History of Richland County, Ohio : (including the original boundaries) ; its past and present, containing a condensed comprehensive history of Ohio, including an outline history of the Northwest, a complete history of Richland county miscellaneous matter, map of the county, biographies and histories of the most prominent families, &c., &c., Part 32

Author: Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Mansfield, O. : A. A. Graham & co.
Number of Pages: 968

USA > Ohio > Richland County > History of Richland County, Ohio : (including the original boundaries) ; its past and present, containing a condensed comprehensive history of Ohio, including an outline history of the Northwest, a complete history of Richland county miscellaneous matter, map of the county, biographies and histories of the most prominent families, &c., &c. > Part 32

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).

"The eighth annual fair was held September 22 and 23. 1857. The Society has been holding its anniversaries upon ground belonging to a private citizen, without any other right than a permit, and for no specified time. The Society has adopted measures to procure and fit up grounds. The County Commissioners have agreed to appropriate one-half of the money, and the citizens of Mansfield agree to furnish one- half of the remainder, the balance to be raised by subscription in the county. The Society is confident of success in the enter- prise."

The Secretary, Alex. Mellvain, speaks hope- fully of the future and well of the past. He reports the total receipts from all sources, $223 .- 86; the total expenditures, $211.90, leaving a balance of $11.96 in the treasury. Ezra Osborn was President of the Society that year.

The report of 1858 shows that steps were being taken to procure new grounds, which de- sired change was not accomplished till the next year. The fair of 1858 was only a partial success. The fair at Plymouth started that year, and drew nearly all the patronage from the north part of the county. The receipts were, how- ever, increased, and after paying all expenses (amounting to $726.58) there remained in the treasury $101.95.

The next year, the new grounds. on the south side of the city, were purchased. and there, on the 12th, 13th and 14th of October, 1859, the fair, the largest yet. was held. Over fifteen thousand persons were estimated to have been on the grounds. The receipts were $879 and the expenses $1,020.

The new grounds contained about ten acres, and were in an excellent location, at the junction of the Lexington and Bellville roads.

The county fairs continued to be held here with varying successes during the years that followed, when the civil war almost swallowed every other question. Its influence was dis- cernible, however, as well as the Plymouth fair, and the Bellville fair, started in 1860. The close of the great war, and the return of pros- perity, brought a change over agricultural, as well as other, interests. The sixteenth fair, held October 3, 4 and 5, 1865, was, considering the weather, a success. Ten cents admission was charged ; 156 membership tickets sold, and 536 entries made. The next year the prosperity continued, and thoughts of new and larger grounds were entertained. The fair of 1867 was still better. The Society made enough to pay all premiums, and also a part of their indebted-

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ness, incurred in the purchase of the grounds. and the losses occasioned by the depression of business during the war.

The successes of the last two or three years determined the feasibility of the fair. The grounds, for the fair of 1868, were too small, and a committee was appointed to purchase a new location. Several localities were offered. ranging in price from $125 to $300 per acre. October 1. a contract was entered into, whereby Mr. E. Hade sold to the Society a fraction over twenty-four acres for $3,125.20, and Mr. A. C. Welch authorized to sell the old ground, which sale was afterward effected.

The purchase of the new grounds, and the opening of the fair of 1869, marked an era of prosperity heretofore unknown. The Society had introduced many improvements ; had built commodious halls for floral, mechanical and agricultural displays ; and had completed a finely graded one-half-mile track. The entire expenditures for the year were $14,169.68. The receipts from all sources were $7,396.24, leav- ing a debt of $6,773.44. which the Society con- fidently expected to wipe out the following year. It will be remembered by the citizens of the county who attended this fair, that Mr. O. H. Booth wrote an excellent humorous account of its proceedings, the most complete report by far of any heretofore published.

The report of 1870 was still successful. All parts of the county were well represented, and. though the weather for the most time was un- favorable, the attendance was large. A few new.halls had been erected for the further con- venience of visitors, and pipes laid from a spring of water in an adjacent hillside, which low sent its waters into the midst of the fair grounds. The supply of water, however, proved insufficient, and steps were taken to increase the volume from other sources.

The report of 1871 shows continued prosper- ity. The Holly waterworks were in course of erection in the city, which, when completed, were

expected to convey abundance of water to the grounds. The meeting this year is declared in the Secretary's report to be the best ever held in the county.

