History of Summit County, with an outline sketch of Ohio, Part 53

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago, Baskin & Battey
Number of Pages: 1104

USA > Ohio > Summit County > History of Summit County, with an outline sketch of Ohio > Part 53

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

the new organization, the New York, Pennsyl- vania & Ohio Railroad Company.

The Baltimore & Ohio Extension .- In the spring of 1870, a proposition was made to ex- tend the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and its intermediate connection, the Pittsburgh & Con- nellsville Railroad, westward from Pittsburgh to Chicago, and to make Akron, in Summit County, a point upon the line on certain con- ditions, which are fully set forth in the sub- scription books opened in Akron in the summer of that year, as follows :

Whereas, the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Com- pany, and the Pittsburgh & Connellsville Rail- road Company propose to construct a railroad from Pittsburgh, Penn., westward through Akron, Sum- mit County, Ohio, and to secure the location of said road through Akron, it is necessary for the citi- zens of Akron to subscribe to the stock of such proposed railroad company, the sum of $300,000, and, for certain persons, on behalf of the sub- scribers, prior to the incorporation of said proposed company, to pledge to said Baltimore & Ohio and Pittsburgh & Connellsville Companies said sum of $300,000, to aid them in locating and constructing said proposed railroad through Akron, aforesaid. Therefore, we, the subscribers, on the succeeding pages of this book, for the purpose of authorizing David L. King, Lewis Miller and Charles Brown, to pledge and guarantee to said Baltimore & Ohio and Pittsburgh & Connellsville Railroad Companies, said sum of $300,000, and to save them harmless, by reason of said pledge and guarantee, and for the further purpose and consideration of securing the location of said proposed railroad through Akron for our mutual benefit, we do agree with said David L. King, Lewis Miller and Charles Brown, and with each other, to subscribe to the stock of said com- pany, when organized, under whatever name the same may be incorporated, and to pay the several amounts by ns here respectively subscribed, on the succeeding pages of this book, to such company or persons as may be legally authorized to receive the same, payable 10 per cent when said railroad is lo- cated through Akron, and the stock-books of said proposed railroad are legally opened, and the bal- ance in monthly installments of 5 per cent each, as the work progresses in Summit County. And we authorize said King, Miller and Brown, to pledge to said Baltimore & Ohio and Pittsburgh & Connells- ville Railroad Companies, or either of them, said sum of $300,000 for the purpose aforesaid, and to the extent of our respective subscriptions we sev- erally agree to save them harmless from the pay- ment of said sum. And we hereby authorize the corporators of said proposed company, when duly incorporated, under whatsoever name, when said road is located through Akron, to transfer to the stock-books of said company, when opened, our re- spective subscriptions here made, and agree that they shall have the same force and effect as if said company was now incorporated, and said amounts

respectively signed and entered by us in said stock- books, after they were formally opened by the cor- porators of said company for that purpose.

Through public meetings and personal solici- tation on the part of Messrs. King, Miller, Brown and others, the full amount, $300,000, with a sufficient margin to cover contingencies, was speedily subscribed by the enterprising citizens of Akron, all classes, from the largest manufacturer, merchant, banker, etc., to the humblest mechanic and laboring man, con- tributing to the guarantee fund in proportion to his several ability. Then came long days of waiting, expectation and suspense, until, finally, in the spring of 1871, for reasons never satis- factorily explained to its Akron promoters, the project was indefinitely postponed, leaving the subscribers to the above document free to transfer their subscriptions to such new rail- road projects as they might deem advisable.

The Valley Railway .- To David L. King, Esq., are the people of Summit County more largely indebted for the inception, prosecution and completion of the Valley Railway, running diagonally through our county, from northwest to southeast, than to any other man. As early as 1869, largely through the instrumentality of Mr. King, a charter was obtained for the Akron & Canton Railway, which afterward developed into the larger and more important enterprise, the Valley Railway, duly incorporated on the 21st day of August, 1871, the incorporators be- ing Henry Chisholm, Nathan P. Payne, James Farmer, Warwick Price and S. A. Fuller, of Cleveland, and David L. King, of Akron. The authorized capital stock of the company was $3,000,000, the road to run from Cleveland, in Cuyahoga County, via Akron, in Summit County, Canton, in Stark County, through Tuscarawas and Carroll Counties to Bowerston, in Harrison County, on the Pan Handle Railroad. The first first great movement for the promotion of the enterprise was made at a meeting held at the Academy of Music, in Akron, on the 4th day of January, 1872. Representatives from Cleve- land, Canton, Wheeling and intermediate points on the contemplated route were in attendance, together with a very large number of business men of Akron and other towns in Summit County. The meeting was presided over by James A. Saxton, Esq., of Canton, with Mr. R. H. Cochran, of Wheeling, as Secretary, and Hon. Stephen H. Pitkin, of Akron, as Assistant Secre-

