History of Preble County Ohio: Her People, Industries and Institutions, Part 14

Author: R. E. Lowry
Publication date: 1915
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 985

USA > Ohio > Preble County > History of Preble County Ohio: Her People, Industries and Institutions > Part 14

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).

On February 9 and 10, 1899, the thermometers in Eaton registered from twenty-eight degrees to thirty-two degrees below zero Fahrenheit, the lowest ever recorded. The latest killing frost in the fall was October 30, 1897, when the first frost fell that killed tomatoes in Eaton. I had many tomatoes in my garden and it was so remarkably late that I made a memorandum of the fact.

The most destructive storm that ever visited our county occurred on the night of May 12, 1886. A cyclone swept across our county, crossing Dixon, Gasper and Lanier townships, leveling forests, destroying many

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houses and buildings, injuring several people and killing one woman in Lanier township. At the same time a furious downpour of rain fell over the whole county, continuing for hours and swelling the streams higher than ever known, sweeping away the old covered bridge and an iron bridge at Eaton, the Camden bridge and many other bridges large and small, until the damage to the bridges alone amounted to more than one hundred thou- sand dollars, besides much damage to individuals, in addition to the de- struction of the roads of the county. The storm occurred from eight o'clock in the evening to about one o'clock next morning. While there have been other floods, when as much or more water fell and flowed down the streams, notably the flood of March 25 and 26, 1913, the water was longer in fall- ing and the streams carried away the water without causing so much damage.

On April 1, 1906, Perry Alexander, owner of the old J. Meroney farm, had a field of corn planted which grew, escaped any killing frost and made a fair crop of corn, being the earliest planting of a field that reached maturity on record so far.

INDIAN CHIVALRY ILLUSTRATED.

From Indian murders our early settlers were comparatively free, there being but one that would be really called a murder. The following story was related to the writer by Dr. Christian Sayler, of Gratis, some thirty- five years ago. He heard the story as a boy, had visited the spot as a young man, and believed it to be true: About 1811 or 1812 some wood choppers were coming across what is locally known as the Morningstar hill, some one hundred yards east of the present roads, one evening on their way to the settlement near Gratis, and among them was a heavy-built German lad about twenty years old. They were armed with only their axes and on the hill they saw a party of some three or four Indians, probably Shawnees, who started after them with fierce yells. The choppers ran south as fast as they could, but the Indians soon overtook the German, who had thrown away his axe, and ran around a big beech tree, one of the Indians repeatedly strik- ing at his head with his tomahawk and striking the tree instead, but finally struck and killed the poor fellow, took his scalp and fled. The other chop- pers gave the alarm and a posse started in pursuit and followed the trail northeast some miles, but without overtaking them. It was shortly before the opening of the War of 1812, and it was supposed the Indians were some of Tecumseh's implacable Shawnees, who felt that war was coming. The

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battle of the Thames ended their leader and broke the tribe forever. About 1813, two men were shot in the upper valley of Twin creek and one man shot on Whitewater above New Paris, by foray parties of Indians engaged in the war. It is said they were killed by Indians, because when the bodies were found by the searching parties in each instance the scalp had been taken, which mutilation the Indians always made of their dead foes, if they had time.

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CHAPTER VII.

ORGANIZATION OF PREBLE COUNTY.

The whole of Preble county lying west of the Great Miami river was included in Randolph county (which included all the land of Ohio and In- diana west of that river to the Indian lands in Indiana) by proclamation of Governor St. Clair in 1790. About 1802 the territory east of the state line, called the meridian, drawn from the mouth of the Great Miami river, was in- cluded in Hamilton county, and Preble county was named Hardin township, in honor of Governor Hardin, of Kentucky.

On March 1, 1803, Ohio became a state and the Legislature erected But- ler as a county from Hamilton county, and including Hardin township. In the same year the Legislature erected Montgomery county, and in- cluded within it all of Hardin township, or that part of Preble county that lies north of the half section lines that are one and one-half miles north of the present north line of Butler county, and the lands of the county so re- mained until Preble county was erected. Hence, many patents and deeds of the early settlers north of that half section line are found recorded in Day- ton, to which place the residents went to pay taxes and attend court; a num- ber of the deeds and patents of those who lived in the south mile and a half of this county are recorded at Hamilton, while all patents and deeds for land made and recorded before 1803 are found in the records at Cincinnati.