The next year, the State Fair was held in this county. The attendance to this was very large, and caused a decline in the receipts of the county fair, held shortly afterward. The Society lost money this year. though it gained somewhat in interest caused by the State Fair that had held its meetings on the Society's grounds. The additional buildings erected for the use of the State Fair were retained for the county society. The number of members this year was 132. The report of 1873 shows a de- pression. The Secretary says : "The Society now numbers only about twenty members, which will probably be largely increased at the coming annual meeting of the Society. The State Fair having been held here for the past two years, has virtually killed the exhibitions of the county society, not enough being realized off the exhibitions of 1872 and 1873 to pay the premiums awarded. The Society has also largely involved itself through the fitting up of the grounds for the State Fair, and it will only be by careful management that the Society will come through."

That fall, the First National Bank failed. The President of the bank. Mr. W. S. Hiekox, was also President of the Society. His failure brought the climax of difficulties on the Society, and, though a fair was held the next fall, it was evident to all, particularly to the principal members of the Society, that it must succumb to hard times, its debt and the blow it received from the failure of the bank. The grounds were sold to pay the debts ; and, at a meeting held January 2, 1875, it was,

"Resolved, That it is the sense of this meeting that the Richland County Agricultural Society has, by reason of financial difficulties, outlived its usefulness, and it is hereby declared formally disbanded." This resolution was

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HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

signed by J. W. Myers, Secretary, and the so- ciety declared adjourned " sine die."

Richland County was now without an organ- ized society as a county society. The Bell- ville fair had, several years before. ceased its exhibitions. but the Plymouth fair was still prosperous. Influential citizens, however, were determined not to let the matter die out, and, soon after the above resolution was passed, a call for those interested in a county agricult- ural society appeared in the city papers, asking all such to meet in the rooms of the Richland Mutual Insurance Company, April 24. That day a number of citizens met there, and, after organizing and hearing the object of the meet- ing clearly stated. adopted a resolution forming a new agricultural society, using the con- stitution and by-laws of the old one, changing the name only by omitting the word "county" from the new society. A committee was ap- pointed to solicit members, and the 8th of May set as the day on which to meet and per- feet the organization.

That day quite a large number of persons met, and completed the organization by electing officers and a Board of Directors. The com- mittee reported 177 names of those who had put down their names and agreed to support. the new society. The officers elected were : S. B. Sturges, President ; Robert Darling, Vice President; M. E. Douglass. Treasurer, and J. W. Myers, Secretary. The old grounds were rented, and it was determined to hold a fair the coming autumn.

From that time forward, there is but little to be written. Annual exhibitions have been held. increasing in interest and attendance. The So- ciety were enabled this last year to pay all pre- miums in full. and all current expenses. and have a margin over for future operations. Should the people of the county rally to the support of the Society, a few years hence will see it in full possession of its grounds, and in growing condition.

Incidental mention has already been made of other fairs in this county, viz .. the Bellville and Plymouth fairs. The former of these dates its earliest inception in 1850. About the last of October in that year. Mr. Miller Moody obtained a charter, and, principally through his efforts, the fair was held. A lot of ground, just south of the elevator. was secured, where the ont-door exhibition was held. The in- door exhibition was held in the Universalist church, then in an unfinished condition. The fair is well spoken of now by those who attended it, and was. undoubtedly. a good exhibition for that time. The Mansfield (county) fair was, however, coming into existence, and. being the principal agricultural attraction, drew the ma- jor part of the patronage. and absorbed the society at Bellville, which seems to have held but one meeting.

Ten years after. in 1860. the citizens in the southern part of the county concluded a fair could be successfully maintained in Bellville, and, at an informal meeting, held in the sum- mer of that year, organized the Bellville Agri- cultural Society. They leased a beautiful plat of ground about one-fourth mile from the vil- lage, and. October 24, 25 and 26, held an excel- lent exhibition. Mr. Nicholas Fleharty was among the prime movers in this fair. The So- ciety held three exhibitions, but, owing to the war, could not maintain a paying organization, and allowed it to go down. and turned their at- tention to the county society. then, like all others. in a precarious condition. The end of the war brought new vigor to the county society ; but the Bellville organization was not revived.

The Plymouth fair was organized June 15. 1855, with the following list of officers : John Bodine, President ; Mr. Barker and Levi B. Shaver, Vice Presidents ; R. McDonald. Treas- urer ; D. R. Locke (Nasby). Secretary. Exhi- bitions of a good character were maintained nearly every year down to 1870. on rented, leased or donated grounds. That year, how-

HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

197

ever, a joint-stock company was formed, and not long after thirteen acres of land in the vil- lage purchased. The grounds were put in the best of order, and are now among the first in this part of Ohio. The fair draws a large pat- ronage from adjoining counties, especially from Huron and Crawford. Premiums are generally paid promptly, and bring a good class of exhib- itors.