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

retary. David L. King, Esq., of Akron, briefly stated the objects of the meeting, saying that the project of a road down the valley of the Cuyahoga, from Akron to Cleveland, and south from Akron to Canton and Wheeling, was no new project. Such a road, Mr. King said, would develop large quantities of coal and other miner- als south of Akron, and a locomotive, after draw- ing an ordinary train to Akron, could by reason of continuous down grade, draw as many loaded cars from Akron to Cleveland, as the same locomotive could draw empty cars back. Mr. King concluded his remarks by moving the appointment of committeemen at different points on the route to aid in raising the neces- sary stock. Committeemen for Summit County were appointed as follows : Northfield, Lucian Bliss ; Boston, Frederick Wood, Frederick B. Wadhams, John Douds ; Richfield, Orson M. Oviatt, William C. Weld ; Bath, William Barker, Andrew IIale ; Northampton, James R. Brown, William Hardy, John C. Johnston ; Portage, S. W. Miller ; Akron, Jacob H. Wise ; Middle- bury, Thomas H. Peckham ; Coventry, Alex- ander Brewster ; Springfield, Cyrus Yerrick, Robert V. Sawyer, Frank W. Myers ; Green, Alexander Johnston. Speeches were made by Messrs. Newell D. Tibbals, Alvin C. Voris, Charles Brown, Stephen H. Pitkin, Lewis Miller, David L. King and others, of Akron ; James Farmer, of Cleveland ; R. H. Cochran of Wheel- ing ; James A. Saxton and Josiah Hartzell. of Canton, and William McNeil, of Peninsula. The importance and feasibility of the road was con- ceded by all, the discussion being mainly over the question of gauge, estimates being pre- sented showing the comparative cost of both the standard, four feet eight and one-half inches, and the narrow. three feet tracks. At the con- clusion of the discussion, the following resolu- tion was unanimously adopted :

Resolved, That it be the sense of this meeting that all our efforts be devoted to raising stock for the ordinary four-foot eight and one-half inch gauge.

several counties interested. Meetings were held, speeches were made and subscriptions were ob- tained with commendable celerity, so that by the 20th of March, $60,000 of Akron's quota had been subscribed. Canton was the first to announce that her full share was raised, Akron coming in soon afterward with a similar good report. Cleveland, however, was backward, trusting to the plan of raising the requisite amount, under the Boesel law, by a tax upon the city. The proposition, however, was voted down, precious time being thus wasted, though the amount pledged was subsequently raised by voluntary subscriptions to the capital stock of the company through the vigorous efforts of her soliciting committees. Other localities also subscribed more or less liberally, so that the total amount subscribed in each of the three counties was as follows : Cuyahoga, $508,250 ; Summit, $191,700 ; Stark, $149,750. The first stockholders' meeting was held April 24, 1872, at which James Farmer, Ambrose B. Stone and Nathan P. Payne, of Cleveland ; David L. King and John F. Seiberling, of Akron, and James A. Saxton and George Cook, of Canton, were elected Directors. At a subsequent meeting of the Directors the same day, James Farmer was elected President ; David L. King, Vice Presi- dent. and Warwick Price, Secretary and Treas- urer. At a meeting of the Directors, held May 10, 1872 ; Plymouth H. Dudley, then Akron's most efficient City Engineer, was appointed Chief Engineer for the new road. Two routes from Akron to Cleveland were surveyed, one directly down the valley of the Cuyahoga River, the other " overland," through Bath, Richfield. Brecksville, etc., liberal subscriptions being pledged along the latter route, should the loca- tion be determined in their favor. The valley route was finally adopted, and the contract for building the entire line from Cleveland to Bow- erstown was awarded to Messrs. Nicholas E. Vansickle and Arthur L. Conger, of Akron, on the 3d day of February, 1873.

