History of the Ohio falls cities and their counties : with illustrations and bibliographical sketches, Vol. II, Part 55

Author: Williams, L.A., & Co., Cleveland
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Cleveland, Ohio : L. A. Williams & Co.
Number of Pages: 680

USA > Ohio > History of the Ohio falls cities and their counties : with illustrations and bibliographical sketches, Vol. II > Part 55

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GALENA.

When the question of making a turnpike out of the old New Albany and Vincennes road be- gan to be agitated in 1836, or before, this little village came into life. It was first called Ger- mantown, and retained this name many years, until the post-office was established, about 1860, when the name was changed to Galena. It was laid out and platted by George Sease, May 27, 1837. The streets were appropriately named Floyd, Main, First Cross street, Second Cross street, and Third Cross street.

Mr. Sease owned the land upon which the village was platted, and thought perhaps he could

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make a fortune by building a new town on this great thoroughfare and turnpike.

The first building in the town was a frame store-room, erected on the lot where Norton Brown's store now stands. Joseph B. Wells, yet living, did the carpenter work. Isaac Parks moved into this room as soon as it was finished, opened a stock of goods, and became the first merchant. He also moved his family into it, and lived there until his dwelling could be put up. This was also built by Joseph B. Wells, and was the first dwelling-house in the town. Mrs. Williamson now occupies the house. The store-room stood until about 1876-7, when Mr. Norton Brown took it away and erected his pres- ent store-room. The old, gray-looking, broken- backed building on the north side of Main street, where the road from the south crosses it, was erected among the first by Charles Frederick, and kept many years by him as a hotel. It is a fair specimen of the old-style tavern, being a long, two-story, unpainted frame. Like all of its class, it is going into decay. It has not been used for hotel purposes for a number of years. One of the first houses in the town was the brick dwelling now owned by George Buss, and the second brick building was that now standing on the corner and occupied by Frank Lamke as a hotel and store. Lamke and Brown are now the only merchants in the place. There is a black- smith-shop, a coopering establishment, a mill, and the usual number of mechanical establish- ments. The inhabitants number considerably less than a hundred There is a church, a school, three doctors, and a lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. The latter occupies the upper story of a neat white frame building.

The coopering business was once the leading business in the place, but has declined greatly in late years. It is rather a drowsy little village, and like nearly all others of its kind, the daily batch of neighborhood gossip, retailed gratis from corner dry-goods boxes and much-whittled chairs and stools, forms about the only entertain- ment of a portion of its people.

MORGAN'S RAID.

The raid of John Morgan through Indiana and Ohio made but little more impression on the people of the whole country at the time of its execution than would a bucket of water on the

great ocean. It merely caused a ripple in its immediate vicinity, and so passed away. To the people of distant States it was nothing; to the soldiers in front, if they heard of it at all at the time, it would cause no more than a smile or a passing remark; but in the States in.mediately concerned it created considerable feeling and talk, and to the people immediately along the line of march, who witnessed it, the raid was one of the great events of their lives, and the story of John Morgan will be rehearsed to their children and grand-children for several generations. Three-quarters of a century from now some old man, tottering on the verge of the grave, will point out to the awe-struck children the place where Morgan's men camped, the tree, perhaps, under which the great Morgan himself sat and smoked his cigar, and will rehearse the story of the great raid while the little ones listen with open eyes and mouths, and look upon the old man as one of the greatest of the earth, because he had seen General Morgan with his own eyes.

Although the main body of Morgan's troops did not touch Greenville township, it passed so near as to cause a panic among the people, and a small party of flankers gave the village of Greenville a call. Had his main army passed their very door it could not have caused greater consternation. There is something fearful, even dreadful, in the thought, especially to women and children, of a large body of desperate men armed to the teeth, between whom and them, they are well aware, no law and power at hand can stand for a moment. Utterly and complete- ly at the mercy of an apparently lawless and irre- sponsible band of men, whose business it is to kill, and whose only business seems to be to hunt other men to shed their blood, what wonder is it that men turned pale when they stand help- lessly in their own doors, and the wife and mother weeps and presses her little ones closer to her and prays to the only power that can help her? It is impossible to imagine the feelings of people in such a situation. Experience is the only true test. The people in this township, especially along the turnpike, were put to the test ; they were compelled to endure, for a few hours at least, the agony of suspense and expec- tation. The dreadful raiders might pass around them, as dreadful storms had often done, or they might sweep over them-they could not tell;

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whatever the result, they were helpless, and could only wait with bated breath.

