History of Seneca County, Ohio, containing a history of the county, its townships, towns, villages, school, churches, industries, etc., portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of the Northwest territory; history of Ohio; statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc, Part 17

Author: Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.)
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Chicago : Warner, Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1088

USA > Ohio > Seneca County > History of Seneca County, Ohio, containing a history of the county, its townships, towns, villages, school, churches, industries, etc., portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of the Northwest territory; history of Ohio; statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc > Part 17

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Seabury Ford, the eighteenth Governor of Ohio, was born in the year 1802, at Cheshire, Conn. His parents settled in Burton Township. He attended the common schools, prepared for college at an academy in Burton, and entered Yale College, in 1821, graduating in 1825. He then began the study of law, in the law office of Samuel W. Phelps, of Painesville, completing his course with Judge Hitchcock. He began practice in 1827, in Burton. He married Miss Harriet E. Cook, of Burton, in 1828. He was elected by the Whigs to the Legislature, in 1835, and served six sessions, during one of which he was Speaker of the House. He entered the State Senate in 1841, and there remained until 1844, when he was again elected Representative. In 1846, he was appointed to the Senate, and in 1848, he became Governor of Ohio. On the first Sunday after his retirement, he was stricken with paralysis, from which he never recovered. He died at his home in Burton in 1855.

Reuben Wood, the nineteenth Governor, was a Vermonter. Born in 1792, in Middleton, Rutland County, he was a sturdy son of the Green Mountain State. He was a thorough scholar, and obtained a classical education in Upper Canada. In 1812, he was drafted by the Canadian authorities to serve against the Americans, but being determined not to oppose his own land, he escaped one stormy night, accompanied by Bill Johnson, who was afterward an Ameri- can spy. In a birchbark canoe they attempted to cross Lake Ontario. A heavy storm of wind and rain set in. The night was intensely dark, and they were in great danger. They fortunately found refuge on a small island, where they were storm-bound three days, suffering from hunger and exposure. They reached Sacket's Harbor at last, in a deplorable condition. Here they were arrested as spies by the patrol boats of the American fleet. They were prisoners

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four days, when an uncle of Mr. Wood's, residing not far distant, came to their rescue, vouched for their loyalty, and they were released. Mr. Wood then went to Woodville, N. Y., where he raised a company, of which he was elected Captain. They marched to the northern frontier. The battles of Plattsburg and Lake Champlain were fought, the enemy defeated, and the com- pany returned to Woodville and was disbanded.

Young Wood then entered the law office of Gen. Jonas Clark, at Middle- bury, Vt. He was married in 1816, and two years later, settled in Cleveland, Ohio. When he first established himself in the village, he possessed his wife, infant daughter and a silver quarter of a dollar. He was elected to the State Senate in 1825, and filled the office three consecutive terms. He was appointed Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. He was promoted to the Bench of the Supreme Court, serving there fourteen years, the latter portion of the term as Chief Justice. He was termed the "Cayuga Chief," from his tall form and courtly bearing. He was elected Governor in 1850, by a majority of 11,000. The new constitution, which went into effect in March, 1851, vacated the office of Governor, and he was re-elected by a majority of 26,000. The Democrats holding a national convention in Baltimore in 1852, party division caused fifty unavailing votes. The Virginia delegation offered the entire vote to Gov. Wood, if Ohio would bring him forward. The opposition of one man pre- vented this. The offer was accepted by New Hampshire, and Frank Pierce became President. Mr. Wood was appointed Consul to Valparaiso, South America, and resigned his office of Governor. He resigned his consulship and returned to his fine farm near Cleveland, called "Evergreen Place." He expected to address a Union meeting on the 5th of October, 1864, but on the 1st he died, mourned by all who knew him.

William Medill, the twentieth Governor, was born in New Castle County, Del., in 1801. He was a graduate of Delaware College in 1825. He began the study of law under Judge Black, of New Castle, and was admitted to the bar in 1832. He removed to Lancaster, Ohio, in 1830. He was elected Rep- resentative from Fairfield County in 1835. He was elected to Congress in 1838, and was re-elected in 1840. He was appointed Assistant Postmaster General by President Polk. During the same year, he was appointed Com- missioner of Indian Affairs. In 1851, he was elected Lieutenant Governor, and, in 1853, he became Governor. He occupied the position of First Comptroller of the United States Treasury in 1857, under President Buchanan, retaining the office until 1861, when he retired from public life. His death occurred in 1865.

