History of the city of Toledo and Lucas County, Ohio, Part 52

Author: Waggoner, Clark, 1820-1903
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: New York and Toledo : Munsell & Company
Number of Pages: 1408

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*Burnet's "Notes of the Northwestern Territory," p. 394.

traordinary stimulus to settlement and growth. In fact, there is not a Territory, and scarcely a State, that is not indebted to this aid for its advancement ; and but for which the great body of the present West and Northwest would to-day be the haunts of the roaming savage and of the will buffalo. This is not the popu- lar view to express of this matter, the more generally acceptable understanding being that Railway land-grants were mere gratuities to corporations, withont warrant in any publie interest. Few seem to consider, that the great development and wealth of the Western re- gions are the direct product of the enterprise encouraged by subsidies. The greatly appre- ciated values of the lands held by the Railroad Companies, are cited as evidence of excessive bounties; whereas, these values are due wholly to the extraordinary enterprise which alone could secure the investment of capital necessary to the settlement requisite for such advanced values. That unwise grants have been made, is quite true; but such exceptions the more fully establish the rule. It may here be prop- erly stated, that the policy of land-grants has now pretty much entirely ceased to be a neces- sary aid in Railway construction, the sections in which such are demanded being very few in number and withont much importance.

The first sales of Government lands in North- western Ohio, took place at the Land Office at Wooster, Ohio, in the year 1817. One embraced the Reservation of two miles square at the foot of the Rapids of the Sandusky River (now Fre- mont), and occurred on the first Monday of July ; and the other consisted of the Reserva- tion of 12 miles square, at the foot of the Rapids of the Maumee River, and took place on the third Tuesday of the same month. At the for- mer sale was purchased the tract on which the Town plat of Croghansville, on the East side of the Sandusky River, and now included " within Fremont, was soon thereafter laid out ; and at the latter sale was purchased the lands on which Port Lawrence (Toledo), and Orleans (Fort Meigs) were at once laid out.

CHAPTER II.

CIVIL GOVERNMENT ESTABLISHED.

CIVIL Government for the territory now comprised within the County of Lucas, began with the organization of the County of Wayne, by proclamation of Governor St. Clair of the Northwest Territory in 1796, which em- braced all of what is now Northwestern Ohio and the lower Peninsula of the present State of Michigan. While this is true, it is also true, as elsewhere shown, that at that time and for 20 years thereafter, and until the Indian title to all of Northwestern Ohio was extinguished, there was practically no such government there. Wayne was the third County thus created, Washington, organized in 1788, and IIamilton in 1790, being its predecessors. In 1803, the year following the organization of the State Government of Ohio, the County of Greene was established, including this part of the State. In 1805, Logan County was formed, embracing the present Counties of Sandusky, Seneca, Wyan- dot, Marion, Hardin, Hancock, Wood, Lucas, Fulton, Henry, Putnam, Allen, Auglaize, Van Wert, Paulding, Williams and Defiance, entire ; and the most of the Counties of Ottawa, Craw- ford, Morrow, Logan, Union, Shelby and Mer- cer. It will be borne in mind, that prior to the treaty with the Indians at the foot of the Rapids of the Manmee, in 1817, all this section, save the few Reservations of the treaty of Greenville (1795), was within the Indian Ter- ritory and not subject to civil authority. The state of things in this respect during that pe- riod of 22 years, is indicated by the accompany- ing section of a map of the State of Ohio, pub- lished in 1815. From that, the lines of demar- kation between civil government and savage domination, will be readily seen. Within the territory thus wholly given up to Indian pos- session and use, was found in 1880, a thriving population of nearly 600,000 white inhabitants, while there was then probably not left a single representative of the powerful tribes so long undisputed in their possession of the country named. The contrast of results of civilization and barbarism, could hardly be more clearly presented, than is done in the case of that ter- ritory during the unrecorded centuries of In- dian control and the 70 years of white pos- session.

The first officer exercising civil authority in the Maumee Valley, was Amos Spafford, Collec- tor of Customs for the District of Miami, ap- pointed by President Madison in 1810. The Collector's office was at Manmee. In 1814 his fees amounted to $2.50; his rent for office, $10.00;

and his fuel and stationery, 815.75; a total charge to the Government for the year of $28.25.