The present officers are John K. Brant, Pres- ident; Joseph Conley. Vice President ; A. B. Gilson. Treasurer : J. Frank Beelman. Seere- tary ; and P. S. Brink, Superintendent.

The foregoing history gives the county three distinct societies. Whether it can well support that number. remains a problem. Each one was a good one in its day; but at present only two maintain an active existence. A good fair, well attended by the farmers. for whom it is primarily intended, cannot fail to be of great benefit to them. Strange as it may appear. however. generally that class is the last to move energet- ically in the matter, and does not uniformly give the fair that attention due to it by them.

Horticultural Societies .- Horticulture. so near akin to agriculture. may well be noticed in this connection. From the earliest settlement of the county there have been those who took a deep interest in the cultivation of fruit. Probably the earliest horticulturist in this county. if not in Ohio, was the famous John Chapman. better known as "Johnny Appleseed." whose singular history is elsewhere narrated. Many of the best nurseries in this and adjoining coun- ties trace their beginning to his erratic wander- ings. Following him, were those early em- igrants, who, having become accustomed to rich fruit in their Eastern homes. planted seeds and sprouts, grafted fruits, and. from time to time, im- proved the varieties introduced into this region. Improvement in one place suggested improve- ment in another. and thus gradually better grades of fruit found their way into the farm- ers' cellars, and to the market. By and by.

consultations among neighbors, and an exchange of seeds and grafts, led to the desire in the minds of many for a society whose object should be the discussion of, and the interchange of views regarding, fruit culture.

Late in the season of 1873 (December 11), a meeting of prominent fruit-growers in the county decided that, on December 20, a meeting of all those whose minds favored the idea, should be held in the county seat, and a horticultural so- ciety organized. That day, about thirty of those who were interested in fruit culture assembled, in defiance of the muddy roads, and proceeded to the formation of the society. Dr. Perkins Bige- low was called to the chair, and J. E. Wharton appointed Secretary. The Doctor explained the object of the meeting. and called upon the Secretary to read the constitution that had been prepared by the committee appointed for that purpose December 11. It was adopted. An election for officers then ensued, resulting in the choice of F. R. Palmer, President; Samuel Nail. Vice President: J. E. Wharton, Secretary, and Dr. Bigelow, Treasurer. An executive committee, consisting of the following gentle- men. was also chosen: John Booth, C. Elliott, S. S. Smith, R. M. Coulter, and H. Golliday. By-laws were then submitted and approved, and the " Richland Horticultural Society " was an actual fact. Before adjourning. it was decided that the first meeting for discussion should be held February 14, 1874, in the library rooms.

That day quite a number of persons assem- bled. and, after the opening addresses by the elected officers, an interesting and instructive exhibition of fruits was shown, exhibiting the varieties grown in the county. These were dis- cussed. and views regarding their best modes of culture given. Subjects for the next meeting were selected. and the meetings, it was deter- mined. should be held each month.

Since that time regular monthly meetings are held during the year. save in the winter, where all kinds of fruits are exhibited and discussed;

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IHISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

the best modes of cultivation noted; the ravages of climate, inseets and other drawbacks given; the best modes of overcoming all difficulties stated, and the results obtained in each indi- vidual case.

The effect of the Society's labor has greatly advanced the standard of fruit in this county. It has brought other societies here at different times, and has awakened a general interest in most parts of the county, not easily measured by the standard of money.

Mr. Palmer continued President till the early part of 1875, when lie was succeeded by Adam Moore. At the same time. Mr. Palmer was elected Viee President; John Booth, Secretary; and Dr. Bigelow continued as Treasurer.

These persons remained in office until Janu- ary 12, 1878, when Mr. Palmer was elected President; R. M. Coulter, Vice President; C. S. Doolittell, Secretary; and Dr. Bigelow. Treas- urer. These officers are still occupying their respective positions. The monthly meetings are regularly held during the .proper season, and would the citizens of the county, in general, give the Society that encouragement properly due, its benefits would be largely increased.

Regarding the beneficial results of the horti- cultural society, Mr. Palmer, its President, fur- nishes the following: "In the early settlement of the county but little attention was given to the cultivation of small fruits, such as straw- berries, raspberries, grapes, etc. Not till 1860, was any considerable quantity grown for mar- ket."

The soil proved to be well adapted to the growth of these wholesome and delicious fruits, and very fine crops were grown. The fruit met a ready sale at good prices. The acreage in- creased for several years, until about fifty aeres each of strawberries and raspberries were grown in the vicinity of Mansfield. Since 1865, the home market has been well supplied, and thou- sands of bushels have been shipped to other parts of the State.

