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 41
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Before the coming of John Garrett the only thoroughfare here was an Indian trail running from a camp ground near Mahoning Corners in Windham, to Hiram Rapids where there was another village, occupied by Indians of the Wyandotte tribes.
In the summer of 1805, Judge Atwater of Mantua cut a road from his home to Garrett's Mill. This loca- tion was near the north line of Free- dom and traces of it still remain. The road from Warren to Cleveland was
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surveyed in 1806 and improved some time after that. It took in what is now Windham, Main and State streets (Rt. 82). It was a direct route from Pitts- burgh to Cleveland and old "stage
houses" may still be seen along the route.
In 1808 there were 42 voters in the area comprising Mantua, Hiram, Nel- son, Windham and Shalersville, and
Landing The Job
The old letter pictured here is notable for two things. It was written to James A. Garfield by a Garrettsville man regarding a position at the Hiram Eclectic Institute where Garfield was principal. It also reveals the ornate style of penmanship used then, even in business correspondence. The hand writing was known as the Spencerian system and Jas. O. Norton, the writer of the letter, had been a personal student of Platt R. Spencer, who had been a pen- manship teacher at Hiram. Garfield himself had taught penmanship and it may have been that Norton put on a few extra flourishes in order to im- press Garfield with his talent. If so, it worked, for Norton got the job. The notation on the envelope, "Ans. - Yes" means that Norton was to be hired, as he later was. The letter in full, follows:
"Hiram, Aug. 11, 1858. Friend Garfield ;-
Perhaps you would think it too far in the future to make me any prom- ise for the next Spring Term of your school, but had I a promise, I might so arrange my affairs to be there, for really it would give me great pleasure to give a course of instruction in acctg. in the Eclectic."
Respect'y Yours, James O. Norton"
On envelope ;-
James A. Garfield, Hiram, Ohio
Prin. The Eclectic Institute Ans. Yes.
Norton later was well known throughout the county. At one time he was county recorder. He was a teacher, at one time principal of Gar- rettsville schools. In his early days when he was unable to find a job, he organized a bank in Garrettsville, a feat easily possible then, though not now. As cashier, he soon quit because the job worried him too much, though later he regretted this move.
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of these Garrettsville probably had three. One of these was Deacon John Rudolph, who arrived from Maryland in 1806 with a large family. One son, Zeb, later became the father of Lu- cretia Rudolph, future wife of Presi- dent Garfield.
HAD THEIR FUN
By 1835 there seems to have been real activity in the vicinity. A letter written by Mrs. E. B. Lee in that year reads as follows: "On July 16, a large caravan of animals, drawn by 80 white horses, exhibited at this place. Twen- ty-seven hundred tickets sold, besides several hundred paid admissions at the door." A great Fourth of July celebra- tion was also held in that year.
Because of the intolerable condition of streets and walks in stormy weath- er, a petition to incorporate the village was drawn up in 1863 and granted the next year. Ten years later (1874), it was set off as a township also, the village and township having concurr- ent powers. This was later changed, village rights only being retained. It might be of interest to note that there is no other place in the U.S. by the name of Garrettsville. A letter ad- dressed to Garrettsville, U.S.A. will eventually reach its destination. (This writer tried it. A letter from Venezue- la eventually came through.)
The first school in the village was probably located at the corner of North and Maple Ave. It was a log structure, date unknown. Another school was on Center St. opposite Park Cemetery and was in Nelson town- ship. There was one at the intersec- tion of South and Freedom streets, which was later replaced by a larger one on South Ave. near the present Gepper property. The historic Red Schoolhouse was built in 1841 on the present school site. It contained three
rooms and was later moved across the street and became the property of the Masonic Lodge.
The History of Portage County, 1885, says;
"In 1880 an elegant brick building was erected on the same lot as the other school, its cost being $6,500. The schools now have five depart- ments, each department having a sup- ply of books, pictures, paintings and other decorations. There is an organ in every room except one. A set of philosophical apparatus was added in 1885. J. J. Jackson was then assistant in the high school, John E. Morris, principal. Average pay of teachers was $37.00 and $75.00 per month. Enroll- ment, 103 boys, 110 girls."
HAVE SELECT SCHOOL
There were several select schools here at different periods. One in the Red School House included needle work in its instruction. One was in the Disciple church, which was moved from State St. to Maple Ave. There was also a select school in a room in a building, corner North and High. The school replaced by the present building was built in 1869, costing approximately $15,000.00. The old primary building was entirely demol- ished.
