Portage heritage; a history of Portage County, Ohio; its towns and townships and the men and women who have developed them; its life, institutions and biographies, facts and lore, Part 3

Author: Holm, James B
Publication date: 1957
Publisher: [Kent, O., Commercial Press inc.]
Number of Pages: 834

USA > Ohio > Portage County > Portage heritage; a history of Portage County, Ohio; its towns and townships and the men and women who have developed them; its life, institutions and biographies, facts and lore > Part 3

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come to kill us. In the morning he got up, built a fire and cooked his break- fast of bear's meat. He then went out and soon returned with the hindquar- ters of a fine bear, which he gave to mother, then left. She was glad to see him go as any visitor she ever had."

Capt. Mills is said to have killed Big Cayuga and Snip Nose Cayuga.

Delaun was one of three Mills brothers who were born in Massachus- setts and came to Ohio in 1800. De- laun had been married when he was only 16. The three brothers and their families arrived in Youngstown with less than 25 cents in money. Fortunate- ly, surveyors helpers were needed to lay out Nelson and they settled there. Delaun was big and strong and abso- lutely fearless. For many years he operated what was known as Mills Tavern in Nelson, a popular stopping place for travelers of the period.

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Early Pack Trains

In 1786 Col. James Hillman worked for Duncan & Wilson of Pittsburgh, transporting goods from Pittsburgh to the mouth of the Cuyahoga River on Lake Erie, for shipment to Detroit. His party made six trips a year. Says a writer;

"His party consisted of 10 men and 90 horses. They usually crossed the Big Beaver four miles below the mouth of the Shenango; thence up the left bank of the Mahoning, crossing it about three miles above the village of Youngstown; thence by way of the Salt Springs in the township of Weath- ersfield, through Milton, to Ravenna,

crossing the Cuyahoga at the mouth of the Breakneck, and again at the and thence down the river to its mouth of Tinkers Creek near Bedford; mouth, where they erected a log cabin for the safe keeping of their goods and this was the first house built in Cleve- land. At the mouth of Tinkers Creek there were a few houses built by Mora- vian missionaries. They were then va- cant, the Indians having occupied them one year only previous to their removal to the Tuscarawas River. These, and three or four cabins at the Salt Springs, were the only buildings erected by the whites between the Ohio River and Lake Erie."

The Savage Woolynig

Portage County's earliest historian, Christian Cackler, Jr., in describing the wild animals to be found when settlers first came, tells of the "woolynig" as follows; "The woolynig is an animal about a size still larger than the wildcat, not so long in the legs, but heavier and stockier built. They are of a darker color. They have large whiskers on each side of the head. They look savage and are as savage as they look. They are the hardest customers that roam the forest, according to their size. The wildcat is smaller than the woolynig. He is about as large as a small sized dog, but of longer legs in proportion to his body. He is fond of feathered flocks, such as chickens, geese, ducks, as well as pigs and lambs, and sometimes kills smallish deer, etc." It is believed that the "woolynig," described by Cack- ler, was the lynx or wolverine, both of which had reputations for fighting ferocity.

Why Breakneck?

A writer in the Ravenna Republican of April, 1907, tells how Breakneck Creek got its name. He says that in 1786 a pack train was carrying a cargo of flour from Pitts- burgh to the mouth of the Cuyahoga, fol- lowing the creek for a distance. Near the junction with the Cuyahoga, a horse stum- bled and threw his rider backwards to the ground, breaking his neck. The man's name was Hugh Blair. Afterward, the creek was referred to as Breakneck. This incident has been carried down in the traditions of the Glen Plum family, who now live near the scene.

What's For Dinner?

In their first winter in Nelson in 1800- 1801, the Mills families had turnips three times a day, together with what meat sup- plies they were able to obtain from game animals, which, of course, were plentiful. Garden crops the following year gave them more variety.

Isaac Mills, one of Nelson's first settlers, made the trip to and from Massachussetts, his earlier home, thirty-three times, either on foot or with a team of horses and loaded wagon.

CHAPTER II Land for Stout Hearted Men By J. B. HOLM

For those seriously interested in the beginnings of civilization here, several questions arise in their minds.

What was the country like when the whites came?

How many human beings were here and who were they?

Though an occasional clearing had been made by the end of the eigh- teenth century, a bird flying over our county then would see nothing but boundless forests and swamps with an occasional natural open spot, or glade. But in this forest other small open spots were beginning to appear, where first settlers were already setting up homes, usually isolated or alone. These places were in scattered or hit-and- miss localities. It was a peaceful, quiet land but one wherein there were wild animals of all sizes and dispositions, far more numerous than human be- ings. There were no roads-only trails. An ox-cart driver would find it hard to get through anywhere. Trails were for horseback riders or voyageurs go- ing from one stream to another.