Grape-growing is also comparatively a new industry in this county. For a long time, it was the general opinion that grapes could not be grown with success, except in certain localities, and near large bodies of water; $800 an aere have been paid for land on Kelley's Island and elsewhere about Sandusky City, for vineyard purposes. Experience has proven that the hills of Richland County will grow as many tons of grapes per acre, and of as good quality, as could be raised in any of these localities. The first vineyard planting in the county was done in 1863 by L. N. Pittenger and F. R. Palmer. Two years later, John Oswald planted a vineyard. All these vineyards bore fine crops of choice fruits. The fifth year after planting, Mr. Oswald gathered twelve tons of grapes from five aeres; and the next year, gathered the enormous erop of twenty-seven tons from the same ground. This fruit sold readily for $100 per ton. The other vineyards were not allowed to bear so heavily, being pruned, and yielding about three tons per acre. The fruit was larger and of much better quality, and sold in Fort Wayne and In- dianapolis for $140 per ton.

The success of these vineyards encouraged others to plant, and in the spring of 1874, more than seventy thousand Concord grapevines were planted in Richland County. There are now (1880) 150 acres of vineyard in the county, whose average crops are two and one-half tons per acre, or nearly four hundred tons, worth $500 ; surely a profitable investment. But lit- tle wine is made in the county. the fruit being principally used for table purposes. The bulk of the crops have been principally shipped to Cincinnati, where they have commanded good prices.

The first vines planted in 1863, by L. W. Pittenger, bore an excellent crop the third year after planting, and for thirteen years the vines have yielded an annual remunerative supply. In 1878 and 1879, many of the vineyards lost their fruit by reason of rot. This does not ap-

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HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

pear to be the result of any defect in the soil nor infirmity in the vine : but of some peculiar atmospheric agency, which growers as yet do not understand. The prevailing opinion is that it is the result of excessive rainfall, followed by hot, sultry weather, and that it will disap- pear as the seasons change.

The following statisties will give the reader a pretty accurate idea of the wealth of the county as represented in the last agricul- tural report made to the Anditor for the year 1879.

There was sown in wheat, 36,030 acres, on which were grown 669,887 bushels ; rye, 730 acres, 9,499 bushels ; buckwheat, 143 acres, 1,118 bushels ; oats, 23,738 acres, 804,274 bushels ; barley, 144 acres, 4,168 bushels ; corn 31,243 acres, 1,020,412 bushels ; meadow, 22,- 115 acres, 28,041 tons hay ; clover, 13,206 acres, 11,133 tons hay, 5,981 bushels seed ; 739 acres, plowed under for mannre; flax, 248 acres, 2,121 bushels seed ; potatoes, 1,445 acres, 91,- 052 bushels; tobacco, 1 acre planted, 400 pounds produced ; butter, 827,305 pounds produced ; cheese, 9,728 pounds ; sorghum, 31 acres, 156 pounds sugar, 4,632 gallons syrup ; maple su- gar in 1879, 38,589 pounds sugar, 17,417 gal- lons syrup ; beehives, 2,137, 23,918 pounds honey ; grapes and wine, 25 acres planted in the year 1878, whole number of acres in the vineyard in 1878, 284; in 1878, 190,005 pounds of grapes gathered, and 245 gallons of wine produced. Sweet potatoes, 2 acres, 199 bushels ;

orchards, 6,795 acres, 961,853 bushels apples, 21,416 bushels peaches, 2,067 bushels pears. Lands owned in 1878-148,852 acres, cultivated; 41,469 acres, pasture; 68.261 acres, wood; 3,849 acres, other uncultivated land ; total 269,- 556. Wool, 227,154 pounds shorn ; sheep killed, 285, value, $788 ; sheep injured, 168, estimate of injury done, $206.50 ; aggregate of injury done to sheep by dogs, $1,070.50 ; domestic animals died from disease, 888 head, value, $2,225 ; sheep, 1,096 head, value, $2,491 ; cat- tle, 241 head, value, $4,589 ; horses, 113 head. value, $7,025.

The personal property in the county is thus exhibited in the same report :

Value of bonds, etc., exempt from taxation, $76,700 ; horses, 10,329, value, $526,732 ; cat- tle, 23,075, value, $306,521; mules, etc., 245. value, $12,210; sheep, 63,310, value, $147,801 ; hogs, 31,751, value, $65,503 ; carriages, 5,888, value, $187,072; all other personal property, in- cluding bank capital and corporation property, $437,115 ; watches, 1,232, value, $24,154 ; pianos and organs, 887, value, $63,148.

The total value of all stocks, bonds, money's and credits, is estimated at $3,062,289, there are 3,440 dogs, whose value (fixed by owners), is $4,334.