The first Postoffice established between the River Raisin (Monroe, Mich.) and Lower San- dusky (Fremont), and between the Maumee Bay and the present site of Chicago, was located on the Westerly or Maumee side of the Mau- mee River, opposite the location of Fort Meigs, subsequently built. The first Postmaster within that territory was Amos Spatford, whose commission bore date of June 9, 1810. In 1816, Almon Gibbs was Postmaster at that point, his pay for that year having been $14.28.

The few settlers in this vicinity suffered se- verely upon the breaking out of the war of 1812, from Indian depredations upon their lim- ited property, and after the close of the war, they presented to the Government claims for compensation for such losses, which included those of Amos Spafford, Samuel HI. Ewing, Jesse Skinner, Daniel Hull, Thos. Diek, Samuel Ewing, Wm. Carter, James Carlin, Oliver A. Armstrong, Geo. Blaeock, James Slawson, Wm. Peters, Ambrose Hickox and Richard Sifford. Among the claims made, was that of James Carlin, of $110 for dwelling- house or eabin burned, $58 for blacksmith shop burned, $30 for a colt 2 years old, taken by Wyandot Indians. Oliver Armstrong claimed $60 for a horse taken from him. Beside these were losses of barns, outhouses and dwell- ings; wheat of six acres in a barn burned; 4 tons of hay, clothing, bed-clothing, etc. The aggregate of the claims made was between $4,000 and $5,000. For the purpose of bring- ing the matter definitely to the attention of Congress, a meeting of the elaimants was held at the house of Amos Spafford, November 8th, 1815, when Mr. Spafford and Captain Daniel Hull were appointed a committee to wait npon General W. II. Harrison, then soon to pass through to Detroit, and request his co-operation in securing the allowance of their claims. Under such appointment Major Spafford visit- ed Washington, and succeeded in securing par- tial damages for the sufferers. These pioneer settlers were especially unfortunate, being subject to three sources of loss -- Indian and British depredations and the seizure of their crops for the use of the United States troops. Most of the settlers were driven from the field of war, and remained abroad until the close of' hostilities, when they returned, to begin anew without dwelling or other conveniences. Their first recourse for building material was to the

[285]

HISTORY OF TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY.

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few hulks of transports employed by the Gov- ernment, and the pickets and block houses of Fort Meigs. The strife for possession of these became active and somewhat bitter, and was ended by the torch of an incendiary, applied at night to the structures of the Fort, almost en- tirely destroying its remains. This depend- ence gone, the destitute settlers were without supplies for constructing buildings, except what the forest trees furnished, and with no means but the ax for making these available.

To add to the serious trials to which these settlers were subjected, the title to the lands occupied by them was brought in question. These had been purchased, as parts of the 12 miles square Reserve, under the treaty of Greenville, and as within a tract one mile square, which, by mistake, had been a second time ceded at the treaty of Brownstown, subse-

quent to the purchase by the settlers. They had no more than become settled after their return at the close of the war, than Congress ordered the sale of the tract occupied by them. In a letter to President Madison on the sub- jeet, Major Amos Spafford made a strong ap- peal in behalf of these sufferers, and asked that the time and location of the sale might be so fixed, that they could have opportunity for se- curing the lands held by them. In his letter Major Spafford said : " Should the time not be known, or the place of sale be so remote that myself and others could not attend, all would be lost. First, burned by the enemy; secondly, destroyed by our own Army; and thirdly, sold out by an act of Government, to whom we don't know. This would be the last sacrifice that we could possibly make." The sale was finally held at Fort Meigs, the settlers

SANDUSKY B

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287

CIVIL GOVERNMENT ESTABLISHED.

obtaining titles to their lands without competi- tion.

Upon the release of the Indian title in 1817, this region was first brought under full State authority. The first Township organization here was that of Waynesfield, in 1816, embrac- ing only the reservation at the foot of the Rap- ids. The first election took place at the house of Aurora Spafford, 25 electors then vot- ing.

Upon the surrender of Indian possession, in 1817, the County of Logan was organized, with its seat of justice at Bellefontaine. It embraced this region. In 1820 were formed the Counties of Wood, Williams, Putnam, San- dusky, Seneca, Crawford, Marion, Hardin and Hancock, all from the old Indian territory. Wood County included a portion of the present Lucas County, embracing Toledo. The first Court to convene in the Valley of the Maumee, was held at Maumee City, May 3, 1820, that be- ing the seat of justice. It was composed of President Judge George Tod (father of the late Governor David Tod), and Associate Judges Dr. Horatio Conant, Peter G. Oliver and Samuel Vance. The Grand Jurors for the term were Wm. HI. Bostwick (foreman), Aaron Granger, John T. Baldwin, Parris M. Plum, Aurora Spafford, Jeremiah Johnson, Wm. Pratt, Richard Gunn, Collister Haskins, Ephraim H. Leaming, Josephus Tilor, Daniel Murray, John Hollister, John J. Lovett and Norman L. Freeman.

