut Creek, Penn., to obtain a winter's supply of flour. When below Euclid Creek, a storm drove them ashore, broke their boat, and compelled their return. During the winter and summer fol- lowing, the settlers had no flour, except that ground in hand and coffee mills, which was, how- ever, considered very good. Not all had even that. During the summer, the Connecticut Land Com- pany opened the first road on the Reserve, which commenced about ten miles south of the lake shore, on the Pennsylvania State line, and extended to Cleveland. In January, 1799, Mr. Doane moved to Doane's Corners, leaving only Maj. Car- ter's family in Cleveland, all the rest leaving as soon as they were well enough. For fifteen months, the Major and his family were the only white per- sons left on the town site. During the spring, Wheeler W. Williams and. Maj. Wyatt built the first grist-mill on the Reserve, on the site of New- burg. It was looked upon as a very valuable acces- sion to the neighborhood. Prior to this, each fam- ily had its own hand-mill in one of the corners of the cabin. The old mill is thus described by a pioneer :

"The stones were of the common grindstone grit, about four inches thick, and twenty in diame-

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ter. The runner, or upper, was turned by hand, by a pole set in the top of it, near the outer edge. The upper end of the pole was inserted into a hole in a board fastened above to the joists, immedi- ately over the hole in the verge of the runner. One person fed the corn into the eye-a hole in the center of the runner-while another turned. It was very hard work to grind, and the operators alternately exchanged places."

In 1800, several settlers came to the town and a more active life was the result. From this time, Cleveland began to progress. The 4th of July, 1801, the first ball in town was held at Major Carter's log cabin, on the hill-side. John and Benjamin Wood, and R. H. Blinn were managers; and Maj. Samuel Jones, musician and master of ceremonies. The company numbered about thirty, very evenly divided, for the times, between the sexes. " Notwithstanding the dancers had a rough puncheon floor, and no better beverage to enliven their spirits than sweetened whisky, yet it is doubt- ful if the anniversary of American independence was ever celebrated in Cleveland by a more joyful and harmonious company than those who danced the scamper-down, double shuffle, western-swing and half-moon, that day, in Maj. Carter's cabin." The growth of the town, from this period on, re- mained prosperous. The usual visits of the Indi- ans were made, ending in their drunken carousals and fights. Deer and other wild animals furnished abundant meat. The settlement was constantly augmented by new arrivals, so that, by 1814, Cleve- land was incorporated as a town, and, in 1836, as a city. Its harbor is one of the best on the lakes, and hence the merchandise of the lakes has always been attracted thither. Like Cincinnati and Chil- licothe, it became the nucleus of settlements in this part of the State, and now is the largest city in Northern Ohio.

One of the earliest settlements made in the Western Reserve, and by some claimed as the first therein, was made on the site of Youngstown, Ma- honing County, by a Mr. Young, afterward a Judge, in the summer of 1796. During this summer, before the settlements at Cuyahoga and Conneaut were made, Mr. Young and Mr. Wilcott, proprie- tors of a township of land in Northeastern Ohio, came to their possessions and began the survey of their land. Just when they came is not known. They were found here by Col. James Hillman, then a trader in the employ of Duncan & Wilson, of Pittsburgh, "who had been forwarding goods the country by pack-saddle horses since