The whole of Morgan's command crossed the Ohio, with Morgan himself, at Brandenburg, Kentucky, about fifty miles by river below New Albany, on the 8th of July, taking possession of the steamer Tariscon, which he found there, for that purpose; and, while the good people of Greenville were rejoicing over the victory at Vicksburg, came the startling intormation that the raiders had crossed the river and were com- ing in the direction of their village. This was entirely a new phase of war; the conflict was to be brought to their own doors, and was the more . startling because unexpected. There was a gen- eral scramble to make property and life as secure as possible before the appearance of the raiders in the neighborhood. Money, silverware, jew- elry, and every valuable thing of the smaller kind was hastily buried, just as the people of the South buried their valuables before the advance of our armies. What could not be buried was taken to the woods and elsewhere and secreted. Fine horses, for which Morgan certainly had a partiality, were taken hastily to the darkest depths of an adjacent thicket; cows and all other animals were driven away to the woods. Some families even, after hiding securely all their valu- ables, went to the woods themselves for safety. A few men mounted their horses, took down their old rusty shot-guns and squirrel-rifles, and rode hastily away in the direction the raiders were supposed to be taking, ready to join any concerted movement by the citizens against them. Others quietly continued their labors in the field, first preparing themselves as well as possible for emergencies. Morgan passed up the river to Corydon, where he had a slight skir- mish with citizens, and one or two men were killed and a few wounded on both sides. He then marched north, passing through the town of Palmyra, seven miles west of Greenville, this being the nearest point to the latter village. His flankers, scouts, and stragglers were spread out over the country for great distances. Forty-six of his men in a body-probably a foraging and marauding party-encamped one night about halt a mile east of the village, in the woods; and during the evening a few of them visited the town, went to a saloon and drank, but did not disturb any one. Their presence was unknown

until the following morning, when they quietly departed. Many valuable horses were taken by Morgan's command, and here and there a few valuables secured, but he was compelled to march too rapidly to secure much plunder.

A squad of his men, about one hundred in number, crossed the river at Utica, but these were mostly dispersed or captured by the citizens befere they could join their leader.

WAR POLITICS.

Matters politically during the war were in a delicate condition in Greenville township, as well, of course, as everywhere else, but peculiarly so here and all along the southern portion of Indi- ana, on account of its proximity to slave terri- tory. People were very much divided on the great questions of the day, and a very bitter feeling prevailed. A secret society existed, known as the Knights of the Golden Circle. It was political in its nature, and its members were known to sympathize with rebellion. Its meet- ings were held at night in the woods and in vari- ous deserted cabins in the neighborhood, and the lines were very sharply drawn between the two parties. Every man in the community was "spotted" by one party or the other. The politics of every man was well known; every man's name was on record somewhere, and every man's every move was watched. Neighbors were spies upon neighbors. Every man stood, as it were, in the attitude of war, and war to the knife, with his arm continually raised to strike. No stranger could enter the community and remain long a stranger, at least politically; he must identify himself with one party or the other, and that speedily. Men had no confidence in each other. Neighbor watched closely the neighbor whom he had always trusted before but who was now his almost deadly enemy.

In this delicate condition of the political pow- der-magazine, there was danger of explosion at any moment. When, therefore, John Morgan came in this direction, there were a few who secretly rejoiced and looked upon this as a long- wished-for opportunity for revenge. The feeling in the whole community was intensified, and there was an inclination to use violence on the slightest provocation. Many things were said and done at this critical period to make men en- emies for life, and their children enemies, it may be feared, for generations.

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The man who created the most consternation among the people of this township, upon the ap- proach of John Morgan, and rendered himself famous (or infamous) thereby, was one William Harper, who mounted his horse and rode swiftly down the turnpike through Greenville to New Albany, shouting at the top of his voice to the people by the way that John Morgan was com- ing down the pike, with an army of fabulous size at his heels, to attack. New Albany. It created the greatest excitement and consternation ; but meanwhile Morgan was moving swiftly in another direction. It is believed that Morgan himself had something to do with this extraordinary ac- tion of Harper-that it was a ruse to distract the various squads of troops gathering in different directions, as to his purposes. .