Before these white men arrived a closer inspection would have revealed the presence of other human beings- the Indians mentioned in the previous chapter. Though the Indians roamed the forest they had homes in rough wigwams, or hogans. They consider- ed the land their own, together with the animal life within which the Great

Spirit had provided for their pleasure and profit.

INDIANS NOT NUMEROUS

How many Indians were still living in Portage County when the white man moved in to stay is not known. Roswell Grant, great grandfather of U. S. Grant, wrote a history in which he said there were about 400 redskins here at that time. Others placed the number at less, but there could not have been many or there would have been more trouble and fighting.

Nor was there any sudden change in racial dominance, except in the sense that scholars use in setting up dividing lines of "periods", or eras. In an inter- val of perhaps 25 years the change of mastery was complete.

The tribal organizations, the cus- toms and beliefs of the Indians have been so well described by others and are so well known that there is no point in re-telling in detail, matters of this kind.

The coming of statehood for Ohio in 1803, was a bright promise but by 1807 there had been but little change, either in population or manner of living. Civil law was slowly put into effect and an attempt made at enforce- ment. Those who had come into the state came slowly, as stragglers. Most of the newcomers were adventurers or transients. Some were hunting free land, of which there was none. There

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were fur dealers and traders. There was nothing to keep out the squatter. The shape of civilized society here emerged slowly.

History of Northeastern Ohio, which came to be known as the Con- necticut Western Reserve, is indistinct for the years preceding the formation of the state, but a few important facts stand out.

For centuries untold this had been Indian country, as related in the prev- ious chapter. While in general the Indians were always changing homes and moving about, they were practical as well. Contrary to popular belief, the red man was not given over to hunt- ing and fighting entirely. He was America's first farmer. He loved his corn, pumpkins, squash, berries and other produce. That is why the fertile river lands of the southern part of the state were more favored by Indians for homes. The Indian let his women do the garden work, but he knew enough to select the most fertile spots for it. Sections most favored by nature thus became the sites of good sized Indian towns.

REDSKINS TRAVEL THROUGH

The nature of the soil here, and its elevation furnished less attraction to the Indian as a farmer. Some of the red men did live here all the year round, while others came here to hunt and trap, but this was not predom- inately Indian home country. And be- cause of its elevation, the section was not traversed by Indian migrants as much as others. The Indian as an in- dividual was a water traveler, when he could be, and few streams traversed the entire county. Yet, many Indians did travel about through the district as the well known Great Trail shows and traces of it remain today.

Like most parts of Ohio this com- munity must have been a hunter's and fisherman's paradise for the Indians. It was "good hunting" country. The buffalo and the elk that had once roamed the country had disappeared by the time the white man arrived in any number. The Indian loved the country for it furnished him a com- fortable living in most respects and its weather was not too severe. The In- dian meant to have hunting limits for

Roadside Shade Trees

Whence came the rows of trees that formerly lined the highways of the county? There were miles upon miles of them, often on both sides of the road. Not only were they pleasing in appearance, but they were welcomed by travelers for their shade on hot days. Undoubtedly some of these trees were here originally and allowed to remain by the land owners. Others, probably most of them, were set out by the settlers themselves who appreciated them as much as later arrivals. In the summer of 1820 Judge Amzi Atwater of Mantua, and others plowed and made the road bed south of the town, lining it with trees as a protection for travelers when the river was high. These became tall stately land- marks that lasted for several generations. The increased amount of traffic from horseless carriages called for wider roads. Lightning and wind destroyed many of them. Old age made others dangerous. The rest were removed by the State Highway Department in 1935 when a cut-back of the road was made to take out some of the curves.

The "progress" in road construction is responsible for the loss of thousands of the roadside trees.

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TWINS BUR

AUROVA MANTUA

HIRAM \ \NELSON

Low HUDSON 4 BOROUGH

VILLE

POR

STOW

PARIS

FRANKLIN REVENDACHARLES

TOWN

PORTAGE TALLMAGE THORNDIKE ROOTS TOWNEDINBURGH PALMYRA

COUNT

COVENTRY

SUFFIELD RANDOLPH/ATWATER DEBAFIELD

Above is shown Portage County as originally laid out. Its two western tiers of townships were taken away in 1840 to help make up Summit County. Note that Brimfield is still called Thorndyke.

each tribe but did not always hold to his rules.

