History of the city of Toledo and Lucas County, Ohio, Part 53

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

USA > Ohio > Lucas County > Toledo > History of the city of Toledo and Lucas County, Ohio > Part 53

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" Provided, That if the Southerly kend or extreme of Lake Michigan should extend so far South, that

a line drawn due East from it would not intersect Lake Erie, or if it should intersect Lake Erie East of the mouth of the Miami of the Lake (the Maumee River), then, and in that case, with the assent of Congress, the Northern boundary of this State shall be established by, and extending to, a direct line run- ning from the Southern extremity of Lake Michigan to the most Northerly Cape of the Miami ( Maumee) Bay, after intersecting the due North line from the mouth of the Great Miami River."

As will be seen, the question of boundary thus presented, rested on what should prove to be the Eastern termination of a line drawn due East from the extreme of' Lake Michigan, the uncertainty as to which seems to have been recognized by the Ohio Convention and care- fully provided against, in fixing the Northern line of the proposed State. In his "Notes," Judge Jacob Burnet, a prominent and active member of that Convention, and subsequently a United States Senator from Ohio, says it was generally known to those who had consulted the maps of the Western country extant at the time the ordinance of 1787 was passed, that Lake Michigan was represented thereon as far North of the position which it has since been ascertained to occupy. On a map in the State Department, which was the guide of the Committee of Congress who framed the ordinance of 1787, the Southern extreme of that Lake was laid down as near the 42d degree of North latitude; and there was a pencil line passing through the Southern bend of the Lake to the Canada line, which intersected the Strait between the River Raisin (Monroe) and De- troit. Judge Burnet says " that line was mani- festly intended by the Committee and by Con- gress, to be the Northern boundary of this State; and on the principles on which Courts of Chancery construe contracts, accompanied by plats, that map and the line marked on it should have been taken as conclusive evidence of the boundary, without reference to the ac- tual position of the Southern extreme of the Lake." During the session of the Ohio Con- vention, says the same authority, it was the common understanding that the maps in use were not correct, and that the line should ter- minate at some point on the Strait, far above Maumee Bay. But while the matter was un- der discussion, a man who had hunted many years on Lake Michigan, and thus was well acquainted with its position, happened to be at Chillicothe, and in conversation mentioned that the Lake extended further South than was generally supposed; and that a map he had seen placed its Sonthern bend many miles North of its true position. The effect of such statement was serious apprehension on the sub- ject, and led to the change of line from that named in the enabling act to the one set forth in the State Constitution.

It is said, that this change at the time was regarded as so serious a matter, that some members of the Convention hesitated to adopt

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it, lest it be rejected by Congress and the ad- mission of the State into the Union thereby be postponed. But it was finally adopted and subsequently approved by Congress, in the acceptance of the State with its boundary so fixed. Major B. F. Stickney says the man who gave the information at Chillicothe in regard to Lake Michigan's real position, was named Wells, and that he had been long a prisoner with the Indians in that region, and had thus become familiar with the facts.

For several years and until about 1812, but little seems to have been done or said about this matter. At that time, Amos Spafford, the Collector of Customs for the Miami District, on behalf of some fifty resident families, sent the following letter to the Governor of Ohio :

MIAMI RAPIDS, January 23, 1812. SIR: It appears to be the general wish of the people in this settlement (which consists of about 50 fami- lies), to have the laws of the State of Ohio extended over them, as we consider ourselves clearly within the limits of said State. The few who object, are those who hold offices under the Governor of Michi- gan, and are determined to enforce their laws. This is considered by a great majority of the inhabitants as usurpation of power which they are under no obli- gation to adhere to. If no adjustment should take place, I fear the contention will ere long become serious. Sir, will you have the goodness to inform the people here, whether there has been any under- standing between the State of Ohio and the Governor of Michigan on the subject of jurisdiction, together with your advice.

I am, sir, with high esteem, Your obedient servant, AMOS SPAFFORD, Collector of Port Miami.