On March 1, 1808, Preble county was formed by the following act of the Legislature :

"An Act Establishing the County of Preble.

"Section 1 .- Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, that all that part of Montgomery and Butler counties included in the follow- ing boundaries be and the same is hereby laid off and erected into a separate and distinct county, which shall be called and known by the name of Preble, to wit: Beginning at the southwest corner of the sixth township, first range east of the meridian, drawn from the mouth of the Great Miami river ; thence east along said township line to the range line between the third and fourth ranges; thence north to the northeast corner of the seventh township in the

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third range; thence west along the township lines to the state line; thence south to the place of beginning.

"Section 2 .- Be it further enacted, that from and after the first day of March next, said county of Preble shall be vested with all the powers, privi- leges and immunities of a separate and distinct county ; provided, that it shall be lawful for the sheriff, coroner, constables and collectors of Montgomery and Butler counties to do and perform all the duties which they are or may be required to do in the said counties of Montgomery and Butler within the bounds of the said county of Preble; and all suits and actions which are or may be pending therein at the time of the said division, shall be tried and de- termined in the same manner as though a division had not taken place.

"Section 3 .- Be it further enacted, that all justices of the peace and other officers residing within the said county of Preble, shall continue to exer- cise the duties of their respective offices until their successors are chosen and qualified.

"Section 4 .- Be it further enacted, that it shall be the duty of the asso- ciate judges to divide the said county of Preble into townships, subject to the future alteration of the commissioners, and to publish the bounds of each in at least three of the most public places in said townships, and also to direct the electors of said township to elect, on the first Monday in April, three com- missioners, a sheriff and coroner, to hold their offices until the next annual election, together with the requisite number of township officers; provided, notice shall be given at least ten days before the said first Monday of April.

"Section 5 .- And be it further enacted, that the courts to be holden in the said county of Preble, shall be holden in the town of Eaton, until a perma- nent seat of justice shall be established in said county.

"This act to be in force from and after the first day of March next.

"P. BEECHER, "Speaker of the House of Representatives. "THOMAS KIRKER, "Speaker of the Senate. "January 8, 1808."

(Ohio Laws, Vol. 6, page 164-now General Code, Sec. 14437.)

New Lexington was laid out by James I. Nisbet, November 18, 1805, and Eaton by William Bruce, February 20, 1806. Each intended his town to be the county seat of a new county, and the Legislature was appealed to for a law erecting a new county.

Judge Nisbet sought to have the new county include the four western

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townships of Montgomery county, which would have made the county twen- ty-four miles square, but he was opposed by the representatives of Montgom- ery county, because it took so much land from the county.

William Bruce proposed a county eighteen by twenty-four miles, which -should be called Preble, after Commodore Preble, and that his town should be called Eaton, after Gen. William Eaton, the two great naval and land heroes of the United States war with the pirates of Algiers and Tripoli. He did not forget to call attention to the fact that he had named the principal streets Barron, Somers, Wadsworth and Decatur, after other heroes of that war. In this way Mr. Bruce succeeded in getting at least an interested hear- ing in the committee, and those from Montgomery county, who had opposed the establishment of a county, seeing that the unwieldy size of their county was so great that sooner or later a new county would be formed, and desiring to make their loss of territory as small as possible, threw their influence to Mr. Bruce. After two years of effort, the county was erected as above stated, and that placed Eaton practically in the center and foreclosed the equity of redemption of New Lexington ever to be the county seat.

Judge Nisbet felt very bitter over his defeat, and went so far as to re- fuse to pay his taxes to his rival, but, after being haled before the commis- sioners, he paid. But Judge Nisbet was an able man and too valuable to the new county to lose his services, so he was appointed as one of the first asso- ciate judges of the county, which position he held for many years.

