History of Shelby County, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 39

Author: R. Sutton & Co.
Publication date: 1883
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 427

USA > Ohio > Shelby County > History of Shelby County, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 39

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).

He made the last treaty with the Wyandotte Indians in the years 1841-42 for their reservation, after which they were removed west of the Mississippi. The Senate hesitated to confirm the treaty, as he had, with his characteristic love of justice, allowed the Indians full value for their land, instead of taking advantage of their ignorance, as is too often done. Thus the last tribe of Indians were removed from the State.

His object in visiting Washington recently was to urge a claim amount- ing to about $15,000, due him for services as Indian agent. He was throughout his long intercourse with the Indians a great favorite with them, and exerted a decisive influence in inducing a number of tribes to aid the Americans instead of the British in the war of 1812.

Col. Johnston was the oldest living subscriber to the Cincinnati Gazette, having commenced taking it as nearly as he could estimate, about sixty- six years ago, and continued without interruption to his death. He never changed his locality, even for a brief period, without ordering his paper changed, so he would receive it without interruption. It had been his never-failing companion throughout a long and chequered career, and he felt all the attachment for it that he would for a near and dear friend of his early years. He entertained the same feeling for the Na- tional Intelligencer, which he had taken about sixty years. Both were indissolubly linked with the hallowed names of a multitudinous array of noble compeers who had gone before him, and a countless throng of glorious recollections, embracing the history of a nation.

In politics Col. Johnston was moderate and conservative, and during the recent canvass was a warm friend and advocate of John Bell for the Presidency.

* In his own life he says : " My early years were spent at Carlisle, Pennsylva- nia, in the mercantile establishment of Judge John Creigh.

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Our old and esteemed friend, John D. Jones, Esq., married one of Col. Johnston's daughters, and for many years he has been in the habit of dividing his time, as the inclination might prompt him, between his rela- tives and friends here, and in Piqua and Dayton. Most of our city readers were doubtless familiar with his tall, commanding, and military looking form, so often seen promenading our streets, still unbent with the weight of more than fourscore years, and that fine pleasing and be- nevolent face that so prepossessed every one who saw it.

He was for a time President of the Historical Society of Ohio, and took a lively interest and active part in the forming of the Pioneer Asso- ciation of this city, of which he also served as President for one year, and contributed many valuable and interesting reminiscences.

His remains will probably be taken to Piqua for interment. Sojourn- ing temporarily in the capital of the nation, during the perilous times that are now upon us, it may well be imagined how deep and powerful the solicitude felt by the venerable and pure patriot for his beloved coun- try. If that country is to be rent in twain, he died none too soon-but we would that he had lived to see, as we fondly trusted he would, its alienated parts united once more in the bonds of fraternal peace and a common brotherhood.

He was one of the companions of the immortal Daniel Boone .- Cin- cinnati Daily Gazette, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 1861.

STEPHEN JOHNSTON

Was a brother of Col. John Johnston, and is the father of Stephen John- ston, Attorney-at-Law, and resides in Piqua, Ohio. He was a candidate for the Presidency of the United States in November, 1880.

His father was a clerk in the United States factory store which had been erected near the fort, some time subsequent to the erection of Fort Wayne in 1794, for the purpose of supplying the Indians with agricul- tural implements.

History tells us that Mr. Stephen Johnston feeling very solicitous about the safety of his wife, who had been sent to the frontier in a deli- cate condition, accompanied by Peter Oliver and a discharged militia man named John Mangen, attempted to elude the vigilance of the In- dians, and visit the place of her abode. They left at 10 o'clock at night. Stephen Johnston was fired upon by six Indians and instantly killed in sight of the fort. Before the Indians could reload their pieces the other two men made good their retreat to the fort, and for a reward of twenty dollars an Indian was induced to bring in the body of Mr. Johnston.

JOHN CHAPMAN.