Subscription books were opened at Cleveland, Akron. Canton and intermediate points on the 15th day of January, 1872, and a vigorous cam- paign opened " all along the line," for raising the necessary funds to build the road. Cleve- land parties were pledged to raise $500,000, the quota assigned to Akron and Canton being $150,000 each, with such additional amounts At a meeting of the stockholders, April 16, 1873, David L. King and John F. Seiberling were chosen as Summit County's representatives in the Board of Directors, Mr. King being con- tinued as Vice President and Mr. Dudley as Chief Engineer, Stillman Witt, of Cleveland, being elected President. Ground was broken in Springfield Township, Summit County, early as could be raised at intermediate points in the | in March, 1873. The contractors immediately

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went vigorously to work, the result of the first four months' operations being thus tersely stated by Engineer Dudley, in his report of the prog- ress of construction made to the Directors on the 15th day of August, 1873, as follows : " On the line between Cleveland and Canton, a dis- tance of fifty-seven miles, the graduation was commenced last March ; but on account of the wet weather in April and May, and other causes, has not proceeded as fast as could be desired. All the bridges are under contract, and part of them up. I am, however, pleased to say that nearly two-thirds of the distance from Cleveland to Canton is graded, and, should the weather continue favorable, I see no reason to prevent the completion of the remainder, ready to com- mence laying track in October. This would give you the use of the road most of the coming winter, which would be an advantage you no doubt fully appreciate."

The Engineer's anticipations, however, were not realized, and the winter of 1873-74 set in without witnessing the laying of the track or the completion of the grading, bridging, etc. On the 24th day of April, 1874, Hon. Reuben Hitchcock, of Painesville, Lake County, was elected President, Mr. King being continued as Vice President and Mr. Dudley as Engineer. Owing to differences of opinion between the Directors and the contractors, Messrs. Van- sickle and Conger, the contract was canceled and the work suspended on the 16th day of May, 1874. President Hitchcock, on account of failing health, having tendered his resigna- tion, David L. King, of Akron, was elected President on the 25th day of September, 1874, with James Farmer, of Cleveland, as Vice Pres- ident. The general stagnation of business, and especially of all new railroad enterprises, grow- ing out of the panic of September, 1873, with the failure of Jay Cooke & Co., having ren- dered the immediate resumption of work im- possible, the Directors, as a condition precedent to Mr. King's acceptance of the Presidency, in- dividually assumed the entire liabilities of the company, which, owing to inability to collect stock subscriptions, amounted to over $150,000 -a burden from which the devoted Directors were not relieved until April, 1879. But, by the self-sacrificing assumption of this responsi- bility, the life of the company was saved through the long period of financial distress the country was then experiencing. Failing,

through the stringency of the times, to secure aid in this country to complete the road, at the earnest solicitation of the board, Mr. King sailed for England, on the 6th day of February, 1875, to present the advantages of the invest- ment to the capitalists of London. After weeks of patient effort, struggle and disappointment, he finally succeeded in securing a proposition for the sale of the company's bonds on highly ad- vantageous terms, and a time was fixed for the execution of the contract. On the morning of the day agreed upon for closing the matter up, the publication, in the London papers, of the report of a committee of the House of Com- mons, discrediting the value of American se- curities in general, and railroad securities in particular, together with a cable dispatch re- ceived from New York, published in the same papers, that the Wabash & Western Railroad (a very large amount of the bonds of this road being held in London) had passed into the hands of a Receiver, presented so discouraging a prospect for the placing of American securi- ties of any kind, as to cause the withdrawal of the proposition and the non-execution of the contract. By the advice of the parties with whom he had been in negotiation, Mr. King returned home without having accomplished the object of his mission, to "await the logic of events," as it was considered damaging to future sales, on the return of prosperity at home, to urge the bonds of the company further upon the attention of English capital- ists at that time. The merits of the line were, from time to time, brought by President King before the capitalists of Cleveland and the East, and a succession of struggles to keep the enterprise alive were continued for three weary years longer, happily resulting in placing the bonds on highly favorable terms at home with Cleveland and New York capitalists, the capital stock having in the meantime (April 13, 1876) been increased from $3,000.000 to $6,500,000. On the 7th day of August, 1878, the work on the line between Cleveland and Canton was re- sumed by the new contractors, Messrs. Walsh and Moynahan, the first rail upon the line be- ing laid and the first spike driven by President King, at Akron, at a point near the " Old Forge." at 12 o'clock, M., on the 26th day of Oc- tober, 1878, track-laying being immediately proceeded with from this point both ways, and also commenced in Cleveland a few days there-