The school situation has changed greatly in recent years. In 1948 the Nelson High School was consolidated with Garrettsville, the district then being Garrettsville-Nelson. In 1951 Freedom was also brought into the district which became the James A. Garfield District. In 1947, Garretts- ville Grades 1 to 12 enrolled 279 pu- pils. In 1948 the Garrettsville-Nelson enrollment was 435. By 1951, when Freedom came in, the James A. Gar- field District totalled 772 pupils, and
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by 1955 the number had increased to 1,031.
Due to this rapid growth the village voted a bond issue in 1954 for a new high school building which is now situated on Route 88, on the Ravenna road. The building was started in May, 1955, and opened for use in Sep- tember, 1956. Outstanding features of the building are the Library, a beauti- ful room with modern equipment; Music Room, including three practice rooms; Home Economics Dept .; Com- mercial Dept .; Science Dept .; Germin- ation Room and Dark Room for Pho- tography. The principal, O. E. Ott, who came to Garrettsville in 1946, has guided the system from the 279 enroll- ment to the present 1,000 and more.
The Opera House, then called the City Hall, was built in 1889 and the clock was added about 1910, made possible by donations. The building was condemned in 1955.
There have been several newspapers and periodicals published in Garretts- ville. The first, in 1856, was the West- ern Pearl, issued semi-monthly by Ly- man W. Trask. It was an eight page sheet, chiefly literary. Publication was soon discontinued. In 1862 Warren Pierce began publication of a small semi-monthly paper called the Gar- rettsville Monthly Review. It lasted about eighteen months. This was soon followed by the Garrettsville Journal, also published by Mr. Pierce. Starting in 1867 the Journal has been issued under that name ever since. W. J. Dickey is publisher.
In 1885, came the Saturday Review. Editor, O. S. Ferris. It was issued for five years. The Home Bazaar was started by the ambitious Mr. Pierce in 1869. It was a small literary magazine. After two years it was sold to Rev. W. Clouse who moved it to Cleveland.
STORE OPERATES LONG
The first dry goods store was in a log cabin structure at the corner of Main and North Ave., started in 1820 by Hazen and Garrett, brothers-in- law. The Garrett was David J. Gar- rett. After several changes of owner- ship, business ceased in 1860 when the store burned.
The Root Store, at the corner of Main and High, has been a going con- cern since 1850, a remarkable record. It has seen twelve changes of owner- ship. There was once a dry goods store where the drug store now stands, and also another at the corner of Main and High. The Crane Store, which had two owners before the Cranes bought it in 1870, was not sold until well into the 1900s. The A. & P. store now occupies the building.
There have been three hotels. The Center St. hostelry, later known as the National Hotel, presumably was built by L. W. Trask, landlord for twelve years. After eighteen changes in man- agement it burned in 1883. The Wind- ham St. Inn (Knapp House) was built in 1858 as a stage coach inn. It had six different owners during its history and operated under various names, one of which was the Cannon House. The State Street Hotel is still in limited operation.
Included in the list of factories and industries of the past are the Bates Ashery, about 1830; the Ashald furn- iture factories of the '50s and later; the Bedell Foundry, about 1830; the Collins and Chamberlain rake fac- tories of the '80s; the Foote Carriage Shop, 1885; the Garrettsville Nut & Bolt Co., 1872; the Garrettsville Table Co., 1886; the Garrettsville Foundry, 1906; the Merrill Scythe Factory and the Novelty Manufacturing Co. a- round 1900. Old papers also refer to
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the Abner Talcott Cooperage Shop and the A. Joiner & Bro. Axe and Knife Works.
GREAT SYRUP MARKET
As for industries there have been quite a variety. The first grist mill was located near the present mill site. There seems to have been only six changes of ownership from 1804 to 1956. After John Garrett's death, the mill was managed by the widow until a son-in-law, Edwin Atwood, with a partner, Lyman Ferry, became propri- etors under the title of Atwood & Ferry. Later, Mr. Ferry disposed of his interest to James Pritchard, who in turn sold to E. L. Davis and L. Ferry, Jr., the firm being Atwood, Ferry & Davis.
Later, the firm changed to Atwood & Irwin, the latter being a relative of the Garretts. About 1882 or 1883, the mill became the property of John Vanderslice, now well remembered by older residents. The property remain- ed in the Vanderslice family until the fire of 1940 and the sale to Mr. Hop- kins in 1942. The abstract is said to have been the longest ever recorded in Portage County. The picture in the Garrettsville Centennial book show- ing the residence of Eleanor Garrett is easily recognized as the site of the present Catholic church. Present own- er of the mill is R. B. Ginther. There was also a grist mill at the lower dam, opposite the basket factory. This was destroyed by fire in 1849.
