History of Medina county and Ohio, Part 87

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Battle, J. H; Goodspeed, Weston Arthur, 1852-1926; Baskin & Battey. Chicago. pub
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago : Baskin & Battey
Number of Pages: 1014

USA > Ohio > Medina County > History of Medina county and Ohio > Part 87

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

made by the people in the township in the Soldiers' monnment that stands erccted in the public square of Chatham Village. On the strength of a legislative enactment, passed in the winter of 1865, by the General Assembly of Ohio, the project of a monnment to the memory of the soldiers of Chatham Township, which had been promulgated, even prior to the pas- sage of the act, by the leading citizens of the township, was brought to completion in the summer of 1866.

The Chatham Monumental Association was formed in the fall of 1865 at the Congregation- al Church in the village. At the first meeting held, Lnther Clapp was chosen President, Ed- ward Talbott, Treasurer, and A. W. Richards, Secretary. The Board of Directors elected at the first meeting, consisted of the following gentlemen . Jonathan Paekard, J. E. Vance, J. M. Beach, Thomas S. Shaw, S. C. Ripley, F. R. Mantz, D. Palmer, Lnther Clapp and S. H. Mc- Connell. Subscription books were at once opened and volnntary aid solicited by the prop- erly appointed committees, for the furtherance of the patriotic scheme. The people of Chat- ham gave with open hands and free hearts. Before winter had passed away, nearly $1,600 had accumulated in the hands of the Treasurer of the association. A commit- tee, consisting of Lnther Clapp, Jonathan Pack- ard, S. C. Ripley, Edward Talbott and A. W. Richards, was elected to purchase a monument and select a site on which it should be erected. A contract was entered into with a Cleveland firm, and, by the 20th of June, it stood eom- pleted on its present site in the center of the village. The dedicatory services were held on the 4th of July following, and it formed a day worthy of remembrance in future ages. A vast conconrse of people gathered to participate in the festivities. People came in procession from different directions. The exercises were opencd with an invocation by the Rev. William Moody, which was followed with patriotic airs by the

HISTORY OF MEDINA COUNTY.

577

Chatham Glee Club and the martial bands in attendance. Col. Allan W. Richards read the " Declaration of Independence," and an oration was delivered by the Rev. G. S. Davis. A re- cess for a grand Fourth of July dinner was then taken, after which the dedication services proper, of the monument, commenced. The dedicatory prayer was delivered by the Rev. DeForest Parsons, after which the Hon. Harri- son G. Blake gave the oration that he pre- pared for the occasion. It was a fete day that will cling to the memory of the Chatham peo- ple as long as the shapely mass of stoue that commemorates the noble deeds of her sons stands in its midst. The monument stands up- on an octagon-shaped mound ; its foundation is of solid Berea stone, the sub-base is a marble block four feet square and three feet high. Upon this stands the marble shaft, which is surmounted by the American eagle, cut out of Parian marble. On the four sides of the shaft the names of the soldiers who enlisted in Chat- ham Township are engraven, with the date of enlistment and their commands.

The church history of Chatham Towuship begins at a date which records its first settle- ment. The Parsons family were earnest and devout Methodists, and, from the first day of their life in the new country, they continued to render homage to the God on high in family worship and prayer. At various times, Mr. Par- sons journeyed with his family to the Harris- ville settlement to attend the divine services held there by itineraut ministers who had commenced to pass through that locality at reg- ular intervals. After the addition of several more families to his own, Mr. Parsons secured the services of different Methodist circuit- riders to call at the colony and conduct reg- ular worship. Among the first of these, were the Rev. James Gilroof and Rev. Anson Brain- ard. Services were held sometimes in the log cabin, and sometimes in the open barn. This continued for several years, until 1832, when a