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after. The operations of the new contractors not proving satisfactory to the company, the contract with them was annulled on the 25th day of January, 1879, and the work again tem- porarily suspended. Subsequently, a new con- tract was made with Messrs. Strong and Cary, and work resumed on the 3d day of June, 1879. The road was finally completed throngh from Cleveland to Canton, in the winter of 1879-80. The first continuous train from Cleve- land to Canton, with the officers, Directors, and other friends and promoters of the road on board, started from Cleveland at 9:30 A. M., January 28, 1880. Making short stops at the several stations on the route, the train arrived at Canton about 1 o'clock, P. M. Starting from Canton on the return trip at 3 o'clock, P. M., the run from Canton to Akron, twenty-two miles, was made in thirty-eight minutes, the en- tire trip from Canton to Cleveland, fifty-seven miles, being made in two hours-a remarkable run, considering the newness of the road, and evincing a very excellent degree of work in the laying of the track and the ballasting of the road-bed. The first regular trains com- menced running February 2, 1880, and have continued uninterruptedly to the present time, with constantly increasing freight and passen- ger traffic, and though, by reason of the partial occupation of the ground by other similar en- terprises and prospective connections, the ex- tension of the road beyond Canton has been in- definitely postponed, the Valley Railway may well be considered a successful venture for its promoters, and a very valuable acquisition to the travel and transportation facilities of the people all along the line, as well as a material addition to the enterprise and prosperity of the city of Akron, and of Summit County gener- ally.

Officers of the road from the beginning to the present date (April 1, 1881), as follows : President-James Farmer, from April 24, 1872, to April 5, 1873 ; Stillman Witt, from April 15, 1873, to April 24, 1874; Reuben Hitchcock, April 24, 1874, to September 25, 1874; David L. King, September 24, 1874, to April 16, 1879 ; J. H. Wade, April 16, 1879, to date. Vice President-David L. King, from April 24, 1872, to September 25, 1874; James Farmer, Sep- tember 25, 1874, to April 16, 1879 ; S. T. Ev- erett, from April 16, 1879, to date. Treasurer and Secretary-Warwick Price, from April 24,

1872, to April 15, 1873. Treasurer-S. T. Ev- erett, from April 20, 1873, to date. Secre- tary-S. T. Everett, from April 20, 1873, to May 13, 1873. Secretary and Auditor-L. D. Clarke, from May 13, 1873, to April 17, 1878 ; William B. Porter, from April 17 to date. Su- perintendent-Sam Briggs, from November 1, 1879, to date. Present Board of Di- rectors-J. H. Wade, H. B. Payne, John Tod, W. J. Boardman and L. M. Coe, of Cleve- land ; David L. King, of Akron ; L. V. Bock- ius, of Canton ; and H. M. Flagler, of New York.

The Tuscarawas Valley Railroad .- This road, a comparatively new enterprise, running from Lake Erie, at Black River, in Lorain County, to Bridgeport, opposite Wheeling, W. Va., on the Ohio River, via Grafton, in Lorain County ; Medina and Seville, in Medina County ; Clinton, in Summit County ; Massillon, in Stark County ; New Philadelphia and Urichville, in Tuscarawas County ; passes through about three-fourths of a mile of the township of Franklin, in Summit County, having a station at its junction with the Cleveland, Mount Vernon & Columbus road, called Warwick, a short distance south of the village of Clinton. This road is 1573 miles in length, and is one of the principal coal roads of the State, and beneficial to the people of Summit County in reaching sundry points between Akron and Wheeling, and in the ship- ment of coal and other articles to points west of Cleveland on the lakes.

The Counotton Valley Railway .- The latest ac- ' cession to the railroad system of Summit County is the Connotton Valley Railway. It is strictly a narrow-gauge road (three feet) and though intended more especially for the transportation of coal, its complement of rolling-stock em- braces an adequate supply of box freight cars, and elegantly finished and furnished passenger coaches. The southern terminus of the road is at Bowerstown, on the Pan Handle road, in Harrison County, and its northern terminus, the city of Cleveland. The line passes through Carrollton, in Carroll County ; Canton in Stark County ; Mogadore, in Summit and Portage Counties ; Kent and Streetsboro, in Portage County; Twinsburg, in Summit County, and Bedford and Newburg in Cuyahoga County. The capital stock of the company is $3,000,000, the funds being furnished mainly by Boston capitalists, though a majority of the directors