Among the pioneers of this section must be mentioned John Chap- man, more popularly known as "Johnny Appleseed," who traversed this whole region propagating his peculiar ideas and planting nurseries along his path. From Pennsylvania he entered Ohio, and planted those nurs- eries which became the parent stock of the orchards of the pioneers. Being of poor parentage and ushered into life in the midst of the agita- tions and vicissitudes attending the revolutionary period, he obtained only sufficient education to enable him to read and write. Religiously inclined, he at an early age embraced the doctrine of Emanuel Sweden- borg, to which he adhered throughout his life. His benevolence was unbounded. He generally went bare-headed; but if he wore a hat or pair of shoes and saw any person whom he thought needed them, he would take them off and give them to that person. Miss Rosella Rice of Perryville, Ashland County, O., has given the following pen account of this peculiar man, he being a frequent visitor at her father's house.

"No one knows why Johnny was so eccentric; some people thought he had been crossed in love, and others that his passion for growing fruit trees and planting orchards in those early and perilous times had absorbed all the tender and domestic feelings natural to mankind. An old uncle of ours tells us the first time he ever saw Johnny was in 1806, in Jefferson County, O. He had two canoes lashed together, and was taking a lot of apple seeds down the Ohio River. About that time he planted sixteen bushels of seed on one acre of that grand old farm on the Walhonding River, known as the Butler farm. All up and down the Ohio and Muskingum, and their then wild and pretty tributaries did

poor Johnny glide along, alone, with his rich freight of seeds, stopping here and there to plant nurseries. He always selected rich, secluded spots of ground. One of them we remember now, and even still it is picturesque, beautiful, and primal. He cleared the ground himself, a quiet nook over which the tall sycamores reached out their long arms as if for protection. Those who are nurserymen now, should compare their facilities with those of poor Johnny going about with a load in a canoe, and, when occasion demanded, with a great load on his back To those who could afford to buy, he always sold on very fair terms. To those

John Chapman.

who couldn't he always gave or made some accommodating. trade, or took a note, payable-some time-and rarely did that time ever come. Among his many eccentricities, was one of braving pain like an un- daunted Indian warrior. He gloried in suffering. Very often he would thrust pins and needles into his flesh without a tremor or a quiver; and if he had a cut or a sore, the first thing he did was to sear it with a hot iron and then treat it as a burn. He hardly ever wore shoes except in winter; but if travelling in summer time and the roads hurt his feet, he would wear sandals and a big hat that he made himself with one side very large and wide, and bent down to keep the heat from his face. No matter how oddly he was dressed or how funny he looked, we children never laughed at him, because our parents all loved and revered him as a good old man, a friend and benefactor. Almost the first thing he would do when he entered a house and was weary, was to lie down on the floor, with his knapsack for a pillow, and his head towards the light of the door or window, when he would say: ' Will you have some fresh news right from heaven?' and carefully taking out his old, worn books, a Testament and two or three others, the exponent of the beautiful re- ligion that Johnny so zealously lived out-the Swedenborgian doctrine. We can hear him read now, just as he did that summer day, when we were busy quilting up stairs, and he lay near the door, his voice rising denunciatory and thrilling-strong and loud as the roar of the waves and winds, then soft and soothing as the balmy airs that stirred the morning glory leaves about his gray head. His was a strange, deep eloquence at times. His language was good and well chosen, and he was

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undoubtedly a man of genius. Sometimes, in speaking of fruits, his eyes would sparkle and his countenance grow animated and really beautiful, and if he was at the table his knife and fork would be forgotten. In describing apples, we could see them just as he, the word painter, pic- tured them-large, luscious, creamy-tinted ones, or rich, fragrant, and yellow, with a peachy tint on the sunshiny side, or crimson red, with the juice ready to burst through the tender rind."

Thomas S. Humerickhouse, in Hovey's Magazine of Horticulture for 1846, speaks of him as a scientific as well as early producer of apple trees. He says: "Obscure and illiterate though he was in some respects, he was another Dr. Van Mons, and must have been endued with the instinct of his theory." He was one of those quaint characters whose simple lives contain lessons that would add lustre to many a more pre- tentious name.