The story of the relations between the whites and Indians in Ohio is a sadly interesting one. It is a story of greed, of misunderstanding, of cruelty and plain meanness. While among themselves, before the coming of the whites, the Indian tribes did some- times war among themselves, yet they did live peaceably for long periods and enjoyed life in their own way. Christ- ian Cackler, Jr., the early historian who lived in actual contact with the Indians in early Portage County, knew them well. Quoting again from his "Recollections", we hear him say:

INDIANS LEARN EVIL WAYS

"The Indian was placed in the hap- piest condition of any race of people I ever saw. The God of Nature had pro- vided him with everything that the heart could wish for. He could get up, kill and slay the fattest of the land, and then lay down and take his ease, and no one to molest and make him afraid. I have often inquired why it is that the man of the forest is much more honest than the civilized or Christianized world. I never knew that they had any language of their own to swear or blaspheme in, at least not until the whites taught them, and when they got so they could repeat the oaths, they would tickle and laugh and thought it was very nice, or cun- ning."

SHAL BRY

FREEDOM WINDEN

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Readers of early histories are given the impression that everywhere on the Ohio frontier there was "Injun fight- ing" with the dread of losing his scalp always hanging over the white man. This was true enough in other parts of the state, but Portage County had little trouble with the Indians. When the first whites came to stay in 1798, the long journey toward the setting sun had already started for the red man. There were a few Indians left in Streetsboro, some in Palmyra and Deerfield, with others in Nelson and Windham, but they were peaceably inclined, though they were feared by some because of the past reputation of Indians in general.

The Indians fell for the white man's firewater, and that added nothing to their behavior or reputation. In Deer- field one Indian thought he had been swindled in a horse trade with a white man and a shooting occurred, but the whites quickly organized and inflicted swift retribution upon the reds, though the actual culprit escaped for a time. This incident is described else- where.

Up in Nelson the redoubtable Cap- tain DeLaun Mills occasionally had trouble with the Indians and an In- dian usually lost his life as a result. But for a decade or so the white new- comer got along in rough amity with his red brother. No pitched battles took place and no protracted warfare ensued. The Indians were soon out- numbered and they knew the fates were against them.

INDIAN LOSES OUT

As noted elsewhere, the border war- fare in Ohio was mostly in localities farther west and south. Northeastern Ohio had nothing to show like the obscene brutalities of Gnaddenhutten, the massacre at Coshocton, the butch- eries of Cresap's War or the burning at stake of Col. Crawford and others, such as the Indian Logan complained of. Sparks from the melees flew this way. In 1780 a maurading party of In- dians went into western Pennsylvania but had been chased out by the whites. A small party of whites overtook the Indians near Cuyahoga Falls. Capt. Samuel Brady was ambushed and ran for his life to escape by jumping a- cross the Cuyahoga river at Kent to set up Ohio's first athletic record and acquire fame that lasted. Men still re- late the story with interest. He gave his name to Brady Lake.

But long before the whites came to stay in the Western Reserve, the In- dian had learned a great deal about the character of the white man. First came the French explorers, then the Indians. In their child-like simplicity the Indians listened to the whites, but when they found themselves pushed around, they resented it and fought back. Ohio is known as the state where the crueliest and bloodiest Indian fighting ever known was done. The savagery of the Indian was equalled by the savagery of the white man. The Indian could not cope with the weapons and numbers of the white and lost out but the white man should

Early white traders sometimes married Indian squaws. Indians themselves were friendly to "squaw men", as they felt they could trust them more fully than other whites.

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In years gone by Portage County was one of the leaders in maple products. This is a "sugar camp", of the type once numerous before forests were destroyed.

hang his head with shame over some of his actions. Portage County escaped this bloodshed for the most part.

TREATIES NOT CLEAR

The treaties over territory made be- tween whites and Indians were not always very clear, particularly to the Indians. They usually signed after be- ing plied with food and drink, as was the custom, so that they were in a mellow mood. The Fort McIntosh treaty was repudiated by the Indians almost as soon as it was signed. They said they had no intention of giving up their land, as the paper provided. But when the Connecticut Land Co. sent Gen. Moses Cleaveland to survey the Reserve Lands, he first stopped at Buffalo to pow-wow with the Six Na- tions chiefs. He took whiskey by the

barrel and the talk lasted four days, after which he had a signed agreement with the Indians to yield all their claims in the Reserve for $500 in New York money, two beeves and 100 gal- lon of whiskey, which may have been a practical way of procedure.