regular church organization was effected, and Chatham was added as a regular station to the Wellington Circuit. Regular church meetings were now held every four weeks. The Rev. Mr. Harris, of Black River, at a later day a Bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church of America, was for a time one of the riders who called at the Parsons home regularly. In connection with these early church matters, we must record part of the life of one of the sons of Mr. Moses Par- sons, the Rev. DeForest Parsons, at present a retired minister of Genesee (N. Y.) Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He had been apprenticed to a trade by his father in 1823, when he was twenty years of age, in Painesville, some miles east of Cleveland. While in that towu, a " revival " had been put in prog- ress, in which the young mechanic joined, and he was so affected by the religious movement that he finally abandoned his trade and returned to New York State, where had been his former home, and commenced the study of the minis- try of God. In the course of four or five years, he was ordained and given a charge in the church. He now made several visits of an in- definite length of time at his father's home in Ohio, and while there preached to the people. The meetings which had at first been held in private houses, took place after the organization at the log schoolhouse two miles south of the center of Chatham, and were continued there for a number of years. Another Methodist Church society was formed by the settlers in the northern half of the township about the year 1838. They held meetings and had divine wor- ship. In 1850, the two societies joined together and built a church edifice at the center. The Rev. Ralph Wilcox was officiating minister when the union was formed. The society has now about 120 members enrolled on its church book.

The First Congregational Church of Chatham is to-day the largest in number and the most influential of the church organizations in the

578

HISTORY OF MEDINA COUNTY.

township. It was formed on the 1st of May, 1834, under the union plan, and joined to the Presbytery of North America. The following were the first members: Gideon Gardner, Philip Packard, Gaylord C. Waner, Orrin Shaw, Joel Lyon, Amasa Packard, Barney Daniels, Iram Packard, Ebenezer Shaw, George Pack- ard, Jacob Packard, Eleanor Joline, Cclia Rich- ards, Martha Waner, Sarah P. Shaw, Mehitable Lyon, Abigail Packard, Mehitable Daniels, Naucy Shaw, Miss Sarah Packard and Miss Vesta Richards. The form of admission, with articles of faith and covenant and welcome of the Presbyterian Church, was unanimously adopted at the time of organization on May 1, 1834. In 1835 thirteen more members joined the church, and its number increased from year to year. In 1842, a split occurred in this so- ciety, and the church was re-organized on the Congregational order of faith the year follow- ing. The Rev. Caleb Burbank was called to preach to the new congregation, and he con- tinued the resident Pastor of the church for eight years. Steps for the building of a new church edifice were taken in the spring of 1844. The building was completed in the fall of 1846, when the pews were sold, and worship in the new house commenced. From that date on, meetings have been held by this society regu- larly ou succeeding Sabbath Days. The mem- bership of the church has increased until it now numbers about 300.

The Dunkard Society of Brethren com- meuced public worship in the township, after the large meeting-house erected by them in the spring of 1871, on the farm of Tobias Hoover, near the banks of Black River, had been com- pleted. Rev. Joseph Rittenhouse and Samuel Garver are the officiating ministers of this and the adjoining Homer Church, of this denomina- tion. The meetings alternate in these two churches from Sunday to Sunday. The follow- ers of Alexander Mack form one vast brother- hood, and the lines in the local organization in

this religious denomination are but indistinctly drawn. Simple iu their form of faith, they worship as one single organization.

The history of Chatham Township would be quite incomplete without a proper and full reference to the origin aud growth of its publie schools. A private school was taught by a Mrs. George Cook, living at that time in Litch- field Township on the north, in the summer of 1827, in the few log cabins that were then scattered through the towuship. She had but six scholars. The year following, the first at- tempt at school teaching in the colony was supplemented by the effort of Miss Vesta Rich- ards, who taught a private school for several years in succession, at different private dwell- ings. After the organization of the township a little log school hut was put on the north-and- south road, two miles south of the center. A subdivision of the township iuto school districts was made by the Board of Trustees on the 6th of March, 1843. In many of the townships of the Western Reserve counties, select schools, for the instruction of children, which were sub- ject to special tuition fees, were instituted. This was done in Chatham Township in 1858, and from that time on anuual sessions have been lield regularly. In this connection, an ef- fort was made in 1867 by the people of the township to have a large school or " academy " building, for special school purposes, erected. The effort soon assumed definite shape, and at the township election in the spring of 1867, the project was submitted to a vote of the people. It was carried by a small majority. The work of building a new schoolhouse for such pur- poses as had been desigued, was by law vested in the Township Board of Education. A building committee was appointed, and, at the board meeting held on May 4, the following coutract was submitted by them to the board :

Your committee beg leave to report, that, pursuant to authority given by the board, they have advertised for and received proposals to build a Central or High

HISTORY OF MEDINA COUNTY.