Born in the city of Boston in the year 1775, at an early age he pene- trated the then wilderness region of Western Pennsylvania, where he developed the singular peculiarity which afterward secured for him the name by which he was familiarly known. From Pennsylvania he drifted in 1801 to the territory of Ohio, his entire outfit consisting of a horse and wagon loaded with apple-seed, obtained from the cider-presses of Western Pennsylvania. Selecting a number of fertile spots in Licking County, Ohio, he planted his apple-seeds and was not again seen in that region for several years. In the mean time, however, he was planting his curious nurseries in different parts of the West, extending from the great lakes on the North, to the Ohio River on the South, and as far West as the western boundary of Indiana.

Always in advance of the settlements, he penetrated the western wil- derness and planted his apple-seeds often in the midst of primeval forests, where, as the columns of civilization advanced, the pioneers found the means of establishing orchards, many of which stand to-day as monu- ments of the simple-hearted man whose entire life was given up to his singular pursuit.

Some five or six years after the time he disappeared from Licking County he was seen pursuing his way down the Ohio River, with two canoes laden with apple-seed. Reaching the confluence of the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers, he ascended the latter, and on its banks, as well as those of its tributaries, he planted his apple-seeds, laying the foundation of what proved, in the course of time, to be one of the most profitable industries of central and northern Ohio. It must be borne in mind, in order to fully appreciate the enthusiasm of Chapman in following out the work to which he was devoting his life, that the regions he penetrated were still untouched by the hand of the settler, and that alone, in the midst of the illimitable wilderness, he labored cheerfully for the genera- tions which were to come after him.

There is something touchingly beautiful in the picture of this man, hundreds of miles from human habitations, often surrounded by dangers, companionless in the midst of the oppressive silence of nature, pursuing his labor of love uncomplainingly and without hope of reward. Subse- quent to the voyage in canoes, of which we have spoken, he penetrated the Northwest, skirting the southern shore of Lake Erie, planting by the way until he reached Detroit. In this, and other trips, he afterwards made, he either carried himself, or packed on horseback, the seed he was so generously distributing. His plantings were so extensive that it was necessary for him to make frequent trips for a new supply of seed to the cider-presses of western Pennsylvania. As time went on, and the country became settled, Chapman's nurseries, which were scattered over a wide area of country, furnished the means for the immediate planting of orchards, and were largely availed of by the men who were wresting from the wilderness homes for themselves and families. Thus what seemed originally the whim of a simple-minded man, in the end proved a source from which he drew the means to supply his wants. He cared nothing for money, and would take in exchange even cast-off clothing. ` A few pounds of flour or corn meal would purchase of him enough trees to plant a large orchard; while if his customers were poor, he could not be prevailed upon to accept anything, and would often with his own hands plant their orchards. It is related of him that he would often take the notes of farmers for trees, and considering the transaction closed, never ask for payment, or think of the matter again. What money he got he gave to those who were struggling to make homes on

the border. Without a home himself, or family ties of any description, he was instrumental in establishing for others that which he deemed unnecessary for himself.

He held the Brahminical doctrine that man had no right to kill a living thing, and during his life he was never known to kill even an insect. In early days in the West, it was a common practice for people to turn disabled or useless animals out to die. These animals Chapman would carefully collect, house and feed during the winter months, and in the summer find for them the best and greenest pastures. Many of them, under his tender care, were restored to usefulness. These he would never sell, but would give away, only stipulating that they should be well cared for and never abused.

A volume might be filled with anecdotes of this strange man, whose life seemed a constant effort to do good. Content himself with the poorest garb and the most meagre fare, every thought of his heart seemed centered, in his simple way, around the problem that has dis- turbed many a broader mind-how to accomplish the most good within the limits of a life. He died near Fort Wayne, Ind., in the spring of 1845, at the age of seventy-two years.

The subjoined Article of Agreement will clearly identify him with this territory.

Article of Agreement .- Article of agreement made this twenty-ninth day of April, eighteen hundred and twenty-eight; between William B. Hedges of the one part and John Chapman of the other part: Witness- eth that the said Hedges leases a certain enclosed lot or piece of ground lying below the little Branch, below Shanesville, between the little lane and the river, to Jolin Chapman, for the purpose of sowing apple-seeds on, and is to be cultivated in a nursery for the space of ten years, more or less, as the case may require for the present year's sowing seed to come suitable for transplanting or setting out. For, which the said Chapman is to pay to the said Hedges one thousand apple trees, to be taken as they average, suitable for market or transplanting on equal proportion for the space of ten years, so soon as they become fit for market. That is to say on an average of one hundred apple trees per year, or in that proportion when they are fit to set out, etc.