The declaration of War with England, which followed in June of that year, postponed action in this matter, beyond the passage of a reso- lution by Congress, directing a survey of the boundary line to be made. No steps to that end were taken until 1816-17, when Governor Cass, in behalf of Michigan, took measures to secure a survey. The consent of the Indians, who yet held most of the country through which the line would pass, was obtained by Major B. F. Stickney, by request of Governor Cass, when the General Land Office directed a Surveyor ( William Harris) to run the line, When this was accomplished, it was discovered by Governor Cass that the Land Oflice had fur- nished the Surveyor with a copy of the Con- stitution of Ohio, instead of the ordinance of 1787 or the enabling aet of 1802, for his guide. To this Governor Cass made vigorous protest and complaint, when President Monroe directed a second line to be run due East from the Southern extreme of Lake Michigan. John A. Fulton was the Surveyor in this case. Hence, we have the " Harris line," as claimed by Ohio ; and the " Fulton line," as claimed on the part of Michigan.

While the important question raised by these two lines was at the time recognized in Con-

gress, as well as in Ohio and in Michigan, no steps were taken toward settling it for many years thereafter. Meantime, the disputed fer- ritory continued largely under the jurisdiction of Michigan. Now and then the matter would come up, as in 1821, when the Assessor of Waynesfield Township, Wood County, Ohio, undertook to list for taxation the property of settlers between the Harris and Fulton lines. The fact was, that the few settlers had enough to do, without studying political questions. They found forests to be felled, soit to be sub- dued, educational and religious advantages to be provided-in a word, the foundation of civ- ilized society and the means of living, to be secured ; and hence, had little time to examine or discuss a disputed boundary. That question would full soon enough become practical with them, without their agency in inviting the issue. It was not until the Northern outlet of the Miami and Erie Canal came up for deci- sion, that the boundary question assumed an importance which could challenge the atten- tion of the residents. The connection of the two matters will be seen, from the fact, as then assumed, that the most desirable point for such terminus was at Toledo, within the dis- puted territory. The thought of Ohio con- structing so expensive a channel of trade, and then turning its traffic into a Michigan port, was not to be entertained ; while Michigan, no doubt, was not a little anxious to avait herself of whatever advantage might thus be derived from a neighbor's necessity.

Progress in the construction of the Canal was slow, the work having been suspended for several years after a large portion of the South- ern section had been made. The completion of the Ohio Canal in 1833, made the people in- terested in the Miami and Erie very impatient of delay ; and as interest increased in the work, the question of the Northern outlet assumed more urgent shape. Different plans were pro- posed for avoiding the "rugged issue " of the boundary question. Thus, the Towns at the foot of the Rapids ( Maumee City and Perrys- burg) could see no sufficient grounds for trouble in that connection, since the Canal could as well or even better be locked into the River, and transhipment to Lake craft be made there, or the Canal Boats be towed to Toledo by the River. Hence, those Towns felt no solicitude on account of the boundary question, but on the contrary, quite the reverse.

Then, again, the " Sandusky Bay Navigation Company " proposed to aid in the peaceful dis- posal of the Canal traffic. That corporation was chartered by the Ohio Legislature during the winter of 1834-5, at the time when the outlet of the Canal was a pressing matter. The corporators were John G. Camp, Isaac Mills, Oran Follett* and William Neill, of Sandusky,

* Mr. Follett is yet (1887) a resident of Sandusky.

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HISTORY OF TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY.

who had then recently purchased a large por tion of the plat of that City. The purpose of the Navigation Company was, so far as pos- sible, to make Sandusky the real terminus of the Miami and Erie and the Wabash and Erie Canals. This was to be accomplished through a connection of the Maumee and Sandusky Bays, by means of a Canal across the Penin- sula-Mud Creek and Portage River being used for a portion of the way. The entire dis- tance between the Bays is about two miles. It was believed by the projectors of this enterprise, that thereby Sandusky might receive as much benefit from the Canals named, as would the points of termini on the Maumee River ; while the Lake voyage to and from the East would be shortened by seventy miles. No record is found of any steps taken toward the construc- tion of the " Sandusky and Maumee Canal."