Salmon P. Chase was a native of Cornish, N. H. He was born in 1803. He entered Dartmouth College in 1822, graduating in 1826. He was there- after successful in establishing a classical school in Washington, but finan- cially it did not succeed. He continued to teach the sons of Henry Clay, William Wirt and S. L. Southard, at the same time reading law when not busy

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as tutor. He was admitted to practice in 1829, and opened a law office in Cin- cinnati. He succeeded but moderately, and during his leisure hours prepared a new edition of the "Statutes of Ohio." He added annotations and a well- written sketch of the early history of the State. This was a thorough success, and gave the earnest worker popularity and a stepping-stone for the future. He was solicitor for the banks of the United States in 1834, and soon there- after, for the city banks. He achieved considerable distinction in 1837, in the case of a colored woman brought into the State by her master, and escaping his possession. He was thus brought out as an Abolitionist, which was further sustained by his defense of James G. Birney, who had suffered indictment for harboring a fugitive slave. In 1846, associated with William H. Seward, he defended Van Zandt before the Supreme Court of the United States. His thrilling denunciations and startling conjectures alarmed the slaveholding States, and subsequently led to the enactment of the fugitive-slave law of 1850. Mr. Chase was a member of the United States Senate in 1849, through the coalition of the Democrats and Free-Soilers. In 1855, he was elected Gover- nor of Ohio by the opponents of Pierce's administration. He was re-elected in 1859. President Lincoln, in 1861, tendered him the position of Secretary of the Treasury. To his ability and official management we are indebted for the present national bank system. In 1864, he was appointed Chief Justice of the United States. He died in the city of New York in 1873, after a useful career.

William Dennison was born in Cincinnati in 1815. He gained an educa- tion at Miami University, graduating in 1835. He began the study of law in the office of the father of George H. Pendleton, and was qualified and admitted to the bar in 1840. The same year, he married a daughter of William Neil, of Columbus. The Whigs of the Franklin and Delaware District sent him to the State Senate, in 1848. He was President of the Exchange Bank in Cin- cinnati, in 1852, and was also President of Columbus & Xenia Railway. He was elected the twenty-second Governor of Ohio in 1859. By his promptness and activity at the beginning of the rebellion, Ohio was placed in the front rank of loyalty. At the beginning of Lincoln's second term, he was appointed Post- master General, retiring upon the accession of Johnson. He then made his home at Columbus.

David Tod, twenty-third Governor of Ohio, was born at Youngstown, Ohio, in 1805. His education was principally obtained through his own exertions. He set about the study of law most vigorously, and was admitted to practice in 1827. He soon acquired popularity through his ability, and consequently was financially successful. He purchased the Briar Hill homestead. Under Jack- son's administration, he was Postmaster at Warren, and held the position until 1838, when he was elected State Senator by the Whigs of Trumbull District, by the Democrats. In 1844, he retired to Briar Hill, and opened the Briar Hill Coal Mines. He was a pioneer in the coal business of Ohio. In the Cleveland

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& Mahoning Railroad, he was largely interested, and was its President, after the death of Mr. Perkins. He was nominated, in 1844, for Governor, by the Dem- ocrats, but was defeated. In 1847, he went to Brazil as Minister, where he resided for four and a half years. The Emperor presented him with a special commendation to the President, as a testimonial of his esteem. He was also the recipient of an elegant silver tray, as a memorial from the resident citizens of Rio Janeiro. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention, which met at Charleston in 1860. He was Vice President of this Convention. He was an earnest advocate for Stephen A. Douglas. When the Southern members withdrew, the President, Caleb Cushing, going with them, the convention adjourned to Baltimore, when Mr. Tod assumed the chair and Douglas was nom- inated. He was an earnest worker in the cause, but not disheartened by its defeat. When Fort Sumter was fired upon, he was one of the most vigorous prosecutors of the war, not relaxing his active earnestness until its close. He «lonated full uniforms to Company B, of the Nineteenth Regiment, and contrib- uted largely to the war fund of his township. Fifty-five thousand majority elected him Governor in 1861. His term was burdened with war duties, and he carried them so bravely as Governor that the President said of him : " Governor Tod of Ohio aids me more and troubles me less than any other Gov- ernor." His death occurred at Briar Hill during the year 1868.