A clipping from the Garrettsville Journal of 1849 carries this message: "Garrettsville is said to be the largest maple syrup market in the world. From 50,000 to 75,000 gallons are shipped from there annually."-From Mahoning Dispatch.
There was a carriage factory, or rather three of them, in operation at
different times. A distillery existed at a quite early period, below the Camp Creek bridge. This later became a tannery, and there was another tan- nery on Windham St., built by Elisha Garrett. He also built a woolen mill and dam on Camp Creek about 1830.
Windham St. also boasted a chair and table factory, and there were at least three foundries in various loca- tions. An important industry was the axe factory on the lower dam of Silver Creek. This was a thriving business.
Flax was an important crop at one time. Ebenezer Lee erected a linseed oil mill in 1840-41, where the old laundry stood. There were sawmills, of course, from the beginning. John Garrett's sawmill was near the grist mill, and Orson Collins, grandfather of R. R. Collins, built one at the up- per bridge of Silver Creek. He also made rakes. There was a pail factory where the basket factory now oper- ates. A canning factory stood on Win- dham St. for a time.
The Polson Rubber Co., established here in the early 1900s has employed over 600 workers. There is also the Nylon Products, Inc., near the Polson plant. The McWade Tire & Rubber Co. was an earlier industry. It is also of interest that Crane Candies and Life Savers are both outgrowths of the Crane Maple Syrup industry.
The Elisha Garrett house, owned by the Templin estate and until recently occupied by the late Lew Templin and wife Gertrude, was built in 1827.
BAPTISTS ARE FIRST
The village park site, across from the school, was purchased from the heirs of D. J. Beardsley about 1870. In 1875, C. W. Goodsell, then treasur- er, gave his salary for the purpose of improving the grounds and setting
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out shade trees, resulting in a fine growth there today.
The first church, of course, was the Baptist, built on the land given by John Garrett, the organization of the church coming mainly from the ef- forts of Eleanor Garrett. The organ- ization was effected in 1808 by the Rev. Thos. G. Jones of Sharon, and named Bethesda. Meetings were held over a period of several years in school houses or the homes of various mem- bers. It was not until 1832 that the building on Maple Ave. was occupied, built by Edwin Atwood and John Garrett, Jr. In 1881 this building was wrecked by an explosion, the deed being attributed to "whiskey apolo- gists." A new building was erected in 1884. It remained a Baptist church up to the time of the organization of the United Church. The building was then converted into a gymnasium. It is now gone.
The Congregational church, now the United Church, was built on land owned by Deacon John D. Hazen in 1836. In 1845 Mr. Hazen made a pro- posal to give the land to the church on condition that a spire be erected and a bell placed therein. He died be- fore the terms could be met and litiga- tion followed with a decision favoring the church. In 1886 the old edifice was sold and the present fine brick structure was erected on the site.
The first Disciples Church was or- ganized in 1835 and a frame structure was built on State St., which was later sold. It was once used as a select school. A larger building at the corner of Maple and Park Aves., now the dwelling of Mrs. F. H. Pierce, was once a Disciple Church. The baptistry location could be plainly seen before a new floor was laid. After a period of recession this building was sold. However, in 1883, the church was re-
organized and a fine brick building was erected on South Ave. At the time of the foundation of the United Church this building was sold. It is now known as the Templin Apart- ment.
The Methodist Church was organ- ized later, in 1868, and the first meet- ings were held in the old Red School house. The present brick church was built in 1874 on Park Ave. but the adjacent parsonage was not erected until 1892.
CATHOLICS ARRIVE
In more recent years we have the Catholic church, which for a num- ber of years used the old Crane house as a mission. In 1954-55 a fine brick structure was built at the corner of Franklin and Windham Sts. It is known at St. Ambrose.
As for the part played by the boys of Garrettsville in the service of their country, the record is long and credit- able. Even in the War of 1812 there were seven names-two Ellenwoods, McClintocks, Pritchards and Coles. In the Mexican War, James Cook was a participant.
In World War I several heard their country's call.
Those who gave their lives in World War I include: Troy Belknap, Dwight Knapp, Robert Rossa, Fran- cis Spencer, Alfred Thomas, Sterling Trefry and Francis Bacon (who went down on an oil tanker).
On the Honor Roll are the names of 200 boys in World War II. Five gold stars tell the story of the supreme sacrifice.
The Library is by no means a new institution. In 1885 a school library containing nearly 700 volumes, was in operation, put into existence by combining two others. This was oc- complished through the efforts of
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Nelson Community House, formerly Nel- son Academy.
Principal Peck, O. S. Ferris and A. J. Smith. One of the organizations in- volved was the Philogician Society, which seems to have been a sort of debating and dramatic society. Nu- merous volumes of historic interest were in this library.