Dr. Smith, of Greenville, says that he buried $600 in money, and kept a fine horse hid in the woods during the passage of the troops through this part of the country, and that one night, dur- ing the greatest excitement, when every man was feeling for the throat of his neighbor, as it were, he was called from his bed in the middle of the night, and, upon cautiously opening the door, not knowing whether it was a professional call, or whether his time had come to be taken out and hanged as a Union man, he peered into the darkness, and saw that the street in front of his house was filled with armed men on horse- back. Visions of John Morgan's raiders flashed through his mind, and he was about to retire hastily, when some person whispered mysteri- ously that he was wanted to guide a party of the citizens who had organized, armed, and mounted themselves, to pursue a party of Morgan's men who were crossing the river near Utica.

In the skirmish which ensued between these parties and others who joined them, and this squad of Morgan's men, several men were wounded, and the rebels were dispersed. A few of them were captured. A young Confederate named Collins was wounded and brought to Greenville, where he was kept a few days, then sent to New Albany, where he was cared for in the hospital. .

It is believed that many recruits for the rebel army were made in this vicinity by the Knights of the Golden Circle, and many young men pre- vented from enlisting in the Union army by the same society.

Greenville furnished her quota of troops for the Union cause in the great Rebellion; but this is referred to elsewhere in this work.

MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS.

The following items are from the earliest rec- ords of the county commissioners :

At the meeting held May 17, 1819, Syrinus Emmons was appointed constable for Greenville township. He was the first to hold that office. At the same meeting a petition was presented from the citizens of Greenville township, asking for an additional justice of the peace, which was granted, and an election ordered to be held at the house of John Kearnes, on the first Mon- day in June. At the same meeting James Mc- Cutchan was continued as inspector of elections.

At the meeting of May 18, 1819, the commis- sioners ordered the following taxes for State pur- poses: On every one hundred acres of first-rate land, $1; on the same amount of' second-rate land, 877/2 cents; and on the same amount of third-rate land, 621/2 cents. Also for every bond-servant over twelve years of age, $3 per year. For county purposes the following taxes were levied: For every one hundred acres of first-rate land, 50 cents; for the same amount of second-rate land, 4334 cents; and for the same amount of third-rate land, 3114 cents. Town lots in Greenville were taxed fifty cents on every $100 valuation.

There is but little to record in the history of the State road, upon which Greenville is situ- ated, and over which the larger part of the produc- tions of the township must always pass. The road was surveyed about 1836, by the State, with the intention of converting it into a turnpike from Louisville to St. Louis. The work of breaking the stone began soon afterwards, and the con- tracts were let for macadamizing the road. Plenty of stone for the purpose was found within the limits of the county. The road was graded as far as Vincennes, but macadamized only to Paoli, a distance of forty-one miles from New Albany. Upon this part of the road tolls have ever since been levied. The State, through the machinations of a strong lobby, it is claimed, turned the road over to a company, or rather sold out to a company for $50,000, though the road had originally cost $275,000. This company yet owns the road, but there was some agitation

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recently in the State Legislature looking to the State again taking possession of it.

Before the days of railroads in this part of the country, about 1845, a telegraph line was put up along this turnpike from New Albany and Louisville to St. Louis. Charles Cartwright (of Jeffersonville at that time, but now of Granville) Samuel Howe, of Clark county, and Mr. Tay- lor, of Ohio, were the contractors for furnishing the poles for this telegraph line. They received "three bits" (thirty-seven and a half cents) apiece for the poles. Another set of contractors dug the holes, and a third furnished the wire. The line was kept up until railroads came, when it was abandoned. There is not at the present time a railroad or telegraph line in the township.

Before the days of railroads the freight busi- ness along this pike amounted to considerable. Goods were brought to the Falls of the Ohio by boat, and from there they must be taken by freight wagons westward along the road to sup- ply the numerous little towns and trading places that were continually springing up, not only im- mediately along the line of the road, but at various distances on either side. The commerce of a large belt of the country must pass over this road, and consequently wagons were em- ployed, especially as freight wagons. They were large and heavy, with tires an inch thick and several inches broad, and drawn by four horses. When the road was in good condition they would carry almost as much as a common freight car of to-day. They would travel slowly, freely patron- izing the various taverns by the way.