579

School house according to the plans and specifications adopted by the board, with such alterations in said plans and specifications as your committee were au- thorized to, and deemed necessary to make, and have exe- cuted a contract with Silas C. Ripley and W. G. Tilley for the building of the same for the sum of $4,846 (the lowest accepted bid); said house to be completed on or before the 15th of August, 1868, and your committee would respectfully ask that they be authorized, on or about the 15th of Mareh, 1868, to make an estimate of value of labor and material furnished to that date by said Ripley & Tilley, and if this committee shall find it to be in accordance with the terms of said contract, that they be authorized to certify the same to the Township Clerk, and your committee would further ask that the Township Clerk be instructed that on re- ceipt of said certificate, he return an order to said Ripley & Tilley upon the Township Treasurer for the sum of $1,211.80. J. D. WHITNEY,

Chairman.

This report was adopted by the board. The construetiou of the new building was then put in progress, and continued during the year. It was nearing completion in the spring of 1868, when, through the strenuous opposition that had been made to the project by some of the citizens of the township, the eontraet theu ex- isting between the Board of Education and the school-building contractors was declared null and void by a vote of resolution by the board. Suit was brought by the contractors against the township. After many heated and lively dis- cussions upon this topic that was then eugross- ing the attention of the citizens of Chatham to

the exclusion of almost everything else, the matter was satisfactorily adjudicated by arbi- tration. To finish the building, then, a special tax levy had to be voted for, and this eaused one of the fiercest contests knowu in the annals of the township. The proposition was carried by a small majority, and the building was thereafter soon completed. A special term of school was opened in the new structure by T. B. Randall, in the spring of 1870. He was followed in the next year by J. D. Stoneroad, who rented it for a term of several years.

The township is to-day subdivided into eight school distriets. The school enumeration, taken on the 1st of September, 1879, shows 132 male and 115 female children between the ages of six and eighteeu, in the township, making a total of 247 school children. The following abstraet is taken from the Township Clerk's statement :

Ba ance on hand, September 1, 1879. $1,160 26

State tax. 438 00

Irreducible school funds. 28 07

Township tax for schools and schoolhouse purposes 1,224 44

Making a total of. $2,850 77

The spirit of the people of Chatham Town- ship is in accord with all the movements of popular education, and its educational affairs rank equal with those of any township in the county.

580

HISTORY OF MEDINA COUNTY.

CHAPTER XVIII.

BRUNSWICK TOWNSHIP-GEOLOGY-EARLY SETTLEMENT-FIRST OFFICERS --- ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF INDUSTRIES-INCIDENTS OF PIONEER LIFE-VILLAGES-EDUCATION-RELIGION.

SEVENTY years ago, the now densely pop- ulated township of Brunswick was a tangled wildwood and wilderness, wherein were found the rude deer-skin wigwams of the In- dians and the winding trails and hidden lairs of numerous species of wild animals. The report of the settler's rifle and the echo of his ax were unknown, save those made by wander- ing hunters, who roamed without fear through the dark forests in quest of more stirring ad- venture than that found near the border set- tlements. Occasionally, bands of hostile sav- ages, in war-paint and feathers, armed with rifle, tomahawk and scalping-knife, were seen gliding like shadows through the deep woods, on their mission of death and desolation. War with Great Britain was declared, and the Na- tion called to its brave men to

" Come, strike the bold anthem, the war dogs are howl- ing,

Already they eagerly snuff up their prey ;

The red cloud of war o'er our forest is scowling,

Sweet peace spreads her wings and flies weeping away."

The borderers, responsive to the call, flew to the forts, and prepared to fight to the bitter end for their homes and loved ones. After a time, the storm of war subsided, the Indians sued for peace and retired farther into the fastnesses of the forest; the borderers re- turned to their partially-cleared homes, and the unbroken wilderness of Ohio was visited by thousands of settlers seeking homes.