In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hand and seals inter- changeably. The date above written.

JOHN CHAPMAN. [Seal'd.] W. B. HEDGES. [Seal'd.]

Attest-JOHN GREAVE, A. R. HUNTER.

It is further understood on the within article that the said Chapman is not to be obliged to take or remove the remainder of the apple trees off the lot at the expiration of the ten years, but is to pay one hundred apple trees a year rent for every year that they may stand, or in that pro- portion, for what time they may stand, until taken off, etc.

Signed-JOHN CHAPMAN, WM. B. HEDGES.

Attest-JOHN GREAVE, A. R. HUNTER.

THE FIRST POST OFFICES ESTABLISHED IN NORTH- WESTERN OHIO, AND THE LIST OF POSTMASTERS.

The act of March 3, 1819, established, among others, the following postroads :-

From Troy, by Piqua, St. Marys, Fort Wayne and Fort Defiance, to . Fort Meigs.

From Piqua to Hardin.

The act of May 24, 1828, established a route, from Hardin by Wa- paughkonnetta and Fort Brown, to Defiance.

Hardin to Defiance, once a week, 75 miles, was accepted by Samuel Marshall for $249. This contract expired December 31, 1831.

The following bids were received in reply to the Postmaster-General's advertisement for proposals for carrying the mail in Ohio, from Jan. 1, 1832, to Dec. 31, 1835 :-

No. 1572. Piqua via Hardin, Wapakonnetta, Kalida, and Sugar Grove to Defiance, 96 miles and back, once a week (no copy of this ad- vertisement is known to be retained. It was probably destroyed when

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HISTORY OF SHELBY COUNTY, OHIO.

the General Post Office was burned in 1836. The route is taken from the route register of the contract term), was accepted by A. R. Chase for $288. Acceptances sent to Conneaut, Ohio.

Contract was made with Thos. W. Mansfield at $350, from Sept. 1, 1832. (This name appears upon the route register as William Mansfield, Troy, Ohio.)

The advertisement of July 2, 1835, inviting proposals for carrying the mail in Ohio from Jan. 1, 1836, to Dec. 31, 1839, contains the following:

No. 1553. From Piqua (1477) by Hardin, Wapahkonnetta, Lima, Kalida, and Sugar Grove to Defiance, 96 miles and back, once a week. Leave Piqua every Tuesday at 6 a. m., arrive at Defiance on Thursday by 6 p. m. Leave Defiance every Friday at 6 a. m., arrive at Piqua on Sunday by 6 p. m.

Under this advertisement the following bid was awarded to Edward Johnson for $249.

Contract with Edward Johnson dated November 30, 1835. Johnson failed, and contract was made with Hugh Marshall, of Piqua, Ohio, dated August 31, 1836, to commence August 9, 1836; to expire December 31, 1839.

" February 19, 1838. The Postmaster-General directs that a second weekly mail be carried on this route at $388 per annum additional.

"October 2, 1838. The Postmasters at Piqua and Defiance certify that the order of February 19, 1838, was complied with on the 1st of April, 1838."

The Route Register of this contract shows the additional post-offices of Rumley, between Hardin and Wapahkonnetta; Bening, between Lima and Kalida, and Fort Brown, between Sugar Grove (changed to Fran- conia) and Defiance.

Fort Defiance, Williams Co., Ohio, established May 19, 1821, Tim- othy S. Smith, Postmaster. Bondsmen for $700, Peter G. O'Hare, Sam- uel Ewing. Name changed to Defiance March 10, 1824, and new bond given, with Guy N. Conant and H. Conant as sureties. The following were appointed Postmasters :- Sept. 22, 1825, Isaac Hull, Jr. Oct. 15, 1860, William E. Enos. March 26, 1861, Chas. W. Evans. March 11, 1865, Chas. W. Evans. (Reappointed, Presidential.) June 30, 1826, Benj. Leavitt. Jan. 13, 1830, Joseph Hull. March 12, 1831, Foreman Evans. Oct. 2, 1837, Jonas Colby. Aug. 4, 1868, Jos. Ralston. (Spe- cial Agent acting.) 1 July 6, 1841, Sereno Lyman.