Commodore Edward Preble was born at Portland, Maine, August 15, 1761, and became a captain in 1799. In 1803 he was sent as commodore com- manding a squadron of warships, to compel the Barbary States to cease their piratical annoyance of American shipping and to free the American prisoners held by them as slaves. One of his assistants was Commodore Barron, and Decatur, Wadsworth and Somers were lieutenants. The towns of Algiers and Tripoli were bombarded and two or three sea fights were had, in which the Americans were uniformly successful.

Gen. William Eaton was born at Woodstock, Connecticut, in 1764, and was a soldier in the last years of the Revolution, being a captain in Wayne's army. In 1798 he was sent as consul to Tunis and also to treat with the Barbary States for peace with the United States, but, failing to secure a favor- ble hearing, he went to Egypt and united with Hamet, whom a younger broth- er had pushed from the throne of Tripoli. They raised an army of some two thousand or more, of whom less than a hundred were Europeans, and marched overland for Tripoli. Under the command of Eaton, they stormed and took the town of Derne, and Eaton then defeated a Tripolitan army of ten times

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the number of his own army. The sultan of Tripoli, becoming alarmed at the successes of the ships and of Eaton's army, made peace and granted the demands of the United States, freeing all the prisoners in May, 1805.

Commodore Preble died in 1806, and General Eaton died in 1811, not long surviving their successes. Those being the days of sailing vessels, the United States did not hear of the glorious ending of the war for several weeks. There being no railroads or telegraph lines, and the weekly newspa- pers generally getting the news by stage coach, it was not until the fall of 1805 that this western country heard of and applauded the exploits of the men whose daring and skill won that war for the young republic. Thus, Wil- liam Bruce, being an ardent American, showed his knowledge of human na- ture by seizing the opportunity and adopting the names that would appeal to the popular fancy. The sequel shows that he had properly sized up the sit- uation.

FIRST OFFICIAL ACTS.

The first election for county officers was held on the first Monday of April, 1808. On April 27, 1808, George Shideler, William R. Irwin and Sam- uel Hawkins presented their certificates of election as county commissioners to William Brown, who was then court clerk pro tempore, and they were sworn into office. Their first acts were to appoint Alexander C. Lanier clerk, and to appoint William Bruce treasurer, which office he continued to hold for ten years. The commissioners ordered a bounty of one dollar paid for the scalp of every panther, or "wild wolf," killed in the county, and quite a number were killed and the bounty paid.

The next meeting of the commissioners was on June 6, 1808, in the house of Samuel Hawkins, which stood on what is now the northeast corner of the court house square. At that meeting they ordered that "the courts shall be held upstairs in the house of Samuel Hawkins, in the town of Eaton, said Hawkins having agreed to give the use of said room and a table without charge therefor." They also made the first tax levy, as follows: "That the following rates be charged on the taxable property of this county for the year, viz: For each one hundred dollars valuation of houses, fifty cents; for each stud horse, the same, for which he shall stand the season; for each horse, thirty cents; for each cow, ten cents; and those who refuse to give in a true list shall pay four-fold, as the law directs. For license to keep tavern in the town of Eaton, eight dollars; in the town of New Lexington, six dol- lars ; on the roads of the county, otherwise than in said towns, four dollars."

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COUNTY SEAT LOCATED.

The Legislature had appointed Aaron Harlin, Ichabod B. Halsey and Ichabod Corwin as commissioners to decide on the location of the county seat, and they made their report to the county commissioners on June 23, 1808. Of course, Judge Nisbet made a fight to have them choose New Lex- ington, on account of its better physical location and the nearness of a larger stream of water, which would probably insure a greater growth of the town, but the affability of William Bruce and his persistent pointing out that Eaton was so near the geographical center of the county, and would thus accommo- date most of the people of the county better, except those who lived in and near New Lexington, finally won the day, and said commissioners' report was: "That the permanent seat of Justice shall be fixt at the town of Eaton, provided that the money, lands, lots, stone and labour, subscribed by the in- habitants of said town, shall be duly secured for the use of said county towards erecting publick buildings."-Commissioners' Journal, Vol. I, p. 13.