1786, to the mouth of the Cuyahoga, thence to be shipped on the schooner Mackinaw to Detroit. Col. Hillman generally had charge of all these caravans, consisting sometimes of ninety horses and ten men. They commonly crossed the Big Beaver four miles below the mouth of the She- nango, thence up the left bank of the Mahoning- called by the Indians " Mahoni" or " Mahonick," signifying the " lick" or " at the lick "-crossing it about three miles below the site of Youngstown, thence by way of the Salt Springs, over the sites of Milton and Ravenna, crossing the Cuyahoga at the mouth of Breakneck and again at the mouth of Tinker's Creek, thence down the river to its mouth, where they had a log hut in which to store their goods. This hut was there when the surveyors came, but at the time unoccupied. At the mouth of Tinker's Creek were a few log huts built by Moravian Missionaries. These were used! only one year, as the Indians had gone to the Tus- carawas River. These and three or four cabins at the Salt Springs were the only buildings erected by the whites prior to 1796, in Northeastern Ohio. Those at the Salt Springs were built at an early day for the accommodation of whites who came from Western Pennsylvania to make salt. The tenants were dispossessed in 1785 by Gen. Harmar. A short time after, one or two white men were killed by the Indians here. In 1788, Col. Hill- man settled at Beavertown, where Duncan & Wilson had a store for the purpose of trading with the Indians. He went back to Pittsburgh soon after, however, owing to the Indian war, and remained there till its close, continuing in his busi- ness whenever opportunity offered. In 1796, when returning from one of his trading expeditions alone in his canoe down the Mahoning River, he discovered a smoke on the bank near the present town of Youngstown, and on going to the spot found Mr. Young and Mr. Wolcott, as before men- tioned. A part of Col. Hillman's cargo consisted of whisky, a gallon or so of which he still had. The price of " fire-water " then was $1 per quart in the currency of the country, a deerskin being legal tender for $1, and a doeskin for 50 cents. Mr. Young proposed purchasing a quart, and having a frolic on its contents during the even- ing, and insisted on paying Hillman his cus- tomary price. Hillman urged that inasmuch as they were strangers in the country, civility re- quired him to furnish the means for the entertain- ment. Young, however, insisted, and taking the deerskin used for his bed-the only one he had-

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paid for his quart of whisky, and an evening's frolic was the result.

" Hillman remained a few days, when they ac- companied him to Beaver Town to celebrate the 4th, and then all returned, and Hillman erected a cabin on the site of Youngstown. It is not cer- tain that they remained here at this time, and hence the priority of actual settlement is generally conceded to Conneaut and Cleveland. The next year, in the fall, a Mr. Brown and one other per- son came to the banks of the Mahoning and made a permanent settlement. The same season Uriah Holmes and Titus Hayes came to the same locality, and before winter quite a settlement was to be seen here. It proceeded quite prosperously until the wanton murder of two Indians occurred, which, for a time, greatly excited the whites, lest the In- dians should retaliate. Through the efforts of Col. Hillman, who had great influence with the natives, they agreed to let the murderers stand a trial. They were acquitted upon some technicality. The trial, however, pacified the Indians, and no trouble came from the unwarranted and unfortu- nate circumstance, and no check in the emigration or prosperity of the colony occurred."*

As soon as an effective settlement had been es- tablished at Youngstown, others were made in the surrounding country. One of these was begun by William Fenton in 1798, on the site of the pres- ent town of Warren, in Trumbull County. He remained here alone one year, when he was joined by Capt. Ephraim Quimby. By the last of Sep- tember, the next year, the colony had increased to sixteen, and from that date on continued prosper- ously. Once or twice they stood in fear of the Indians, as the result of quarrels induced by whisky. Sagacious persons generally saved any serious outbreak and pacified the natives. Mr. Badger, the first missionary on the Reserve, came to the settlement here and on the Mahoning, as soon as each was made, and, by his earnest labors, succeeded in forming churches and schools at an early day. He was one of the most efficient men on the Reserve, and throughout his long and busy life, was well known and greatly respected. He died in 1846, aged eighty-nine years.

The settlements given are about all that were made before the close of 1797. In following the narrative of these settlements, attention is paid to the chronological order, as far as this can be done. Like those settlements already made, many which

are given as occurring in the next year, 1798, were actually begun earlier, but were only tem- porary preparations, and were not considered as made until the next year.

Turning again to the southern portion of Ohio, the Scioto, Muskingum and Miami Valleys come prominently into notice. Throughout the entire Eastern States they were still attracting attention, and an increased emigration, busily occupying their verdant fields, was the result. All about Chilli- cothe was now well settled, and, up the banks of that stream, prospectors were selecting sites for their future homes.