Hechwelder, the missionary, liked the Cuyahoga River area and wrote about it in his annals. The name is variously pronounced Cayahaga. Coyo hoga, Kayahoge, Cajahagas and Gua- hoga. Its origin was in the Iriquois word Ka-ih-ogh-ha, meaning "crook- ed."

MISSIONARIES WERE HERE

Also, because of its elevation it is probable that not many of the early white explorers passed this way, be- cause they, too, followed the larger

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rivers, or tributaries. But after the white outposts became established, the overland trails from one post to an- other usually followed a generally di- rect route, or trail. French travelers were followed by the English. The Moravian missionaries, Hechwelder and Post, sometimes came this way with their Indian converts. As far as is known, there was no serious effort made to Christianize Indians here.

After the English and French had ended their fighting over territory, and the Revolutionary War had end- ed, the government of the new United States of America became owner, in a way, of the Ohio country. The main trouble was that several of the east- ern states also had claims of ownership of land in Ohio, because of the author- ity granted them by various kings of England. Nobody then knew much about the geography of America and kings sometimes gave away the same land to different colonies. King Charles II had given a charter to the Connecticut colony for land between certain parallels and westward to the Pacific ocean. These lines crossed other states until they came to Ohio, where they took in territory below Lake Erie and away to the west of

Pennsylvania state line, a strip from 40 to 75 miles deep.

Virginia, Pennsylvania and Massa- chussetts ceded their claims to Con- gress, and Connecticut finally did like- wise in 1795, but retained ownership of the land itself which was to be sold and the proceeds given to help out the Connecticut school system. The territory embraced in the Connecticut claim took the name of the Connecti- cut Western Reserve because that state had reserved its right to this land. Thereafter this tract was known as the Western Reserve and is still known by that name today. This Re- serve tract extended westward 120 miles from Pennsylvania. Because of conditions under which it was ceded, Connecticut was a dominating influ- ence in shaping life here.

LAND SOLD WHOLESALE

In dealing with the national gov- ernment over this territory, Connecti- cut had retained actual ownership of the land but turned over to Congress the civil and military authority. After dedicating a tract further west for "fire lands sufferers", the land remain- ing was sold to an organization known as the Connecticut Land Co. for the lump sum of $1,200,000.

What A Man - Pod Moore

Some of the boat captains of the old P.&O. Canal were what in later days would be called "colorful" characters. One such was Capt. Roland Lorenzo Oren Moore, known as "Pod Moore." Six feet, ten and a half inches tall, big in girth and strong as a bull, he could bend silver dollars with his fingers. He was a prodigious eater and drinker and his drinking bouts lasted all night. It is told that once when his boat was waiting its turn at the lower Franklin lock, some one from another waiting boat derisively yelled "Fat Belly" in his direction, he went into action and personally and single handed cleaned up on the crews of three other boats waiting lockage. It is also related that "Old Pod" was converted to religion, joined the church and became a great worker for Prohibition, especially along the canal. He was the father of 21 children.

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The land company divided this amount into 400 shares which sold at $300 each, and virtually all the in- dividual purchasers were residents of Connecticut. Since there were about 3,- 800,000 acres of land involved, it can easily be figured out that the original purchase price was a little over 40 cents per acre. Shareholders expected to re-sell their land at a good profit, which they did. Many of the original buyers also sub-divided their holdings for sale in smaller job lots before the owner-dweller finally got it.

All this land was sold to the Con- necticut Land Co. unsurveyed and sight unseen, at the price mentioned, to the following list of buyers and cost:

Joseph Howland and Daniel Coit $30,461

Elias Morgan 51,492

Caleb Atwater 22,846

Daniel Holbrook 8,750

Joseph Williams 14,231

William Love 10,231

William Judd 16,256

Elisha Hyde and Uriah Tracy 57,400

James Johnston 30,000

Samuel Mather, Jr. 18,461

Ephriam Kirby, Elijah Boardman,

U. Holmes, Jr. 60,000

Samuel Griswold 10,000

Oliver Phelps and Gideon

Granger 80,000

William Hart 30,462

Henry Champion II 85,675

Asher Miller 34,000

Robert C. Johnson 60,000

Ephriam Root 42,000

Nehemiah Hubbard, Jr. 19,039

Solomon Cowles 10,000

Oliver Phelps 168,185

Asahel Hathaway 12,000

John Caldwell 15,000

Timothy Burr 15,231

Luther Loomis and Ebenezer

King 44,318

Wm. Lyman, John Stoddard

and David King 24,730

Moses Cleaveland 32,600

Samuel P. Lord 14,092

Roger Newberry, Enoch Perkins, Jonathan Brace 38,000

Ephriam Starr 17,415

Sylvanus Griswold 1,683

Joseb Stocking, Joshua Stow 11,423

Titus Street

22,846

Jas. Bull, Aaron Olmsted,

John Wyles 30,000

Pierpont Edwards 60,000

This log cabin, once standing in Shalersville, was of the kind most common for residences during the first decades of the 19th century.