March 18, 1842, Orlando Evans. Feb. 13, 1845, Samuel S. Case, De- fiance Co.

Oct. 5, 1847, William Richards. June 20, 1851, Henry C. Bouton. May 16, 1853, William Moore.

Mar. 3, 1869, Joseph Ralston. (P. and Senate.) Feb. 20, 1871, Francis Brooks. “ Feb. 26, 1875, Geo. W. Deatrich. " Feb. 22, 1879, George W. Deatrich. (Reappointed.)

Hardin, Shelby Co., Ohio, established Jan. 28, 1820, James Wells, Postmaster. Bond $700, with Samuel Marshall and Robert Aldrich, sureties. The following were appointed Postmasters :-

April 15, 1825, John Marshall.

May 31, 1841, David Carey.

Jan. 6, 1843, John Marshall. (De- clined.)

Feb. 3, 1843, George G. Murphy. May 23, 1844, Wilson V. Cowan. June 26, 1845, Jonathan Hailman. April 8, 1847, Thos. C. McQueitz. Dec. 30, 1847, Calvin P. Lenox. Feb. 7, 1854, Samuel M. Cowan. Name changed to "Cowan's Sta- tion" May 16, 1854.

May 16, 1854, Samuel M. Cowan.

Jan. 25, 1855, Wilson V. Cowan. Dec. 6, 1855, James F. Malcom.

Name changed to " Hardin" May 12, 1856.

May 12, 1856, William Marshall. Sept. 10, 1856, James Birdsall. June 19, 1857, Fleming Hall.

Dec. 27, 1858, Mark Wilson.

April 17, 1865, Armstrong L. Mar- shall.

Jan. 7, 1869, Miller McVay. July 5, 1870, Isaac Betts. June 21, 1880, Robert Ewing, Jr.

Kalida, Putnam Co., Ohio, established Dec. 4, 1834, Winchton Ris- ley, Postmaster. Bond $300; sureties, Orville Risley and Moses Lee. The following were appointed Postmasters :-

May 31, 1841, George Skinner. Jan. 11, 1856, Clark H. Rice.

Jan. 23, 1845, Milton M. Gillet. May 20, 1861, Miss Cath'ne Thrift. Jan. 10, 1866, Miss Jennie E. Thrift. Jan. 10, 1867, William H. Thrift.

May 16, 1845, Winchton Risley. April 8, 1848, James H. Vail. June 16, 1849, George Skinner. May 16, 1853, Andrew J. Taylor.

May 16, 1877, Harry K. Tingle.

Lima, Allen Co., Ohio. Established Feb. 1, 1832, with Lewis Srouf, Postmaster. Bond $400; sureties do not appear of record. The fol- lowing were appointed Postmasters :-

April 16, 1832, John Ward. June 23, 1832, Henry Lippincott.

April 30, 1833, Charles Baker.

Nov. 8, 1837, Wm. Cunningham. April 25, 1839, John W. Thomas. July 7, 1841, John B. Walmsley. May 16, 1843, Samuel A. Baxter. Dec. 27, 1844, B. A. Satterthwait. April 2, 1851, John Keller.

June 10, 1853, Samuel Sanford.

Sept. 26, 1856, Orrin Curtis. March 22, 1861, John B. Beaty. Oct. 19, 1861, Cornelius Parmenter. March 11, 1865, Cornelius Parmen- ter. (Reappointed, President.) March 28, 1867, William H. Harper. April 5, 1869, Cornelius Parmenter. March 12, 1873, Cornelius Parmen- ter. (Reappointed, President.) Nov. 8, 1877, George P. Waldorf.

Piquatown, Miami Co., Ohio. Established Jan. 19, 1811, Armstrong Brandon, Postmaster. Bond $500; sureties do not appear of record. The following were appointed Postmasters :-

Oct. 1, 1816, William Johnston. May 6, 1820, John Johnston.

July 24, 1824, name changed to Piqua, James Defrees.