Referring to this feature of the controversy, Mr. Andrew Palmer, among the most promi- nent and influential of citizens of Toledo in support of Ohio's claim, says it should be noted that this was before the utility of Railroads had measurably superseded Canals; and that there was among the earlier settlers of Toledo a strong conviction, that their success in build- ing up a Town depended largely upon secur- ing the terminus of the Wabash and Erie Canal -a work in which Indiana and Ohio were then about to embark. Coupled with this convic- tion, was the belief that there was a strong in- fluence being exerted at Detroit and Monroe, to thwart them in their efforts to build up a Town at Toledo ; that such was the chief motive for the adverse action of Michigan to the claim of Ohio to the disputed territory, including the commercial harbor at the month of the Maumee ; and that such influence was sufficient to con- trol the authorities of Michigan. Such feeling on the part of Detroit and Monroe, it was be- lieved, had its source in the apprehension that should a commercial Town grow up at Toledo, it would seriously cripple the trade of those points, by taking from them the interior trade on which their growth so largely depended. On the other hand, Mr. Palmer says that the consideration which induced these Michigan rivals to desire to get Toledo from Ohio, operated with even greater force upon the people of Toledo to see their young Town per- manently fixed in Ohio. In this way he would explain much of the excessive zeal manifested by them in support of Ohio's claims.

The discussion of ways and means of outlet, without necessity for disturbing the boundary question, only intensified the anxiety of most of the Toledo people for prompt and vigorous steps for their own permanent location in Ohio. Without that, as they assumed, there could be no Canal for them.

Among the active men of Toledo at that time, was Dr. Jacob Clark, who came early in 1834, and at once engaged in merchandising in what

was known as " Lower Town" or Vistula. The Canal location was then pressing itself most urgently upon the residents, while the boundary question, as an element in the case, was no less absorbing. The State authorities, while anxious to proceed with the Canal, and fully satisfied that Toledo was the proper point for its outlet, were at the same time reluctant to foree an issue, the result of which might be unsatisfactory. They were in just the state to need prodding. Dr. Clark tells how that timely service was performed. He states, that in the Spring of 1834, three young men came to Toledo-J. Baron Davis and J. W. Fellows, from Troy, New York; and James Irvine Browne, from Easton, Pennsylvania. The latter, as the agent of the proprietors, started the To- ledo Herald, in the Summer of 1834, that being the first paper published in Toledo, and the second in Northwestern Ohio. These three young men, with Dr. Clark, constructed a shanty, in which they lived, keeping " Bach - elor's Hall." The building stood near the cor- ner of Summit and Locust Streets. Here they spent a portion of the season of 1834. The Canal had then been located as far North as Maumee, where it was to be " locked into the River," and the question was whether it should be continued further North. The Engineer in charge of the work, had given as his opinion that the River between that point and Toledo was not navigable for the class of vessels which the trade would demand. Dr. Clark says the Canal location and the boundary question con- stituted the one absorbing theme of discussion with himself and his associates of the shanty, as with all other residents of Toledo. Under such state of things, Mr. Davis obtained copies of the surveys of the Harris and Fulton lines of boundary.

The Doctor says the two surveys were read and compared, when he remarked that Michigan had the best right-that the Fulton line, running South of the City, seemed to be the proper one. But Davis and the other men contended that the other survey was the correct one. Davis remarked, " Well, it doesn't matter ; we elaim that the Northerly line is the boun- dary between Ohio and the Territory of Michigan. It has been in Congress for a number of years, and they have done nothing with it, and they never will until there is a fuss ; and the only thing that we can do to settle the question, is for us of Port Lawrence and Vistula to declare ourselves under the authority of Ohio, elect our judicial officers, which will arouse Michigan, and there will be war, and we'll get up a stir and interest sufficient to have Congress settte .the boundary question. Ohio has thirteen members of Congress ; Michigan is a Territory with little repre- sentation, and as Congress is strongly Democratic, we ean make it a political question, and shove the thing right through." Davis said this more in the way of a joke than otherwise ; but the joke was talked over, until in a few days the discussion became quite a se- rious matter. A little reflection, however, showed them that the independent action thus proposed for a mere handful of residents, without power or in- fluence, might prove too much for them. The result of their deliberations was, that they would communi-

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eate with Governor Lucas on the subject, and ask him to extend the State's jurisdiction over the dis- puted territory, by appointing local officers. To this the Governor replied, that he possessed no authority for such action, but he would at its next session call the attention of the Legislature to the matter, which body he had no doubt would take proper action in the premises. This postponed att steps in the case until the next winter, and deferred the earnest hope of the Toledo people for the same time.