PORTAGE HERITAGE

RETAILED AT PROFIT

The land was sold mainly on easy time payments, well protected by mortgages. In the list of names one can readily recognize names of men who later became prominent in Re- serve affairs, as well as names of towns and townships.

Actually, though, it can be said that settlement here was actually the result of a great real estate development. De- sire to help people was absent for the most part. Some think the State of Connecticut was not wise in turning over this land to the speculators, who manipulated affairs for their own benefit. Land purchased was soon sold and re-sold in both wholesale and re- tail lots.

Land in each township was reserved for school purposes or for support of a "gospel minister" - nominally, at least. A great deal of the land went on sale to the public at once, but some of the job lot buyers held back their property in order to make a better profit later on. Thus Titus Street, who bought all of Streetsboro township, did not put his acres up for sale until 1822. Street never lived here but a selling price of $6.00 per acre was set and Street's agent, Lemuel Punderson, took charge. Cheaper land was to be had elsewhere and Street's land did not find ready buyers until the price was reduced to $2.00 or $3.00 per acre.

TREATIES ARE MADE

While a settlement was negotiated between Connecticut and the national

government, the Indian title also had to be considered at all times. For the lands east of the Cuyahoga River, a treaty with the Six Nations at Fort Stanwix, N. Y. in 1784, cleared up that claim here. Other treaties with the Indians at Fort McIntosh, 1785, (which the Indians repudiated); Fort Finney, 1786; Fort Harmar, 1789; and Fort Greenville, 1795; resulted in full title to the land for the national gov- ernment. A final treaty at Fort San- dusky in 1805 gave the white man full possession of the land "west of the Cuyahoga River."

The United States government had gone slowly in dealing with the In -· dians for their land. It tried to avoid infringements on Indian rights, al- though in the final analysis it was the military conquests of Gen. Anthony Wayne that rendered the Indian into an amenable state.

The famous Ordinance of 1787, af- fecting the territory north and west of the Ohio, laid the groundwork for successive forms of territorial govern- ment and settlement. Conflicting claims had been reconciled and the way was thereby cleared for the estab- lishment of a civilized state.

At first, government of the North- west Territory was in the hands of Congress. Laws were set up and a ter- ritorial governor appointed, who, with a legislature, set up other laws. But law enforcement in a wilderness was pretty much a weak gesture and actual operations of the territorial government left much to be desired.

Marks found on trees indicated that white men were in Portage County as early as 1650.

PORTAGE HERITAGE

This old inn in Mantua was once a popular stopping place for travelers in stage coach and horseback riding days. This historic build- ing still stands.

Ohioans did not get along well with Gov. St. Clair, who was inclined to be on the despotic side and settlers long- ed for the time when they could elect a man more to their liking. When the region had a population of 5,000, as provided by the Ordinance, the ter- ritorial assembly petitioned for state- hood. After investigation, this was granted in 1803, and things hoped for began to take definite shape.

Meantime, the Connecticut Land Co. had sent a surveying party into the Reserve to divide it into townships, or to set out the lines for such townships. This party was in charge of Moses Cleaveland, for whom the city of Cleveland takes its name. This was in 1796, a period of two years being spent in the work which was accom- plished under many difficulties and hardships.

IN VARIOUS COUNTIES

But before government was set up in Portage County as such, this region had been a part of Wayne County (1796); of Jefferson County (1797); and Washington County (1798). The law setting up Jefferson County des- cribed its boundaries in 1789 as "Be- ginning upon the bank of the Ohio River where the western boundary of Pennsylvania crosses it, and down said river to the southern boundary of the fourth township of the third range (of those seven ranges of townships which were surveyed in conformity with the ordinance of Congress of May 20, 1785), and with the said southern boundary, west, to the southwest corn- er of the sixth township of the fifth range, thence north along the western boundary of the said fifth range to the termination thereof; thence due

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Portage heritage; a history of Portage County, Ohio; its towns and townships and the men and women who have developed them; its life, institutions and biographies, facts and lore, Part 3

Author: Holm, James B Publication date: 1957 Publisher: [Kent, O., Commercial Press inc.] Number of Pages: 834

Author: Holm, James B
Publication date: 1957
Publisher: [Kent, O., Commercial Press inc.]
Number of Pages: 834