From the above reports the entire value of personal property is estimated at $4,838,879. This, added to the value of real property, gives a total value of taxable property in the county of more than $14,000,000.

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HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

CHAPTER XX.

INDIAN TRIBES IN THE COUNTY.

WYANDOTS OR HURONS-OTTAWAS-DELAWARES-SHAWANEES-GREENTOWN-JEROMEVILLE-CAPT. PIPE-THOMAS ARMSTRONG-OTHER CHIEFS-JOHN M. ARMSTRONG, HIS EDUCATION, MARRIAGE, WORK AND DEATH- INDIAN VILLAGES-MANNERS, CUSTOMS, FOOD-HUNTING-MARRIAGE CEREMONIES-RELIGION-FEASTS AT GREENTOWN AND JEROMEVILLE-REMOVAL.

" I have given you lands to hunt in, I have given you streams to fish in, I have given you bear and bison,

I have given you roe and reindeer,

I have given you brant and beaver, Filled the marshes full of wild-fowl, Filled the river full of fishes."-Longfellow.

C IOL. CHARLES WHITTLESEY'S map of the Indians of Ohio gives to this county four principal tribes, the Wyandots or Hu -. rons, the Ottawas .. the Delawares and the Shawanees. The division lines between these nations diverged in three directions from a point a few miles north of the site ot Mansfield, east, west and south. All the northern part of the county was the country of the Ilurons and Ottawas; the southeastern of the Delawares. and the southwestern of the Shawanees. In 1764, these nations were esti- mated by Mr. Hutchins. the United States geographer, to possess 1,600 warriors. divided among them as follows: Delawares, 600; Shaw- anees, 500; Wyandots. 300; Ottawas, 200. A brief history of each of these nations may not be out of place here, and, in as concise a man- ner as possible. it will be given, following the order given above.

The Delawares, the strongest nation, who had a representation in Richland County, ac- cording to their own traditions - all the authority possessed of Indian history-origi- nally came from the West, crossing the Missis- sippi, gradually ascending the Ohio. fighting their way, and continuing on east until they

reached the Delaware River, where the city of Philadelphia now stands, in which region of country they for a time obtained a fixed habi- tation. As time passed, they became very numerous and very powerful, and, while here, they welcomed to the shores of the New World that good man. William Penn, and his peaceful followers. for whom ever after they entertained a very kind and friendly feeling. Col. John Johnston. so long the Indian Agent in the West, relates that. generations after the found- ing of Philadelphia. the Delaware Indians in speaking of a good man, would say " Wa, she, a E. le, ne"-such a man is a Quaker. i.e., all good men are Quakers. It seems that a portion of the tribe remained on the Delaware until 1823, when Col. Johnston removed them to the West. By their removal to the West, they called themselves " Wa, be, nugh, ka:" that is. "the people from the East," or " the sun-rising." What remained of the tribe then, the Colonel says. "were the most wretched, squalid and debased of their race, and often furnished chiefs with a subject of reproach against the whites, pointing to these of their people and saying, . See how you have spoiled them,' mean- ing they had acquired all the bad habits of the white people, and were ignorant of hunting, and incapable of making a livelihood as other In- dians." In 1819. Col. Johnston enumerates eighty Delawares residing in his agency in Ohio, who were stationed near Upper Sandusky, and 2.300 in Indiana. The Colonel mentions

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HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

Bockinghelas and Capt. Pipe, principal chiefs of the Delaware tribe, and Killbuck. who liad received a liberal education at Princeton Col- lege, and who retained the principles of Chris- tianity until his death.

Strong as the Delawares may have been in their halcyon days, disease and the vices of the whites rapidly diminished their numbers, until, when the Greenville treaty was made, only 381 were enumerated. They were represented at the second Greenville treaty, in 1814, and in Sep- tember. 1817. at a treaty held at the foot of the Maumee, Rapids with Lewis Cass and Duncan McArthur, Commissioners on the part of the United States, a reservation of three miles square was granted to them near the Wy- andot reservation. near the northern bound- ary of Marion County. This reservation was equally divided among sixteen principal In- dians, among whom were Capt. Pipe. Zeshanau,* or James Armstrong, and others who had lived in Greentown, in this county, and whose history will be noticed hereafter. By the treaty con- cluded at Little Sandusky AAugust 3, 1829, the Delawares ceded their reservation to the United States for $3.000, and removed west of the Mississippi.

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Author: Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848- Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Mansfield, O. : A. A. Graham & co. Number of Pages: 968

Author: Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Mansfield, O. : A. A. Graham & co.
Number of Pages: 968