Then began a real "boosters' campaign" to raise the necessary funds, for it was put squarely up to Eaton to hold what she had gained. The owners of lots in Eaton and the lands around responded with "such as I have I give thee." Samuel Hawkins gave four lots and four acres of land; William Bruce gave twelve lots and stone from the quarry along the creek for all pub- lic buildings and two blocks of lots along Main street; George Worthington gave one lot ; John Mills gave six acres and John Aukerman gave two acres; John and Jacob Spacht gave forty dollars for building a gaol; Andrew House gave twenty dollars; Matthew Harbison, ten dollars, and John Harbison, five dollars, all to be paid in mason work; Benjamin Griffith, five dollars in turn- er's work : Alexander C. Lanier, fifty dollars, payable in work on gaol and court house; William Steele, fifteen dollars, payable in work on gaol; and William Smith, ten dollars, payable in lots, and a number of others gave also. -Commissioners' Journal, Vol. 1, pages 15 to 18.

BUILDING OF A JAIL.

On June 25, 1808, the commissioners adopted specifications for a gaol to be erected, and the same day gave Alex. C. Lanier an order for four dollars and fifty cents for making out the tax duplicate for the county. Then the question arose as to how to convert the lots and land into money. It was finally decided by the county commissioners to hold a public auction and sell to the highest bidder. The sale was held on August 2, 1808, and the com-

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missioners, to add to the joy of the occasion and make the bidding spirited, bought five quarts of whisky to treat the crowd, and paid one dollar and twenty-five cents for it out of the county treasury .- Commissioners' Journal, Vol. I, page 41.

In these days the most liberal "home ruler" would not vote for such an appropriation out of the county treasury. But when it is remembered that in those days there were no saloons; that whisky was kept in nearly all homes; that many people did not think they had treated their guests hospitably unless they had offered them a drink from the family demijohn or bottle, and that even preachers did not hesitate to take a three-finger nip-when these things are remembered, we will be slow to censure the men of that early time who acquiesced in the customs of the people.

All the lots sold at the sale were numbered the same as they are now, and we give the prices of a few, for the sake of comparison: Lot I, $54.25; lot 3, $12.121/2 ; lot 46, $25.25; lot 45, $15.00; lots 23 and 24, $12.25; lot 74, $24.00; lot 103, $30.25 ; lots 176 and 177, $34.25. Six acres of land north of the Methodist church and east of Maple street brought thirty-six dollars and twenty-five cents.

The gaol was to be sixteen by eighteen feet in size and two stories high and John Banfill bid to do the work for seven hundred and thirty-nine dol- lars. It was built on the court house lot during 1808. On August 3, 1808, the commissioners ordered a well dug on the court house lot, "to be walled and complete the same with a good sweep and bucket to be paid for in town lots." On August 24, 1808, the commissioners settled with the associate judges for the preceding quarter, for two days each, at three dollars per day.

THE FIRST COURT HOUSE.

The building of a court house was a more serious affair. After consid- erable agitation, on March 4, 1812, a man was appointed for each township, to solicit funds to build a court house. In the meantime, it appears, there were a number of tentative plans adopted, as to size, the building to be of frame- work, but it was finally 1816 before it was determined that it should be built of brick, two stories high and forty feet square. It was to be located twenty- five feet east of Barron street and twenty feet south of Main street, and to be built parallel to said streets. An agreement was made with Andrew House to build the court house in accordance with the plans and specifications as finally adopted, for the sum of one thousand dollars, to be completed on or before December 1, 1816. The building was accepted by the commissioners on De-

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cember 4, 1816, but was not fully furnished and completed until three or four years later. John Spacht, Andrew McQuiston and James Crawford were the commissioners who built the first court house. At this place it may be interest- ing to note some of the taxation matters of that early day, in comparison with present times, as denoting the growth of the county in wealth.

EARLY TAX LISTS.

On June 6, 1808, the Israel township tax duplicate was "one hundred and six horses, two stud horses, and one hundred and seventy-three cattle," the township being the whole west range of the county. Somers township was "two stud horses, two hundred and thirty-three horses and two hundred and seventy-seven cattle," and the appraiser received seven dollars and fifty cents. This township was the whole middle range of the county. Twin township was "two stud horses, one hundred and twenty-eight horses and one hundred and fifty-eight cattle"; the appraiser got six dollars and fifty cents. Twin town- ship was the north fourteen miles of the third range.