The present library was organized in 1924. The Alumni Assn. donated $500.00, which was matched by J. J. Jackson. A Mrs. Pardee gave $500.00 and Prof. and Mrs. Colton of Hiram donated $500.00 worth of books in memory of their daughter, Mamie Col- ton Vincent. Later, Mrs. Colton left $1,000.00 more and there were smaller gifts. But the largest amount was an endowment left by the late R. J. Webb. A plaque in the library honors his memory. There are now over 5,000 books on the shelves, an important contribution to the scholarship and standing of the Jas. A. Garfield school district. Books for elementary child- ren will be kept down town.
HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS
Telephone service came in 1886 when Frank Hopkins started a plant.
In 1903 it was sold to the Portage County Telephone Co.
For many years Garrettsville had an agricultural fair. Grounds were lo- cated on Ravenna Rd. It started in 1859 and lasted until 1890, going un- der the name of the Highland Agri- cultural Association. Horace Greely, as candidate for president, once ad- dressed the crowd at this fair in 1872.
Business was given a boost in 1855 when the railroad came. It was first known as the Cleveland & Mahoning Valley (now the Erie). In 1901 the Eastern Ohio electric line reached Gar- retsville by way of Chagrin Falls. It lasted until about 1920.
Electric light and power service was furnished in 1887 by Wallace Udall, who sold out to Payne & Bruce in 1903, with later changes.
Leading fraternal organizations have their locals here. Among these are F.&A.M., 1854; R.A.M., 1879; Eastern Star, 1890; Maccabees, 1900; F.O.E., 1947; L.O.O.F., 1870; Rebekahs, 1888; W.B.A., 1918; Royal Arcanum, 1897; Foresters, 1890.
The Garrettsville Grange was formed in 1906; the American Legion Post in 1929; and the Girl Scout Troop in 1942.
A Rotary Club became active in 1926 and the Kiwanis Club came in 1946. Both are quite active in village life today.
Women's clubs are in number here today. These include the Garden Club, organized 1934 by Mrs. Paul Nichols, Mrs. Clarinda French and Mrs. For- rest Ganong; Twentieth Century Wo- men's Club, 1901; Current Events Club, 1924 (sponsor of the P.T.A.); Junior Women's Club, 1947; Ladies Cemetery Assn., 1897; Garrettsville Study Club.
The Garrettsville Volunteer Fire
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Department dates back to 1864, when the first bucket brigade was formed and they depended on the river for water supply. The first fire engine was bought in 1884.
Garrettsville physicians of the past have included Drs. Trask, Jr., Crane, Ayers, Heath, Burritt, Denison, Nel- son, Knowlton, Sherman, Lee, O. Man- ley, Bennett, Davison, Warren, S. G. Warren, Tidball, Murdock, Jackson, Johnson, Miller, Higley, Snow, Friend, and others.
Lawyers have included Messrs. Spalding, Tilden, Paine, E. B. Taylor, Ranney, Tyler, Mckinney, Ferry, Fris- by, Norton, Taylor, Ferris, Phelps, Maxson, Thayer, R. S. Webb, B. M. Derthick, R. J. Webb, Howard Knapp and others. Several of these became county prosecutors and judges. Tilden and E. B. Taylor went to congress.
FIRST STREET PAVING
The paving on Main St. was laid in 1886 and it was the first in Port- age County. At that time the mer- chants were required to keep the pave- ment clean in front of their own places of business, and this was before the day of the automobile.
The Garrettsville waterworks sys- tem was installed in 1906 and the first tap was made Dec. 7, 1907. The pres- ent water works engineer is Joe An- gel. He has been engineer for 17 years but has worked in the system since its start.
School principals since 1869 have been William Murdock; R. S. Kuhn, 1870; James Norton, 1872; C. W. Car- roll, 1874; H. L. Peck, 1876; John E. Morris, 1882; J. J. Jackson, 1886; C. T. Northrup, 1891; E. F. Robison, 1902; E. D. Williamson, 1908; A. W. Walter, 1912; F. D. Hart, 1914; J. V. McDowell, 1915; R. R. Peck, 1929; J. O. Fox, 1929; Jas. O. Lemon, 1944;
Orson E. Ott, 1945 to date.
In the James A. Garfield School District today, Orson E. Ott is super- vising principal and Robert Rynear- son is clerk. The school board is com- posed of R. B. Newcomb, pres .; Glenn Reynolds, Mary Vine, Wm. Dodge, Jr., and Edwin Meloy.