Jacob Miller then kept a tavern on the road, the first one east of the east line of Greenville township. This was between 1820 and 1830. His tavern was a rather spacious one for those days, being a two-story log building. Josiah Lamb kept the next one west, and about five miles east of the village of Greenville. Robert Lewis kept the next one west of Lamb, and within half a mile of the village. The next one was in the village. From the multiplicity of taverns it will be inferred that weary drivers and travelers were not allowed to remain thirsty for a great length of time; and it is intimated (though there can be no truth in the story) that some of these honest tavern keepers got rich selling whiskey out of a pint cup with an inch of wood fitted in the bottom of the cup.

CHAPTER XVII. LAFAYETTE TOWNSHIP. ORGANIZATION.

At the first meeting of the commissioners of Floyd county, February 8, 1819, the county was dividedinto three townships, to wit: New Albany, Greenville and Franklin. Greenville occupied all the northern part of the county, and it was out of this territory that Lafayette was formed nine years later. The boundaries of this township were defined at a meeting of the commissioners, then called the " Board of Justices," held May 5, 1828.

In 1824, by a law of the Legislature, the jus- tices of the peace in the counties of Indiana were to constitute a board of justices, to take the place of the commissioners, and transact the business usually delegated to that body, the law going into effect in September of that year.

The following is the record of the board of justices upon the formation of the township :

Ordered, That all that portion of Floyd county situate and lying between the following boundaries be hereafter known and designated by the name and style of La Fay- ette township, to wit: Beginning on the county line at the corners of sections twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five and twenty-six, in township number one, south of range five, east from thence running south on the sectional line to the corner of sections twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five and twenty- six in township two, south of the range aforesaid; thence east to the corners of sections twenty, twenty-one, twenty-eight and twenty-nine in township two, south of range six east ; thence north to the corners of sections sixteen, seventeen, twenty and twenty-one in said township and range last men- tioned; thence east to the corners of sections fifteen, sixteen, twenty-one and twenty-two in said last mentioned township and range ; thence north to the corners of sections nine, ten, fifteen and sixteen in said last mentioned township and range; thence east to the corners of sections ten, eleven, fourteen and fifteen in said last mentioned township and range; thence north to the line dividing townships numbers one and two thence east to the Grant line; thence with the line of the said Illinois Grant to the county line, and from thence west, with the county line to the place of beginning.

At the same meeting the board of justices transacted other business regarding the new township, as follows:

Ordered, That elections in the township of La Fayette be holden at the house of Jacob Miller, and that William Wil- kinson be appointed inspector of elections in said township for the present year; and that Samuel Miller and Francis R. Porter be appointed overseers of the poor in said township for the present year.

Ordered, That an election be holden in the township of La- Fayette for the purpose of electing one justice of the peace therein on Saturday, the thirty-first day of the present month.

DAVID M. HALE, President of the Board.

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At a meeting July 7, 1828, it was

Ordered, That David Edwards be appointed inspector of elections of La Fayette township until the first Monday in January next, vice William Wilkinson, Esqr., who declines serving as such.

David Edwards was subsequently appointed assessor, and probably the first one in the town- ship.

The township of Lafayette, as above bounded 1

and described, was taken out of the east half of Greenville township. Its boundaries have not since been changed. It is very irregular and ragged as it appears on the map, its eastern line following gradually the course of the "knobs," a range of high hills whose general course is south- west and northeast. It is bounded on the north by Clarke county; on the east and south by New Albany township; on the south and southwest by Georgetown township; and on the west by Green- ville township.

TOPOGRAPHY.

Its surface is generally broken and hilly, but the larger proportion of the land is cultivable, a large portion of it being at the present time un- der a high state of cultivation.

To the first settlers the territory embraced in this township appeared as a vast wilderness, with scarcely an opening to relieve the monotony of the great woods. Wolves, deer, bears, panthers, and other wild animals contested the ground with the Indian, and both were to be extermina- ted or driven away On the bottoms the ground was largely covered with wild pea-vines, beneath which lurked venomous reptiles of every kind known to the American forest. All the first set- tlers were compelled to clear the ground before the cabin could be erected or the truck-patch cultivated. Indian camps were found at fre- quent intervals along the streams, and here oc- casional small clearings had been made; but these were neither numerous nor extensive. The red man lived by hunting, fishing, and trapping, and made few attempts in this vicinity to cultivate the soil.