On the same day, Albert Banta, appraiser of Twin township, filed an affidavit that James I. Nisbet refused to list his property for taxes, and he was tried and adjudged guilty. He appealed the case to the county commis- sioners' court, and, on June 24, 1808, they adjudged that he "do recover anything but his false plaint in mercy," and "that the return as made by the appraiser be confirmed." On December 4, 1815, in the settlement with the tax collector, the commissioners' journal recites that the total land tax of the county was $1,745.647.

CREATION OF TOWNSHIPS.

James I. Nisbet, John Meroney and John C. Irvin had been appointed associate judges of the common pleas court, and, on March 15, 1808, they met at the house of Samuel Hawkins in Eaton. After being sworn, their first act was to divide Preble county into four townships. Remembering that there are three ranges of townships in the county, they ordered: First, that the south ten miles of the third range of townships should be named Hardin township, and the election therein held at the house of William Swisher; sec- ond, that the north fourteen miles of the third range should be named Twin township, and the election held at the house of William Nisbet; third, that all of the second range of townships should be named Somers township, and the election held at the house of Samuel Hawkins; fourth, that the first range of

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townships should be named Israel township, and the election held at the house of Benjamin Kercheval .- Probate Court Journal, pages 2 to 5.

The first election, held on the first Monday of April, 1808, was held at the above houses.

It is said that in that early day Twin Creek valley had the greater popu- lation, that being the reason for making two townships in the third range.

In studying the organization of the county, one of the first questions is as to how and where the various township divisions of the county were made. The first division by the three commissioners appointed by the Legislature has been given above. All subsequent changes and divisions were, by statute, placed in the power of the county commissioners, and the commissioners' journal shows that it was done as follows by their orders :

On March 7, 1809, they decreed that the north sixteen miles of the sec- ond range of townships should be called Washington township, and that the election should be held at the house of Samuel Hawkins. This left Somers township ten miles long. On the same day they decreed that Jefferson town- ship should be the north sixteen miles of the first range, the election to be at the house of John Marks, thus leaving Israel township ten miles long.

Then came a lull, and a contest that caused some bitterness for a time.

TOWNSHIP CONTEST.

It will be remembered that Hardin township was the south ten miles of the third range. It had incurred a debt of about two hundred and fifty dol- lars for some road work, which was all done in the north four miles of the township. The people of what is now Lanier township desired to have it created as a separate township, and to pay only its proportionate share of the debt, as it was a township debt, and the people of what is now Gratis town- ship desired to have it erected into a separate township, and free of any part of the debt, because they argued that the north part, having received all the benefit of the money spent, ought to pay the debt. For over a year the ques- tion was bandied about, neither party succeeding, but finally, on March 4, 1811, the county commissioners decreed that the fifth congressional township of the third range should be a separate township, to be called Lanier (after the clerk of the board), the election to be held at the house of Joshua Howell, and that it should pay its proper pro rata share of the debt.

Of course this aroused the Quakers, and a body of them, headed by Samuel Stubbs, came to Eaton, on March 7, 1811, to argue their cause. They were turned down by the commissioners, but, after getting outside of their 4

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dinners, Mr. Stubbs insisted on making another try. At last they consented, and again the delegation filed in before the commissioners and Samuel Stubbs made an argument for their side, pointing out very strongly that it worked no injustice if the people who received all the benefits were required to pay the debt, and that they had a strong and growing community of respectable peo- ple, who never shunned their duty. He was so earnest about it that he got a respectful hearing, finally winding up with the words, "Now, friends, we think thee ought to give us a township free gratis." When he closed, Alex. C. Lanier, the clerk of the board, exclaimed, "O, let him have his township, and call it Gratis," and the commissioners then made the order "that all that part of the third range being within the bounds of the fourth original sur- veyed township be declared a new township, by the name of Gratis, election to be held at the house of Silas Gregg."-Commissioners' Journal, page 129.

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History of Preble County Ohio: Her People, Industries and Institutions, Part 14

Author: R. E. Lowry Publication date: 1915 Publisher: Number of Pages: 985

Author: R. E. Lowry
Publication date: 1915
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 985