The first session of the Board of Commis- sioners of Wood County, assembled April 12th, 1820, in Almon Gibbs's store building in Mau- mee. They were : Samuel II. Ewing, David Hubbell and John Pray. The Board at that time appointed William Pratt County Treasu- rer. May 3d, Seneca Allen, then County Audi- tor, was appointed Clerk to the Board, and David Hull filed his bond as Sheriff. C. G. MeCurdy was then the Prosecuting Attorney, and Thomas R. McKnight, Clerk of the Court. General John E. Hunt was Assessor of property taxation; and David Hull, Tax Collector. At this session Prosecuting Attorney McCurdy was paid $20, the allowance of the court for services at its first session; and Thomas R. MeKnight $23, as Clerk at the same session; Almon Gibbs was allowed $40 for the use of his building as the Court House for one year from May 3d, 1820; J. E. Hunt, $11.28 for services as Lister of taxable property and House Appraiser; and Hunt & Forsyth $16.123 for stationery. This session was held at Maumee. August 12, 1820, the Board, on petition of citizens of Damascus, Henry County (not then organized), that Township was temporarily attached to the Township of Auglaize, then in Wood County.

In December, 1820, the County Commission- ers were John Pray, David Hubbell and John E. Hunt. In March, 1822, the Commissioners appointed Thomas W. Powell County Anditor,

and in June following, Walter Colton (father of the late Carlos Colton of Toledo) was ap- pointed County Treasurer.

The County-Seat of Wood County having been removed from Maumee to Perrysburg, the Commissioners met at the latter place, March 19, 1823, for the purpose of preparing suitable County buildings. The Board then consisted of John Pray, Samuel Spafford and Hiram P. Barlow. At that session so much of the Township of Auglaize as was contained in the unorganized County of Henry was set off and organized into a Township by the name of Damascus; and so much of the Town- ship of Waynesfield as was included in the unorganized County of Ilancock, was set off into a Township and named Findlay, the first election in which was held at the house of Wilson Vance, July 1, 1823. At the same time the Township of Perrysburg was organized, to inelude so much of Waynesfield Township as then lay South of the channel of the Maumee River, from the West line of the County, to the line between the original surveyed Townships one and four in the United States Reserve; thence the North channel to the State line. At the session of the Board held in March, 1824, the claim of Guy Nearing (uncle of Mars Nearing of Toledo) and Daniel Hubbell, for erecting the Court House at Perrysburg, was allowed. The population of the County of Wood in 1820 was 732, and 1,090 in 1830. The taxable valuation in 1826 was 888,886; of which $40,704 was in real estate, $23,230 in town lots and buildings, and $24,952 in personal prop- erty.

Port Lawrence as a Township of Monroe County, Michigan, was organized May 27, 1827. Among the first officers of the Township were, N. A. Whitney, John G. Forbs and Daniel Murray, Assessors; J. V. D. Sutphen, Clerk ; John T. Baldwin, Supervisor; Tibbals Bald- win, Collector; John Walworth and Coleman 1. Keeler, Overscers of Poor ; Eli Baldwin and William Wilson, Commissioners of Highways; John Roots and Tibbals Baldwin, Constables; and Benj. F. Stickney, Pound Master. At this first Township election 29 votes were cast, by the following electors, to wit: John T. Bald- win, J. V. D. Sutphen, Noah A. Whitney, John G. Forbs, Daniel Murray, Tibbals Bald- win, John Walworth, Eli Hubbard, Coleman 1. Keeler, Wm. Wilson, Alvin Evans, John Roop, Cyrus Fisher, Win. Mills, B. F. Stickney, John Baldwin, Seneca Allen, Amos Wait, Wm. Wilkerson, Wm. Sibley, Amasa Bishop, Charles Richards, Jesse Mills, Joseph Prentice, Henry Phillips, Ebenezer Ward, Thos. P. Whitney, Wm. Holmes and Jacob Navarre.

The Township embraced about one-half of the present Lucas County, and was divided into two Road Districts. The first Road laid ont in the Township was in June, 1827.