The only streams in the township are Big and Little Indian creeks and their tributaries; but these furnish thorough drainage, while water for domestic use is abundantly supplied by numer- ous and beautiful springs that burst from the hill- sides in every direction.

Big Indian creek rises in the northeastern part

of the township, its general course being south- west across the northwestern part of the town- ship. It passes through sections twenty-nine, thirty-two, thirty-one, six, one, and twelve, cross- ing into Greenville township, near the center of the last named section. Before the country was cleared it was a stream of considerable depth, and the flow of water was steady and con tinuous, but since the country has been cleared in its vicinity it is an insignificant stream, being almost dry at times during the summer. It is subject to frequent freshets, when it becomes a raging, foaming torrent, carrying almost every- thing before it. On its southeast side this stream is generally hemmed in by a high range of hills, which are yet covered with a rank growth of hard wood timber, while on the opposite side beautiful level bottoms stretch away, making some of the finest farms in the township.

Springs of pure, cold water are to be found among these hills in considerable numbers; and probably nowhere in the township are the settlers compelled to dig more than from ten to thirty feet to procure the finest of drinking water.

The Big Indian contains so little water in summer that a wagon-road follows its bed a good portion of the way across the township, and bridges are not needed even for footmen.

Little Indian creek also has its source in the northeastern part of the township among the knobs, and, clinging closely to the foot of this remarkable range of hills, passes southwest across the township, through sections thirty-five, three, four, nine, eight, seventeen, twenty, and thirty, entering Georgetown township about the center of the last named section. After passing across a portion of Georgetown it joins the Big Indian in Greenville township, where together they form Indian creek, which finds its way southward into the Ohio. It puts out numerous tributaries, and draws its water largely from the knob springs.

There is a good deal of valuable bottom-land along this stream, also, yet the bottom-lands on these creeks cannot be called first-class ; that is, they will not compare, for instance, with the Wabash bottom or the Miami bottoms in Ohio. They are largely composed of sand and clay, mixed in places with vegetable mold, and pro- duce excellent crops of corn, wheat, oats, etc. The lands of the entire township may, however,

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be classed as clay lands, and therefore not alto- gether first-class.

The wonderful range of hills called the "knobs" forms the eastern boundary of the township, making that line somewhat irregular. Occasionally a section breaks over these hills and occupies a portion of the beautiful valley beyond. Section ten is largely taken up by the knobs. These hills are a continuation of the bluffs that all along hem in the Ohio river. They leave the river at Madison and, making a large circuit, reach the river again below New Albany. With- in the circle of these hills is some of the finest bottom-land in the West. The hills also recede from the river much the same on the southern side, the river passing for many miles here through an extensive bottom, which supports the cities of Louisville, Jeffersonville, New Al- bany, and others. These knobs have always been covered with a dense growth of timber, and it will doubtless be many years, perhaps a century, if ever, before they are cleared and cul- tivated. A few farms partially cleared are now found along the sides and on the top, but they are, probably, generally owned by parties who have bottom-land for cultivation, and who pre- served them for woodland. What is rather un- usual, however, about this range of hills, consid- ering their height and ruggedness, is that there is very little land not capable of cultivation, were the timber cleared away. Some time within the next century, when the cities of Louisville, Jeffer- sonville, and New Albany have spread out over the beautiful bottoms on which they are located until they virtually form one great city, the southern slope of these knobs will be one vast vineyard for supplying that city with grapes and wine. Even now, in places, vineyards are being cultivated, and it would seem as if there were no better opening in this country for those who un- derstand this business than to purchase a few acres of this high land now to be had, probably, for about $ro per acre.

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History of the Ohio falls cities and their counties : with illustrations and bibliographical sketches, Vol. II, Part 55

Author: Williams, L.A., & Co., Cleveland Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Cleveland, Ohio : L. A. Williams & Co. Number of Pages: 680

Author: Williams, L.A., & Co., Cleveland
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Cleveland, Ohio : L. A. Williams & Co.
Number of Pages: 680