Brunswick Township was first settled in the spring of 1815, although the land had been

purchased previously, and was then owned in tracts of different sizes by several men re- siding in the East, who offered it for sale at prices ranging from $125 to $3 per acre. The surface soil is largely clay, with frequent out- croppings of sand. The turnpike, which crosses the township north and south, a half- mile west of the Center, is located upon an elevated ridge, where large beds of sandstone are exposed. This stone has been quarried more or less since the earliest times, and is of a coarse texture, so stained and discolored with iron oxides as to mar the beauty of the stone. A large semi-circular ridge, elevated in a grad- ual slope above the surrounding country sixty or seventy feet, is located about a mile north of the Center, and reveals inexhaustible beds of the coarse sandstone. On the farm of Will- iam Bennett, where a small stream has its source, near his residence, is a ravine, proba- bly sixty feet in depth and about the same in width, where perpendicular embankments of the stone may be seen. Extending out through the side of the entire depth of the ravine and back from it seventy or eighty feet, is a nat- ural crevice, varying in width from six inches to two feet. On the bank above, and over this crevice, Mr. Bennett has erected a large build- ing for storing apples, vegetables, etc., and the crevice on the ground is left uncovered, thus affording much-needed ventilation during the winter months. Large quantities of stone are being taken out on the ridge near the resi- dence of Mr. Stowe, and at other places in the township. This portion of the county is now

581

HISTORY OF MEDINA COUNTY.

well drained, although in early years the com- paratively level land at the head-waters of Plum Creek was wet and marshy and almost impassable, as some of the first settlers remem- ber to their sorrow. Mud, in early years, was an important matter to take into considera- tion on all occasions when journeys were to be undertaken. It was a principal cause of arous- ing the wrath and invective of the pioneer, and is said to have incited conduct unbecoming Christians. A journey without the incidental sticking in the mud was regarded as an omen of prosperity, and was warmly welcomed, not simply for that reason alone, but because of the discomfort avoided. The western third of the township is also quite level. From the turnpike, near the center, the country east- ward and westward is descending and valley- like, with rising ground in the distance. The principal stream is Plum Creek, which rises near the farm of George Bennett and flows a little east of south, leaving the township and uniting with Rocky River a short distance northeast of Medina. Its course is tortuous, and it has many small, winding branches. The western third is drained by small streams which flow west into Rocky River. The north- east corner is threaded by a small stream which flows east and unites with the East Branch of Rocky River.

On the 4th of March, 1815, Solomon and Frederick Demming arrived in the town- ship, erected rude log cabins and began to clear a few acres for a corn and potato patch and a garden. During the summer of the same year, there came in John Hulet, Seymour Chapin, John Stearns, Andrew Demming and Henry Bogue, with their families. These men located in different parts of the township and erected the indispensable log cabin, and endeavored to make themselves comfortable- During the months of October and November, 1815, James Stearns, Solomon Harvey and

Henry Parker came with their families. Soon afterward came Samuel Tillotson, Ephraim Lindley and W. P. Stevens.

In 1817, John Freese, B. W. Freese, Dr. Seth Blood, Jacob Ward, Harvey Stebbins, L. Thayer, Rhoda Stowe, W. Root, P. Clark, Peter, John and A. Berdan and others arrived. This addition soon altered the appearance of the township. Here and there could be seen small round-log cabins standing in clearings of a few acres, while ncar them could be heard the almost incessant ring of the ax, and the crash of huge trees that had stood the tempests of ages. The sharp report of the rifle rang out through the woods, and the choice turkey or ven- ison, soon afterward eaten by the family, attest- ed the prowess of the hunter. When a new set- tler appeared, those already established, need- ed no invitation to assemble immediately, and speedily erect his cabin. Often the cabin, be- gun in the morning, was occupied by the family the following night. Families were frequently taken in by others, where they remained until their cabin was ready. Log-rollings and chop- ping bees became common, and it is stated that weeks were often spent in one continual round of rollings. Great sport was enjoyed on these occasions, and the women usually assembled to do the cooking. Enormous pot-pies of wild turkey or venison were served up to the hungry men, and the joke and laugh went round. Whisky was almost universally pres- ent, and was the source of frequent bursts of merriment and occasional bursts of passion. Often, some poor fellow, too full for utterance, sought some secluded spot to dream of hunts and Indians and sleep off the blissful effects of King Alcohol. The following is related by an old settler: "Capt. John Stearns had got everything in readiness and had fixed upon a day to raise his new barn, when it was discovered that no whisky could be bought, or even borrowed, in the township, and, more un-

582

IHISTORY OF MEDINA COUNTY.

fortunate still, that none could be had nearer than Tallmadge. To go to that village and return would require two days. Mr. Stearns made known the matter to his neighbors, who told him that, under the present circumstances, they thought perhaps the barn might be raised without the liquor, though they could not ap- prove of his neglect to see. about the matter earlier. On the day appointed, the settlers assembled, went to work, raised the barn, and made the fortunate discovery that a building could be safely and speedily built without the use of whisky." After that, it was no uncom- mon occurrence to see buildings going up and not a drop of liquor used.