John Brough was a native of Marietta, Ohio. He was born in 1811. The death of his father left him in precarious circumstances, which may have been a discipline for future usefulness. He entered a printing office, at the age of fourteen, in Marietta, and after serving a few months, began his studies in the Ohio Uni- versity, setting type mornings and evenings, to earn sufficient for support. He occupied the leading position in classes, and at the same time excelled as a type-setter. He was also admired for his athletic feats in field amusements. He completed his studies and began reading law, which pursuit was interrupted by an opportunity to edit a paper in Petersburg, Va. He returned to Marietta in 1831, and became editor and proprietor of a leading Democratic newspaper -the Washington County Republican. He achieved distinction rapidly, and in 1833, sold his interest, for the purpose of entering a more extended field of journalism. He purchased the Ohio Eagle, at Lancaster, and as its editor, held a deep influence over local and State politics. He occupied the position of Clerk of the Ohio Senate, between the years 1835 and 1838, and relinquished his paper. He then represented the counties of Fairfield and Hocking in the Leg- islature. He was then appointed Auditor of State by the General Assembly, in which position he served six years. He then purchased the Phoenix news- paper in Cincinnati, changed its name to the Enquirer, placing it in the care of his brother, Charles, while he opened a law office in the city. His editorials in the Enquirer, and his activity in political affairs, were brilliant and strong. He retired from politics in 1848, sold a half-interest in the Enquirer and carried on a prosperous business, but was brought forward again by leaders of both

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political parties in 1863, through the Vallandigham contest, and was elected Governor the same year, by a majority of 101,099 votes in a total of 471,643. He was three times married. His death occurred in 1865-Charles Anderson serving out his term.

Jacob Dolson Cox, the twenty-sixth Governor, was born in 1828, in Mon- treal, Canada, where his parents were temporarily. He became a student of Oberlin College, Ohio, in 1846, graduating in 1851, and beginning the practice of law in Warren in 1852. He was a member of the State Senate in 1859, from the Trumbull and Mahoning Districts. He was termed a radical. He was a commissioned Brigadier General of Ohio in 1861, and, in 1862, was pro- moted to Major General for gallantry in battle. While in the service he was nominated for Governor, and took that position in 1865. He was a member of Grant's Cabinet as Secretary of the Interior, but resigned. He went to Con- gress in 1875, from the Toledo District.

Rutherford B. Hayes, the nineteenth President of the United States, and the twenty-seventh Governor of Ohio, was born at Delaware, Ohio, in 1822. He was a graduate of Kenyon College in 1842. He began the study of law, and, in 1843, pursued that course in the Cambridge University, graduating in 1845. He began his practice at Fremont. He was married to Miss Lucy Webb in 1852, in Cincinnati. He was Major of the Twenty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry in 1861, and in 1862, was promoted to Colonel on account of bravery in the field, and eventually became Major General. In 1864, he was elected to Congress, and retired from the service. He remained in Congress two terms, and was Governor of Ohio in 1867, being re-elected in 1869. He was again elected in 1875, but resigned in 1877, to accept the office of President of the United States, Thomas L. Young acting as Governor the remander of the term.

Edward F. Noyes was born in Haverhill, Mass., in 1832. While a lad of fourteen, he entered the office of the Morning Star, published at Dover, N. H., in order to learn the business of printing. At the age of eighteen, he entered the academy at Kingston, N. H. He prepared for college, and entered Dartmouth in 1853, graduating with high honors in 1857. He had begun the study of law, and continued the course in the Cincinnati Law School, and began to practice in 1858. He was an enthusiast at the opening of the rebellion and was interested in raising the Twentieth Regiment, of which he was made Major. He was promoted to Colonel in 1862. At the conflict at Ruff's Mills, in Georgia, in 1864, he was so unfortunate as to lose a leg. At the time, amputa- tion was necessary, but was unskillfully performed. He was brought to Cincin- nati, and the operation was repeated, which nearly cost him his life. He reported three months later, to Gen. Hooker for duty, on crutches. He was assigned to command of Camp Dennison. He was promoted to the full rank of Brigadier General, and while in discharge of his duty at that place, he was elected City Solicitor of Cincinnati. He occupied the position until 1871, when he was elected Governor, by a majority of 20,000.

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William Allen, the twenty-ninth Governor of Ohio, was born in 1807, in Chowan County, N. C. While an infant, he was left an orphan, and his sister superintended his education. He was placed in a private school at Lynchburg, Va., at the age of fourteen. Two years later he joined his family at Chilli- cothe, and attended the academy a year, when he entered the law office of Edward King. Before he was twenty-five he was sent to Congress by a strong Whig district. He was elected United States Senator in 1837 and served until 1849. In 1845 he married Effie McArthur, who died soon after the birth of their daughter. In 1873 he was elected Governor. His administra- tion gave general satisfaction. He died at his home at " Fruit Hill," in 1879.