A public meeting was hekl at Toledo in No- vember, 1834, to consider the matter of the boundary question, and more specially to in- duce such action on the part of Ohio as should assert and maintain her proper jurisdiction over the disputed territory. The prevailing sentiment on that occasion was in that diree- tion, but it was not unamimons. Michigan was not without its supporters there. Among these was Captain Samuel Allen, who gave reasons why he favored the claim of Michigan. He said the geographical position of Toledo iden- tified it in interest with and made it prop- erly a part of Michigan. The Black Swamp, lying at the East and South, practically cut off Toledo from Ohio, with which for many years there could be but little communica- tion. On the other hand, the Town lay im- mediately on the border of the most im- proved portion of Michigan, with which it was already in direct communication by water, by Railroad and otherwise. In Michigan, Toledo would become " the pet " of the Ter- ritory, and of the State soon to be formed. To such strong points was opposed the single consideration of the Canals then in contempla- tion, which, as claimed, would come to Toledo if Toledo should be in Ohio, but not, if in Mich- igan. The thought of permitting the advan- tages to arise from those improvements to inure to Toledo's rivals-Maumee and Perrys- burg-fully overcame Captain Allen's argu- ments, and controlled the sense of the meeting and its action in support of Ohio's claim.

In accordance with his promise, Governor Lucas called the attention of the Legislature to the importance of prompt measures for as- suming jurisdiction over the territory in ques- tion, and with such effect, that on the 23d of February, 1835, that body passed a law, assert- ing the claim of Ohio to all territory South of the Harris line, and a purpose to enforce such claim. It was further provided, "that such part of the territory declared as being attached to the County of Wood, shall be erected into Townships, as follows: Such parts of ranges five and six as lie between the line run due East from the Southern extremity of Lake Michigan and the line run from said Southern extremity to the most Northerly Cape of the Maumee Bay, be and the same is hereby erected into a separate and distinct Township, by the name of Sylvania; and that all such parts of ranges seven and eight, together with the ter- ritory East of the Maumee River as lies between

the line run from the Southerly extremity of Lake Michigan to the most Northerly Cape of the Maumee Bay, and between Lake Erie and the line run East from the Southern extremity of Lake Michigan to Lake Erie, be and the same is hereby erected into a separate and dis- tinet Township by the name of Port Lawrence." It was further provided, that elections be bekl in these Townships on the first Monday of April, following, and the organization of the same be perfected. The same act provided for the appointment of three Commissioners, to run and re-mark the Harris line. Uri Seely, of Gean- ga County ; Jonathan Taylor, of Licking, and John Patterson, of Adams, were appointed for such service, which was to begin April 1, 1835.

These proceedings on the part of the Ohio authorities, of course, did not fail to attract the attention of those of Michigan. The Secretary and Acting Governor of that Territory (Stevens T. Mason) promptly sent to the Legislative Council a special message, apprising that body of what was going on in Ohio, and advising action for defending what was assumed to be Michigan's claim in the case. The Council re- sponded ou the 12th of February, in the enact- ment of a law, providing, " that if any person shall exercise or attempt to exercise any official functions, or shall officiate in any office or situ- ation within any part of the present jurisdic- tion of this Territory, or within the limits of any of the Counties therein, as at this time or- ganized, by virtue of any commission or anthor- ity not derived from the Territory or under the Government of the United States, every such person so offending, shall, for every such offense, on conviction thereof before any Court of Record, be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment at hard labor not exceeding tive years, or both, at the discretion of the Court." Like penalty was provided for any person who should " accept. of any office or trust from any State or author- ity other than the Government of the United States or the Territory of Michigan." An elec- tion of officers for Port Lawrence Township, under authority of Ohio, was held in April, 1835, but the persons then elected did not art as such, for the reason that it would provoke extreme measures on the part of Michigan. The consequence was, that no taxes were levied for that year (1835) within the disputed territory.

This state of things made it important for the residents of the disputed territory to iden- tify themselves with one or the other of the claimants to their allegiance. They were not entirely unanimous on that point, as shown by a letter to Governor Mason from several resi- dents of Toledo. It was as follows :

MONROE, March 12, 1835. To Hon. Sterens T. Mason,

Acting Governor of Michigan Territory :

We, the citizens of the Township of Port Lawrence, County of Monroe, Territory of Michigan, conceive

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ourselves (by force of circumstances) in duty bound to apply for a special act of the Legislative Council, authorizing the removal of the place appointed for holding our Township meetings (elections). By a vote of the last Town meeting (1834) our meeting of this year must be held at Toledo, on the Maumee River. We apprehend trouble, and perhaps a riot may be the consequence of thus holding the meeting in the heart of the very hot-bed of disaffection.