June 17, 1831, John Carson.

May 28, 1841, John W. Gordon. April 21, 1845, Joseph Housum.

April 5, 1853, John Marshall. (Pres- idential.)

April 5, 1857, John Marshall. (Re- appointed.)

Feb. 11, 1858, Jonas Ward. March 30, 1861, Andrew J. Roe. March 17, 1865, Jos. M. Patterson.

March 28, 1871, Jos. M. Patterson. (Reappointed.)

July 19, 1852, Henry C. Landis. Dec. 15, 1875, Jos. M. Patterson. (Reappointed.) Jan. 13, 1880, La Roy S. Jordan.

Sugar Grove, Putnam Co., Ohio. Established Feb. 18, 1827, Sebas- tian. Sroufe, Postmaster. Bond $300; sureties: A. Crossley, F. D. Sroufe. The following were appointed Postmasters :-

March 17, 1830, Lewis Sroufe. Aug. 27, 1845, Pearson B. Holden. Name changed to Franconia, Feb. 18, 1847, Silas McClish. August 25, 1837 Sept. 20, 1854, Peter Myers.

May 24, 1833, Silas McClish.

July 31, 1867, Post Office Franco-

Jan. 28, 1837, Daniel Ridenour. June 11, 1838, Silas McClish.

nia discontinued.

Wapahkonetia,* Allen Co., Ohio. Established Jan. 5, 1829, Robert Broderick, Postmaster. Bond $300; sureties: G. C. Johnston, N. F. Broderick. The following were appointed Postmasters :-

July 28, 1829, John Elliott. July 6, 1853, Thornton J. Young.

March 20, 1833, Jeremiah Ayres. Jan. 27, 1863, Alben L. Whiteman.

Feb. 8, 1844, Samuel M. Cowan. July 30, 1866, Robert McMurray.

June 26, 1845, Benj. H. Lanning. April 16, 1869, Alben L. Whiteman.

Oct. 19, 1846, James H. Skinner. Dec. 18, 1874, Alben L. Whiteman. (Reappointed, Pres. and Senate.) Dec. 18, 1878, Alben L. Whiteman.

May 15, 1849, William M. Crane. (Auglaize Co.)

August 7, 1851, Thomas E. Nichols. May 22, 1852, John S. Williams.

(Reappointed, Pres. and Senate.)

* The present spelling of the name of this office, "Wapakoneta," was adopted in 1858.

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HISTORY OF SHELBY COUNTY, OHIO.

ORGANIZATION OF COUNTIES IN OHIO.

Counties.

Date of original Act.

Original

Present

sq. miles.

No. of acres.

Original No.

Present No.

Townships.

County Seats.

Adams,

July 10, 1797

550

350,997

13 West Union.

Allen,

Feb. 12, 1820

543

400

254,455

13 Lima.

Ashland,

Feb. 26, 1846

400

264.578

15 Ashland.

Ashtabula,

June 7, 1807

700

440,277

28 Jefferson.

Athens,

March 1, 1805

740

500

313,333

Athens.

Auglaize,

Feb. 14, 1848

404

247,552

14 Wapakoneta.

Belmont,

Sept. 7, 1801

536

338,754

16 St. Clairsville.

Thomas Kirker?

Adams

March 4, 1807

Dec. 12, 1808

Samuel Huntingdon,

Trumbull

Dec. 12, 1808

Dec. 8,1810

Return Jonathan Meigs3.

Washington

Dec. 8,1810

March 25, 1814

Othniel Looker.

Hamilton

April 14, 1814

Dec.

8, 1814

Thomas Worthington

Ross

Dec. 8, 1814

Dec.

14, 1818

Ethan Allen Brown

Hamilton

Dec. 14, 1818

Jan.

4, 1822

Clermont,

Dec. 9, 1800

515

442

282,870

14 Batavia.

Allen Trimble.

Highland

Jan. 7,1822

Dec.

28,1822

Clinton,

Feb. 19, 1810

400

445

257,432

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History of Shelby County, Ohio, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 39

Author: R. Sutton & Co. Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Number of Pages: 427

Author: R. Sutton & Co.
Publication date: 1883
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 427