Richard M. Bishop, the thirty-first Governor of Ohio, was born November 4, 1812, in Fleming County, Ky. For several years he devoted himself to mercantile business in his native State. In 1848 he engaged in the wholesale grocery business at Cincinnati, and subsequently admitted his three sons part- ners, under the firm name of R. M. Bishop & Sons. He was a member of the Council of Cincinnati, and in 1859 was its Mayor, holding that office until 1861. In 1877 he was nominated by the Democrats and elected Governor of Ohio.

Charles Foster, the thirty-second Governor of Ohio, was born in Seneca County, Ohio, April 12, 1828. He was educated at the common schools and the academy at Norwalk, Ohio. Engaged in mercantile and banking business at Fostoria, and never held any public office until he was elected to the Forty- second Congress; was re-elected to the Forty-third Congress, and again to the Forty-fourth Congress as a Republican. In 1879 he was nominated by the Republicans and elected Governor of the State, was re-elected in 1881, and served through both terms winning the esteem of all political parties.

George Hoadly, the thirty-third Governor of Ohio, was born at New Haven, Conn., July 31, 1826. His parents, George and Mary Ann (Woolsey) Hoadly, names well known in the educational circles of Connecticut, were inti- mately connected with the commercial and social progress of that State. Gov. Hoadly completed his education at what is now known as Adelbert College, of which he is a LL. D., while in 1884 he received the same honor from Yale. In 1844 he entered the law school of Cambridge, Mass .; in 1846 entered the office of Chase & Ball, Cincinnati, Ohio; was admitted to the bar in August following ; elected Judge of the Cincinnati Superior Court in 1851, succeeded Judge Gholson on the bench of the present Superior Court in 1859, and was re-elected in 1864; refused a seat on the Supreme bench in 1856 and again in 1862; was elected a member of the Constitutional Convention 1873-74. He was nominated by the Democrats for Governor in 1883 and elected.

ANCIENT WORKS.

Ohio has furnished a prolific field for antiquarians and those interested in scientific explorations, either for their own amusement and knowledge, or for the records of "facts and formations."

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It is well known that the " Mound Builders " had a wide sweep through this continent, but absolute facts regarding their era have been most difficult to obtain. Numerous theories and suppositions have been advanced, yet they are emphatic evidences that they have traced the origin and time of this primeval race.

However, they have left their works behind them, and no exercise of faith is necessary to have confidence in that part of the story. That these works are of human origin is self-evident. Temples and military works have been found which required a considerable degree of scientific skill on the part of those early architects and builders.

Evidently the Indians had no knowledge of these works of predecessors, which differed in all respects from those of the red men. An ancient cemetery has been found, covering an area of four acres, which had evidently been laid out into lots, from north to south. Nearly 3,000 graves have been discovered, containing bones which at some time must have constituted the framework of veritable giants, while others are of no unusual size. In 1815, a jaw-bone was exhumed, containing an artificial tooth of silver.

Mounds and fortifications are plentiful in Athens County, some of them being of solid stone. One, differing in the quality of stone from the others, is supposed to be a dam across the Hocking. Over a thousand pieces of stone were used in its construction. Copper rings, bracelets and ornaments are numerous. It is also evident that these people possessed the knowledge of hardening copper and giving it an edge equal to our steel of to-day.

In the branch formed by a branch of the Licking River and Raccoon Creek, in Licking County, ancient works extend over an area of several miles. Again, three miles northwest of this locality, near the road between Newark and Gran- ville, another field of these relies may be found. On the summit of a high hill is a fortification, formed to represent an alligator. The head and neck includes 32 feet ; the length of the body is 73 feet ; the tail was 105 feet ; from the termini of the fore feet, over the shoulders, the width is 100 feet : from the termini of the hind feet, over the hips, is 92 feet ; its highest point is 7 feet. It is composed of clay, which must have been conveyed hither, as it is not similar to the clay found in the vicinity.

Near Miamisburg, Montgomery County, are other specimens. Near the village is a mound, equaled in size by very few of these antiquities. It meas- ures 800 feet around the base, and rises to a height of sixty-seven feet. Others are found in Miami County, while at Circleville, Pickaway County, no traces remain.