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and officers are residents of Ohio. The present officers of the road are as follows : William J. Rotch, of New Bedford, Mass., President ; Sam- uel Allen, of Del Roy, Carroll County, Vice Pres- ident ; A. B. Proal, of Canton, Stark County, Secretary and Treasurer; W. N. Moffett, for- merly of the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad, Superintendent, and Robert Leamouth, formerly of the Pan Handle road, Roadmaster. The machine and repair shops, and the general offices of the company, are located at Canton. The entire length of the road is 118 miles, six- ty-two miles of which is now (April, 1881) in running order, being completed as far north as Mogadore, and as far south as Del Roy, in Car- roll County, and it is expected that cars will be running over the entire line by July of the present year. This road passes through from sixteen to twenty miles of valuable coal fields, fine beds of iron ore, potters' clay, building- stone, etc., besides having on its line some of the most enterprising manufacturing cities and villages in Northern Ohio. At Mogadore, the road passes on the Portage County side of the village, but strikes into Summit County for a short distance, in circling around a hill just north of the village, thence bearing north- easterly to reach the village of Kent, and thence, in a northerly and northwesterly direc- tion, again strikes into Summit County on the east line of Twinsburg Township, running diag- onally across the township, and passing the vil- lage about one-fourth of a mile east of the pub- - lic square. The Connotton Valley will prove especially valuable to the people of Mogadore, in furnishing them an inlet for the large quan- tities of coal which they consume yearly, and an outlet for the immense quantities of stone- ware which they yearly manufacture, which has hitherto required a haul of eight miles, over (at times) the very muddiest kind of mud roads, to the nearest railroad shipping-point, Akron. The road will also give the people of Twinsburg facilities, not hitherto enjoyed, in reaching a market with their dairy products,

and the invaluable building stone so abundant in that township, and in obtaining their needed supplies from Cleveland and other portions of the outside world.

The Pittsburgh, Youngstown & Chicago Rail- road .- This road was projected early in 1881, by Chauncey H. Andrews, Esq., and other wealthy men of Youngstown, with other out- side backing. The company fully organized March 18, 1881, with Mr. Andrews as Presi- dent, when $1,500,000 of the $2,000,000 au- thorized capital was reported to be subscribed. The plan is to build the road from Pittsburgh. through Youngstown and Akron, direct to Chicago, the line, as surveyed, to enter Summit County at Mogadore, and, passing down the valley of the Little Cuyahoga River, entering Akron via the Sixth Ward upon the east, and Wolf Ledge Valley in the south part of the city. Though not yet actually commenced, there is at this writing (April 1, 1881), great confidence in railroad and business circles that this road will soon be put under contract and speedily constructed. Other important railroad projects, to pass through Summit County when built, are being talked up, but for the time being held in abeyance. Without our rail- roads, where would Akron, nay, where would Summit County have been to-day ? Not a man- ufacturing establishment, other than our water- power mills, limited to some half-dozen in number-with diminished usefulness at that, by reason of a lack of speedy transportation facilities-would exist among us, and, instead of a city of 17,000 population, Akron would have been the mere village of 2,000 inhabitants that it was thirty years ago, if, indeed, it had not retrograded in the meantime for want of proper communication with the outside world. So, too, with the county at large-farming lands, instead of being worth from $75 to $300 per acre, as they now are, would have remained, like those of the other non-railroad-penetrating counties of the State, at from $25 to $60 per acre.

HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

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CHAPTER VI .*

THE PROFESSIONS-LEGAL LORE IN THE PIONEER DAYS-GREGORY POWERS-OTHER EARLY LAWYERS-THE PRESENT SUMMIT COUNTY BAR - MEDICAL - PIONEER PHYSICIANS-

DIFFERENT SYSTEMS- MEDICAL SOCIETIES, ETC.

T HE history of the County would not be considered complete, without a sketch of the professions-legal and medical.

The following on the Summit County bar is by Judge Carpenter, and is as follows :- [ED.]

In the summer of 1832, the writer, a stran- ger in Ohio, alert for information touching its people, laws, soil, products and topography. took the mail coach at Ravenna for Hudson. There was sitting on the back seat a man whose look would have taken his attention anywhere. A green bag filled with books lay by his side. He was considerably under thir- ty, tall and slim, but with limbs and contour so round and trim as to suggest an embodi- ment of muscular vigor, agility and toughness. His dress was simple but fitted with faultless neatness to his elegant figure.

Conversation began at once. The writer's various questions were answered with a pre- cision which evinced a thorough acquaintance with Ohio, its public interests, its heterogen- eous inhabitants, their different habits and peculiarities. Unquestionably that fellow- passenger was a man of keen observation. But his easy flow of intelligence bore not the slightest show of vanity or ostentation. His mastery of language, the complete finish of every sentence, his faultless pronunciation and the grammatical accuracy and purity of his English, might mark him for a college pro- fessor. On reaching Stow Corners, he took the road to Middlebury on foot. green bag in hand.

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History of Summit County, with an outline sketch of Ohio, Part 53

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848- Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Chicago, Baskin & Battey Number of Pages: 1104

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago, Baskin & Battey
Number of Pages: 1104