In 1797, Robert Armstrong, George Skidmore, Lucas Sullivant, William Domigan, James Mar- shall, John Dill, Jacob Grubb, Jacob Overdier, Arthur O'Hara, John Brickell, Col. Culbertson, the Deardorfs, McElvains, Selles and others, came to what is now Franklin County, and, in August, Mr. Sullivant and some others laid out the town of Franklinton, on the west bank of the Scioto, oppo- site the site of Columbus. The country about this locality had long been the residence of the Wyan- dots, who had a large town on the city's site, and cultivated extensive fields of corn on the river bot- toms. The locality had been visited by the whites as early as 1780, in some of their expeditions, and the fertility of the land noticed. As soon as peace was assured, the whites came and began a settle- ment, as has been noted. Soon after Franklinton was established, a Mr. Springer and his son-in-law, Osborn, settled on the Big Darby, and, in the sum- mer of 1798, a scattering settlement was made on Alum Creek. About the same time settlers came to the mouth of the Gahannah, and along other water-courses. Franklinton was the point to which emigrants came, and from which they always made their permanent location. For several years there was no mill, nor any such commodity, nearer than Chillicothe. A hand-mill was constructed in Franklinton, which was commonly used, unless the settlers made a trip to Chillicothe in a canoe. Next, a horse-mill was tried; but not till 1805, when Col. Kilbourne built a mill at Worthington, settled in 1803, could any efficient grinding be done. In 1789, a small store was opened in Frank- linton, by James Scott, but, for seven or eight years, Chillicothe was the nearest post office. Often, when the neighbors wanted mail, one of their number was furnished money to pay the postage on any letters that might be waiting, and sent for the mail. At first, as in all new localities, a great deal of sickness, fever and ague, prevailed.

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* Recollections of Col. Hillman .- Howe's Annals.

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As the people became acclimated, this, however, disappeared.

The township of Sharon in this county has a history similar to that of Granville Township in Licking County. It was settled by a " Scioto Company," formed in Granby, Conn., in the winter of 1801-02, consisting at first of eight associates. They drew up articles of association, among which was one limiting their number to forty, each of whom must be unanimously chosen by ballot, a single negative being sufficient to prevent an election. Col. James Kilbourne was sent out the succeeding spring to explore the country and select and pur- chase a township for settlement. He returned in the fall without making any purchase, through fear that the State Constitution, then about to be formed, would tolerate slavery, in which case the project would have been abandoned. While on this visit, Col. Kilbourne compiled from a variety of sources the first map made of Ohio. Although much of it was conjectured, and hence inaccurate, it was very valuable, being correct as far as the State was then known.

"As soon as information was received that the constitution of Ohio prohibited slavery, Col. Kil- bourne purchased the township he had previously selected, within the United States military land district, and, in the spring of 1803, returned to Ohio, and began improvements. By the succeed- ing December, one hundred settlers, mainly from Hartford County, Conn., and Hampshire County, Mass., arrived at their new home. Obeying to the letter the agreement made in the East, the first cabin erected was used for a schoolhouse and a church of the Protestant Episcopal denomination ; the first Sabbath after the arrival of the colony, divine service was held therein, and on the arrival of the eleventh family a school was opened. This early attention to education and religion has left its favorable impress upon the people until this day. The first 4th of July was uniquely and appropri- ately celebrated. Seventeen gigantic trees, em- blematical of the seventeen States forming the Union, were cut, so that a few blows of the ax, at sunrise on the 4th, prostrated each successively with a tremendous crash, forming a national salute novel in the world's history."*

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History of Licking County, Ohio: Its Past and Present, Part 20

Author: N. N. Hill, Jr. Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Number of Pages: 826

Author: N. N. Hill, Jr.
Publication date: 1881
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 826