Two forts have been discovered, one forming an exact square, and the other describing a circle. The square is flanked by two walls, on all sides, these being divided by a deep ditch. The circle has one wall and no ditch. This is sixty-nine rods in diameter, its walls being twenty feet high. The square fort measures fifty-five rods across, with walls twelve feet high. Twelve gateways lead into the square fort, while the circle has but one, which led to the other, at

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the point where the walls of the two came together. Before each of these entrances were mounds of earth, from four to five feet high and nearly forty feet in diameter. Evidently these were designed for defenses for the openings, in cases of emergency.

A short distance from Piketon, the turnpike runs, for several hundred feet, between two parallel artificial walls of earth, fifteen feet high, and six rods apart. In Scioto County, on both sides of the Ohio, are extensive ancient works.

" Fort Ancient " is near Lebanon in Warren County. Its direct measure- ment is a mile, but in tracing its angles, retreating and salient, its length would be nearly six miles. Its site is a level plain, 240 feet above the level of the river. The interior wall varies in height to conform with the nature of the ground without-ranging from 8 to 10 feet. On the plain it reaches 100 feet. This fort has 58 gateways, through one of which the State road runs, passing between two mounds 12 feet high. Northeast from these mounds, situated on the plain, are two roads, about a rod wide each, made upon an elevation about three feet high. They run parallel to each other about a quarter of a mile, when they each form a semicircle around a mound, joining in the circle. It is probable this was at some time a military defense, or, on the contrary, it may have been a general rendezvous for games and high holiday festivities.

Near Marietta, are the celebrated Muskingum River works, being a half- mile from its juncture with the Ohio. They consist of mounds and walls of earth in circular and square forms, also tracing direct lines.

The largest square fort covers an area of 40 acres, and is inclosed by a wall of earth, 6 to 10 feet in height, and from 25 to 30 feet at its base. On each side are three gateways. The center gateways exceed the others in size, more especially on the side toward the Muskingum. From this outlet runs a covered means of egress, between two parallel walls of earth, 231 feet distant from each other, measuring from the centers. The walls in the interior are 21 feet high at the most elevated points, measuring 42 feet at the base, grading on the exte- rior to about five feet in heigth. This passage-way is 360 feet in length, lead- ing to the low grounds, which, at the period of its construction, probably reached the river.

At the northwest corner, within the inclosure, is a plateau 188 feet long, 132 feet broad and 9 feet high. Its sides are perpendicular and its surface level. At the center of each side is a graded pathway leading to the top, six feet wide. Another elevated square is near the south wall, 150x120 feet square, and 8 feet high, similar to the other, with the exception of the graded walk. Outside and next the wall to ascend to the top, it has central hollow ways, 10 feet wide, leading 20 feet toward the center, then arising with a gradual slope to the top. A third elevated square is situated at the southeast corner, 108x54 feet square, with ascents at the ends. This is neither as high or as perfect as the others.

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Another ancient work is found to the southeast, covering an area of 20 acres with a gateway in the center of each side, and others at the corners-each of these having the mound defense.

On the outside of the smaller fort, a mound resembling a sugar loaf was formed in the shape of a circle 115 feet in diameter, its height being 30 feet. A ditch surrounds it, 15 feet wide and 4 feet deep. These earthworks have contributed greatly to the satisfactory results of scientific researches. Their builders were evidently composed of large bands that have succumbed to the advance of enlightened humanity. The relics found consists of ornaments. utensils and implements of war. The bones left in the numerous graves convey an idea of a stalwart, vigorous people, and the conquests which swept them away from the face of the country must have been fierce and cruel.

Other mounds and fortifications are found in different parts of the State, of which our limited space will not permit a description.

Many sculptured rocks are found, and others with plainly discernible tracery in emblematical designs upon their surface. The rock on which the inscriptions occur is the grindstone grit of the Ohio exports-a stratum found in Northern Ohio, Arrow-points of flint or chert have been frequently found. From all investigations, it is evident that an extensive flint bed existed in Lick- ing County, near Newark. The old pits can now be recognized. They extended over a hundred acres. They are partially filled with water, and sur- rounded by piles of broken and rejected fragments. The flint is a grayish- white, with cavities of a brilliant quartz crystal. Evidently these stones were chipped into shape and the material sorted on the ground. Only clear, homo- genous pieces can be wrought into arrow-heads and spear-points. Flint chips extend over many acres of ground in this vicinity. Flint beds are also found in Stark and Tuscarawas Counties. In color it varies, being red, white, black and mottled. The black is found in Coshocton County.

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Author: Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.) Publication date: 1886 Publisher: Chicago : Warner, Beers & Co. Number of Pages: 1088

Author: Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.)
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Chicago : Warner, Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1088