The present postmaster is Everett Vine. Postmasters from 1834 have been Eleanor Garrett, Nathaniel T. Frisby, Hiram G. Wilson, 1838; Sam- uel H. Peffers; William Boyd, 1846; Robert E. Lee, 1852; William Wright, 1861; Warren Pierce, 1863; Solon J. Buttles, 1880; Edmund Knapp, 1886; George D. Smith, Fred L. Tidball, Casius M. Crane, Edward L. Davis, George Higbee, L. L. Waller, F. D. Hart, C. O. Judd, C. M. Ott, C. M. Meloy, F. A. Loomis and Mr. Vine.
Garrettsville village officers today are Martin Eisenmann, mayor; Robert Rinearson, clerk; H. H. Knapp, so- licitor; Roy Garrett, police chief; An- dy Wilson, night police. On the vil- lage council are P. C. Clapp, pres .; E. W. Cantell, Wayne Bishop, Wayne Craver, Ed. Benes and Arthur Whit- ney. Harold Lawless is fire chief.
A crime of interest at the time stir- red Garrettsville in March, 1902, when Chauncey Hickox was shot and killed in his sugar house south of town. Wes- ley Bancroft, 69, was charged with the murder which was the result of trouble between the two. Bancroft was convicted but later released.
TRAIN HOLD-UP
Garrettsville was the scene of an- other crime of more than ordinary interest on Nov. 12, 1935. At this time an east bound Erie train, waiting at the station, was held up by an or- ganized, armed gang of robbers and the sum of $46,000 in cash taken from the express manager. The robbers had
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waited at the station until the train came in and forced all spectators to lie on the ground, at gun point. Shots were fired but no one was injured. After the robbery members of the gang made their getaway in a nearby parked car.
Federal agents took up the hunt and later arrested and convicted all four participants. These belonged to the so-called Karpis gang of organized robbers. It included at that time Alvin Karpis, John Brock, Campbell "Soup" Groves and Fred Hunter. Karpis was widely known and was much sought by law men. Karpis and Campbell were convicted and sent to the Alca-
traz prison, where Karpis attempted to escape. Later he was killed. Hunter was sent to Leavenworth for a long time and Brock received a lighter sen- tence because he had turned state's evidence. An important witness in the conviction of the man was Mrs. W. L. Scott of Garrettsville, who had been waiting at the station and had seen all of the action.
The Garrettsville area was stirred by an oil "boom" in 1907. Several wells were sunk and a good quality of "Mecca" oil was found. When the wells failed to deliver in paying quan- tity the excitement died down and the wells closed.
They Were Individuals
Among the Welsh, many people bear identical names, though unrelated. To distinguish them, their neighbors would give each man a nickname. In Palmyra, John Davis, an early settler, was known as "Lame John." Some names were not complimentary. There was a "Flat Nose" Jones. Others were "Butcher" Lewis, "John the Barber", "Blind John", "John Lewis West", "Jack the Hostler", "Co- shocton" Davis, and others. John Wil- liams was "Shoemaker Williams" and his son John was "Fiddler Williams". Often the men would be better known by their nicknames than their real ones.
Moses Pond brought the first sheep into Portage county. This was in Man- tua in 1802. He is also credited by some with bringing the first apple seeds.
In 1921 four men were convicted in federal courts of stealing $60,000.00 worth of woolen cloth (a carload) ship- ped from the Ravenna Cleveland Worst- ed Mills to New York. The car contain- ing the cloth was falsely re-routed by a conductor and the car looted on its arrival in Jersey City.
Sins and Scums
As a young boy, James A. Garfield sometimes witnessed baptisms by immer- sion in outdoor pools, where available. In warm weather, sometimes these pools were later covered with a form of vege- table life resembling scum. Writing later, Garfield said that for several years he believed that this "scum" was the sins of those who were baptized, and washed away from their bodies.
Lyman Bryant, postmaster at Freedom for forty years, believed in service. At the end of the week he took the unde- livered mail home with him and to church on Sunday and handed it out to the church goers who had mail coming to them. Nearly all families were likely to be represented at the church services. He was instigator of the expression, "postoffice in a hat." It is said he always carried his prized gold headed cane to church.
The Mantua Spiritualist Camp Meet- ing Association was organized in Man- tua in 1881. The camp meeting was held every summer in what was known as Maple Dell Park along the Cuyahoga River there.
CHAPTER XXVIII Hiram
BY C. M. YOUNG
Town 5, Range 7 received the name of Hiram almost before its his- tory began. The following account of the naming of the township is tak- en from a paper prepared by Clinton Young (1826-1909) for a Hiram Homecoming in 1908. Clinton Young was a grandson of the person who gave the name and he vouched for the correctness of the account.
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