July 27, 1827, the annual Territorial election

288

HISTORY OF TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY.

was held, when Austin E. Wing was choson Delegate to Congress, and Charles Noble as a member of the Legislative Council, both being residents of Monroe.

March 30, 1830, the Road Commissioners de- clared it to be of public utility to adopt the Territorial road, as it then ran from the mouth of Swan Creek to where it erosses the Township line on the North, as a public road.

In 1828, $23.42 was paid for "destroying blackbirds ;" and in 1832, a bounty of $2.50 each for Wolf scalps was voted.

At the annual election of 1831, 59 votes were cast, and in 1833, 70 votes. At this latter elec- tion the names of Sanford L. Collins, Stephen B. Comstock, Oliver Stevens, Munson H. Dan- iels, and James M. Whitney appear on the poll-list. Of these, Messrs. Collins and Stevens are now (1887) living.

In April, 1835, the election under direction of the Legislative Council of Michigan, was held at the School-house on Ten- Mile Creek Prairie. Horace Thacher and Stephen Haugh - ton voted at this time, the former being now a resident of Toledo. This was the last election held in the Township under authority of

Michigan; and the last recorded action under the same authority, consisted in laying out a road between Tremainesville and Toledo (now Cherry Street).

Among the laws enacted for the territory now the site of Toledo, was the following. Its re-enactment by the Legislature of Ohio, might meet with more resistance than did the original action in this section:

Be it enacted by the General Legislative Council of the Territory, That any Justice of the Peace, on convic- tion, may sentence any vagrant, lewd, idle or disor- derly persons, stubborn servants, common drunk- ards, common night-walkers, pifferers, or any other persons wanton or licentious in speech, indecent behavior, common raiders or brawlers, such as neg- lect their calling or employment, misspend what. they earn, and do not provide for themselves or their families, to be whipped not exceeding ten stripes, or to be delivered over to the Constable, to be employed in labor, not exceding three months, by such Con- stable to be hired out for the best wages that can be procured, the proceeds of which to be applied to the use of the poor of the County.

Made, adopted and published at Detroit, the 27th day of July, 1818.

LEWIS CASS,

Governor of the Territory of Michigan.

CHAPTER III.

THE DISPUTED BOUNDARY AND THE TOLEDO WAR.

THE early history of Toledo and of Lucas County is associated with the most serious question of boundary that has arisen within the Northwest. In fact, Toledo was a chief cause, as Lucas County was chiefly a result, of such dispute. The difficulty, as already intimated, arose in a disagreement as to the boundary line between the State of Ohio and the Terri- tory of Michigan, and was the result of a lack of due care on the part of those who originally undertook to fix that line. It was not, as gen- erally understood, a dispute between Ohio and Michigan, as parties thereto, for the reason that the former, a sovereign State of the Union, could not, in the nature of the case, have such dispute with the latter, a Territory, the crea- ture of Congress and wholly subject, for both its existence and its condition, to the will of that body. The issue was between Ohio and the United States, and all done in the case in the name of Michigan Territory, was unau- thorized by any existing law. It was a ques- tion of boundary between the domain of a State and that of the Federal Government. The only "War" in that connection arose in the unwarrantable attempt of the Territorial authorities of Michigan to exercise authority which belonged not to them, but to the United States.

The source and nature of that boundary question, will best be shown by a brief state- ment of the case. Under the Ordinance of 1787, the territory Northwest of the Ohio River was given a temporary Government under the name of the Territory of the North- west. It embraced what now constitutes the States of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. The "Louisiana Purchase," includ- ing territory West of the Mississippi, was made subsequent to that time. In 1796, the Northwest Territory was composed of five Counties, with names and boundaries as fol- lows: Wayne-including the settlements on the Maumee, Raisin and Detroit Rivers, with its seat of justice at Detroit; Washington- comprising all that portion of the present State of Ohio, within 40 miles of the Ohio River and between the Little Miami and Mus- kingum Rivers, with Marietta for its County- seat; Hamilton-embracing the region be- tween the Little and the Great Miami, and within 40 miles of the Ohio, with Cincinnati as the seat of justice; Knox-containing the country near to the Ohio and between the Great Miami and the Wabash Rivers, having

Vincennes as its County-seat ; and St. Clair- embracing the settlements upon the Illinois and Kaskaskia Rivers, as well as those upon the Upper Mississippi, the seat of justice being at Kaskaskia.