We therefore pray your Excellency and the Legis- lative Council to aid us in our endeavors to keep the peace and sustain our claims to the soil as part of the Territory of Michigan, by an act removing the place for the Town meeting from Toledo to the School- house on Ten-Mile Creek Prairie, to be held on the - day of April, in preference to the usual day and place appointed.

J. V. D. SUTPHEN, COLEMAN 1. KEELER, CYRUS FISHER, SAMUEL HEMMENWAY.

Delegates from Port Lawrence to the Connty Conven- tion at Monroe.

On the 9th of March, 1835, Governor Mason addressed General Joseph W. Brown, in com- mand of the Third Division of the Michigan Militia, a letter, in which he said :

You will perceive that a collision between Ohio and Michigan is now inevitable, and you will therefore be prepared to meet the crisis. The Governor of Ohio has issued a proclamation, but I have neither received it, nor have I been able to learn its tendency. You will use every exertion to obtain the earliest informa- tion of the military movements of our adversary, as I shall assume the responsibility of sending you such arms, &e., as may be necessary for your successful operation, without waiting for an order from the Secretary of War, so soon as Ohio is properly in the field. Till then, I am compelled to await the direc- tion of the War Department.

In accordance with these instructions, Gen- eral Brown issned a letter to the Militia of Michigan, stating that-

The crisis anticipated by their Commander-in- Chief had arrived; that it had become our duty to sustain the executive and the civil authorities on our Southern border, and to protect our soil and laws from the encroachment of a powerful neighboring State, manifestly resolved to violate both. Your ser- vices will soon be required in the field. The under- signed is commanded to say, that if there is an officer in the Michigan Militia, who hesitates to stake life, fortune and honor in the struggle now before us, he is required promptly to tender his resignation, in order that his place may be more efficiently filled. The Division Quartermaster of the Third Division (Major I'llman ) will forthwith inspect the arms, ammunition and military stores at Tecumseh, Mottville and Niles, and report to the General commanding the Division the amount and condition thereof. He will also cause the whole to be transported immediately from the latter named depots to headquarters at the Village of Monroe. Henry Smith, Esq., is appointed Division Inspector ; Daniel S. Bacon, Esq., Division Paymas- ter; and Charles Noble, Esq., Aide-de-Camp to the General of the Division.

General Brown's address closed with this stirring appeal :

Fellow-citizens! A canse which has the sanction of the highest authority in our Nation, as well as the laws of our Territory, must be sustained by us, and

will meet the approbation of all in our common country, who respect our institutions and who are capable of appreciating the just claims of the weaker and injured party, when they are sought to be borne down and trampled upon by mere physical force. We cannot submit to invasion of our soil. We are deter- mined to repel with force whatever strength the State of Ohio may attempt to bring into our Territory to sustain her usurpation, and let the consequences which may follow, rest on the guilty heads of those who attempt to deprive us by force of our rightful jurisdiction.

March 31st, Governor Lucas, accompanied by his Military Staff and the Ohio Boundary Commissioners, reached Perrysburg, on their way to re-mark the Harris line as directed by the Legislature. The Governor had made pro- vision for military support in such movement, and General John Bell, of Lower Sandusky (now Fremont), then commanding the Seven- teenth Division of Ohio Militia, soon arrived and mustered into service a volunteer force of some 600 men, who went into camp al old Fort Miami, on the West side of the Maumee River, and below Maumee City. The force consisted of five Companies of the First Regiment, Second Brigade, Seventeenth Division, under command of Colonel Matthias Vanfleet. These were com- manded by Captain J. Austin Scott, of the Perrysburg Company ; Captain Stephen S. Gilbert, of the Maumee Company; Captain John Pettinger, of the Waterville Company ; Caplain Felton, of the Gilead Company ; and Captain Granville Jones, of the Lucas Guards, a Toledo Independent Company. These num- bered about 300 men. With them was part of a Regiment from Sandusky County, command- ed by Colonel Lewis Jennings ; and a fractional Regiment, from Seneca and Hancock Counties, commanded by Colonel Henry C. Brish, of Tiffin.

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History of the city of Toledo and Lucas County, Ohio, Part 53

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