The young people were not without their sleighing parties and dances, and the vigor and energy there displayed would arouse the admiration of the old men and women present, who, thereupon, related the experience of their youth. The following is related by Ephraim Lindley, who came to the township in 1816: "Several young people of Brunswick con- cluded to go to the residence of Rufus Ferris, who lived a short distance north of the pres- ent county seat, and pay a number of young people there assembled a visit, and have a good time generally. Each young man of us got his female partner, and, rigging jumpers made of long poles that answered for runners and thills, we fastened on a few boards, on which we sat while traveling. Our road was marked by blazed trees. We started from what is now Brunswick Center, and, following the obscure path, we finally reached Wey- mouth in safety. We then, by a path still harder to follow, journeyed until we reached Rocky River, at the Joseph Northrup farm, and, after crossing the river, continued on through the woods until we reached the cabin of Mr. Ferris, where we were warmly wel- comed. We tarried there, engaged in youth- ful sport, until a late hour, and, finally,

started for home. The entire night was spent in the visit, and, while going and coming, we had no fine buffalo robes to protect us from the severity of the snow-storm that was raging."

The settlers were called upon very early to build bridges, which, very probably, were car- ried away by the next freshet. "It was no uncommon thing to see all the men in a com- munity congregate early, and, without stock- ings or shoes, labor all day in water, fixing abutments, and placing the long, heavy string- ers thereon. The puncheons used so univer- sally for flooring were considered equally well fitted for use in bridges, and were thus used." Often the women took the ax or the rifle and went into the forest to chop or in quest of game. One day, Maria, the wife of John Hulet, was standing near the little window of her cabin. The snow lay thickly upon the ground, and the air was bitterly cold. She had much out-door work to do that winter, there being two cows and a yoke of oxen left in her care. While looking from the window, she saw a large dog standing in the edge of the clearing, and from his appearance-with tongue hanging out and covered with sweat -she knew he had been chasing some animal. Moving a little, she saw a large buck, covered with foam, standing near the dog. She quietly took the ax and hurried out of the door, call- ing to the dog to seize it. The buck was instantly thrown upon the snow, where it was knocked on the head by the resolute woman. She tied a rope around its neck, dragged it to the cabin, and had almost finished skinning it, when a tall Indian presented himself and claimed the animal, saying it had been run down by his dog. After some parley, the deer was relinquished, and the Indian, after taking the skin and hind quarters, departed. Mrs. Hulet was compelled to carry water from a spring at a considerable distance from her

HISTORY OF MEDINA COUNTY.

583

cabin, and, thinking over the matter one day, she concluded to dig a well near the house. She went to work, and, when down where she could not throw the earth out, she took a tin vessel, to which a long rope was attached, and, with this imperfect implement, her children drew up the earth which she placed therein. In this remarkable manner, a depth of thirty feet was reached, when an abundance of good water was found. The next thing was to wall the well, and this must be done without delay, as, otherwise, it would cave in. She entered into a contract with a neighbor, giving him a small iron furnace to draw a load or two of stones. And then she did not know how to place them, but a stranger, happening along, agreed to show her for a meal of victuals. The meal was prepared and eaten, and then the stranger told her how to lay the stones so that they would not fall. After many vexations, the wall was laid, and the well to-day is an excellent one, and is located on the farm of George Hunt. This incident is related to show the trials which the wives of the settlers were compelled to undergo. Where is the woman who, to-day, in the absence of her husband, if a tall Indian presented himself at her house and demanded any article she had, would have the courage to demand her right. The article would be yielded without a word, and the red man would go off laughing in his sleeve (if he had one) at what he would probably call a "heap big scare."

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Medina county and Ohio, Part 87

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Battle, J. H; Goodspeed, Weston Arthur, 1852-1926; Baskin & Battey. Chicago. pub Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Chicago : Baskin & Battey Number of Pages: 1014

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Battle, J. H; Goodspeed, Weston Arthur, 1852-1926; Baskin & Battey. Chicago. pub
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago : Baskin & Battey
Number of Pages: 1014