By the ordinance of 1787, it was provided, that when a State should be formed of the East- ern portion of the Territory, it would include the territory "lying North of line drawn East and West, through the Southern extreme of Lake Michigan," which should remain a por- tion of such State, until such territory should contain 60,000 inhabitants. In disregard of this provision, however, the enabling act of Congress (1802) providing for the organiza- tion of the State of Ohio, fixed the Northern boundary of the proposed State on the line above mentioned, whereby what is now Michi- gan was excluded from the proposed State and attached to the Territory of Indiana, with its seat of government at Vincennes, a distant and very inconvenient point. This was very unsat- isfactory to the inhabitants of that region, who protested positively against it. It was not long, however (1805), before the Territory of Michi- gan was established, with its Capital at Detroit, which at once allayed all feeling on this sub- ject. Had the terms of the ordinance of 1787 been complied with, the Michigan Penin- sula would have constituted a portion of Ohio until it should have attained the requi- site (60,000) population for a State Gov- ernment. Different reasons were given for this unexpected exclusion of Michigan from Ohio, among which were these : 1st. An apprehen- sion that the opposition of the inhabitants of that section to the proposed State Government, might prevent such movement. 2d. The fact that they were politically opposed to the exist- ing Administration (of President Jefferson), whereby it was feared that, with them included, Ohio might start off politically a "Federal"' State. Jacob Burnet, of Cincinnati, was a leading man in the Territory, and was polit- ically in sympathy with the excluded people. Sol. Sibley, of Detroit, was a member of the Territorial Legislature, and August 20, 1802, he addressed to Judge Burnet a letter, bitterly characterizing the plan referred to. Among other things, he said:

We thank our good friends, Judge Symmes and Meigs and Sir Thomas, for what is done. They fore- saw that the County of Wayne would be a dead- weight against them. Unfortunately, the people of this County are too little practiced in false politics, to

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HISTORY OF TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY.

answer their purposes. You state in your letter, that you cannot believe that the " Convention will accept the law as it now stands, with the clogs that hang about it." I differ with you in opinion. Nay, I am persuaded that were it ten times more degrading to the people of the Territory than it is, it would be speedily snatched at by a majority, which, from the ex- clusion of the County of Wayne, they are sure of. 1 will do everything within my power to stir up the citizens of Wayne County to claim their violated rights.

There were several questions growing out of, and connected with the organization of the State of Ohio, which co. operated to cause mis- understanding and unkind feelings between the people of what is now Ohio and those of Michigan. In the first place, the general sen- timent seems to have been that the movement for the formation of a State Government was premature and unwise. It was not the act of the Territorial Legislature or of the people, as in other like cases; but solely that of Congress, not only without suggestion by the local authorities, but against their known will, and upon the petition of a few individuals speaking only lor themselves. As already suggested, this state of things was then believed to be due to partisan ends sought in the formation of the State. Judge Burnet in his " Notes on the North western Territory" says that so strong was the popular feeling against Jefferson and for Mr. Adams in the bit- ter contest of 1800, that there were in Hamilton County but four persons known to him as supporting the former, to wit: Maj. David Zeigler, William Henry Harrison (afterwards President), Wm. MeMillen and John Smith. The feeling in Wayne County, now Michigan, if anything, was even more decided in the same direction.

But the most serious of the results of the separation of Wayne County from Ohio in 1802, are not found' in the partisan divisions of that day. They were developed in the ques- tion of boundary, which assumed grave magni- tude several years later. Of this, it will be fitting here to make as brief a statement as may be consistent with a proper understanding of its merits :

1. As already stated, by the ordinance of 1787, cre- ating the Territory Northwest of the Ohio, the line provided for the Northern boundary of the State to be formed of that territory (subsequently the State of Ohio), was " an East and West line, drawn through the Southerly bend or extreme of Lake Michigan."

2. By the enabling act of Congress, under which the State of Ohio was organized in 1802, the Northern boundary of the same was stated as "an East and West line drawn through the Southerly extreme of Lake Michigan."

3. The State Constitution, formed under said au- thority, declared the Northern boundary of the State to be "an East and West line, drawn through the Southerly extreme of Lake Michigan, running East," "until it shall intersect Lake Erie, or the Territo- rial line ;

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History of the city of Toledo and Lucas County, Ohio, Part 52

Author: Waggoner, Clark, 1820-1903 Publication date: 1888 Publisher: New York and Toledo : Munsell & Company Number of Pages: 1408

Author: Waggoner, Clark, 1820-1903
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: New York and Toledo : Munsell & Company
Number of Pages: 1408