USA > Ohio > Fulton County > The County of Fulton: A History of Fulton County, Ohio, from the Earliest Days, with Special Chapters on Various Subjects, Including Each of the Different Townships; Also a Biographical Department. > Part 8
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The second newspaper venture was also made at Delta. At the time of the founding of the Fulton County Democrat, that place was perhaps the most important of any of the small towns of the county, and while the publication of a paper there was not particularly re- munerative to its owners, the citizens of the place were much dis- pleased at the sale and removal of the office of the Democrat to Ottokee; and although the latter was the county seat, Delta still
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held the greater population, and felt entitled to a newspaper publi- cation. This feeling led to the establishment of the Delta Independ- ent Press, under the management of Lewis W. Stum, formerly of the Democrat. Stum continued the paper for some months, when he sold his interest to Martin Butler, and the latter, after a short time, sold to William Stum and James K. Newcomer. These gen- tlemen conducted the paper for several years, when Peter James pur- chased Stum's interest. Under the ownership of Mr. Butler the in- dependent tone of the paper was changed, and it became thence- forth an advocate of democratic principles. It was issued regularly until the early sixties, when for some reason it seemed to gradually decline, and the office was finally closed. The material and stock were removed to Wauseon, and gradually developed into a publica- tion also known as the Fulton County Democrat, (not the former paper of that name), under the management and control of M. H. Butler. . William Aultman, Jr., became connected with its manage- ment about this time, and some few weeks later, soldiers, home on a furlough, not liking its tone or appearance, dumped the material into the street and the Democrat at Wauseon ceased to exist.
The second effort to establish a newspaper in Ottokee was made by T. D. Montgomery, who, during the summer of 1856, issued the Signal. It was printed on the same press and material which had been used by Mr. Montgomery in the publication of the Star of the West, a paper started in Montpelier, Williams county, in 1854. The press, type and other fixtures were brought to Ottokee from Mont- pelier by wagon, and it may be assumed that difficulties were met with in performing the journey. The Signal was published for some- thing over six months, when it was suspended, the publisher being fully satisfied in the matter of experience. Next in the order of succession, there appeared at Ottokee, under the editorship of Henry McElhiney, a paper called the Democrat. Its first issue appeared in the spring and in the fall it changed owners, H. Day assuming its control. He changed its tone from a Democratic to an inde- pendent paper and re-christened it the Fulton County Mirror. Under Mr. Day the paper was published about one year, when the plant was sold and became merged into the Wauseon Sentinel. This end- ed newspaper life in Ottokee, except for the brief existence of the Monitor, which is mentioned in a succeeding chapter.
ยท The Sentinel, the outgrowth of which is the present Northwestern Republican, was established at Wauseon during the year 1855, by H. B. Bayes and John D. Hunter. In its political tone it was Re- publican, being the first to advocate the principles of the newly- formed Republican party, in this county. It was, when started, what is known among printers as a six-column folio, in neat dress for the times, and as the organ of Republicanism in the county at once took front rank, notwithstanding the fact that it changed pilots frequently. The paper had been but a short time in operation when Bayes bought the interest of his partner, and for the next two years, or thereabouts, he was its sole proprietor and editor. He then sold
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it to A. E. Ball, but as editor and publisher the latter was not a suc- cess, and he disposed of his interests to E. W. Fuller. Mr. Fuller conducted the paper for something like a year, and then took a part- ner, John D. Devor of Elkhart, Indiana, who stayed in the office only three months, however, and then sold his interest back to Ful- ler. On January 1, 1858, the name of the paper was changed to the Northwestern Republican, and it was increased in size from a six to a seven-column folio. During the summer of 1858, Mr. Ful- ler sold a half interest in the paper to J. C. French, and this co- partnership relation was maintained for a period of about six months, when Fuller sold his interest to Isaac R. Sherwood, and the firm then became French & Sherwood, editors and publishers. Thus was the Republican managed until the summer of 1861, when Sherwood purchased French's interest and became sole editor and publisher. Isaac R. Sherwood lived in Bryan at this time, also having news- paper interests there. He soon afterwards enlisted in the Union army, as a private soldier in the first Fourteenth regiment, three month's troops; then joined the One Hundred and Eleventh regi- ment, and rose through the different grades until the insignia of a brigadier general was placed upon his uniform. He then became prominent in civil life, served two terms as Secretary of State, one term in Congress, and in other ways has been identified with public affairs. He is at present a resident of Toledo.
The United States census tells the story of the wonderful prog- ress of Fulton county, between the years 1850 and 1860, at least so far as an increase in population is indicative of such movement. In 1850, the enumeration showed 7,780 inhabitants, and in 1860, 14,043 -an increase of nearly 100 per cent. in only one decade. A large part of the population of the county is descended from German ancestors, some of whom came as political exiles resulting from the Liberal movement of 1848. This had its inception in the agitation of the question of more liberal rights for the common people and the curtailing of the power of the nobility. Many of the best German families took sides with the people, and because of their interest, and after the tumult subsided in favor of their oppressors, they were exiled from home and sought an asylum in free America. But the earliest German settlers of Fulton county came as men seeking to improve their home conditions and occupy a country with unlimited possibilities for future advancement. They were a devout, upright, class of people, who in thankfulness for their deliverance and the prospect of a happy future, sang hymns and devoutly thanked God for the existence of the New World and their safe voyage to it. To these pioneer Germans and their posterity is due a large proportion of the solid, substantial advancement of the country where their homes were made .. Their progress here, and this is characteristic of the nationality everywhere, has been wrought through incessant toil, self-denial, and careful and frugal management. There is little of the speculative in the German mind. Their preference seems to be in the pursuits of agricultural, gardening, mechanical trades, mer- ,
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chandising and manufacturing. Because of their inherent honesty, industry and frugality as a people, they soon achieve success in their various callings.
Speaking of the county in its entirety, however, it may be said that the early settlers were Americans, a large number of them coming from older portions of Ohio, while others migrated here from the more populous and less advantageous localities in states farther east. New York and Pennsylvania furnished a large num- ber of the latter class; but no matter where they came from, mutual desires and interests made them all akin, and by a silent process of "benevolent assimilation" they were converted into a Fulton county family. Among them there existed very little distinction in worldly circumstances and modes of life-the disparities in conditions that we now observe having been developed gradually with the country, and emphasized by the frowns and smiles of that giddy dame, For- tune. It was neither the indolent nor the opulent, as a general fact, who sought homes in this region, for none but industrious men of moderate means would care to endure the preliminary privations and encounter the dangers that they knew would attend them while building homes in the almost unbroken wilderness. They came to better their condition in life; to become land-owners instead of ten- ants; to rid themselves of a species of landlordism which prevailed in the Eastern .States, and to emancipate themselves from a con- dition of semi-vassalage which threatened a doom of servitude for themselves and children.
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CHAPTER V
THE COUNTY'S WAR RECORD
D URING the interim between the settlement and organiza- tion of Fulton county and the commencement of the Civil War, the martial spirit of the people was kept in forced abeyance. This was due partially to the stern realities of a pioneer life, with which they had to contend, and partially to the lack of opportunity or occasion to show their war-like tendencies. Be- fore the county was organized, in 1850, most of its territory was within the limits of Lucas, and a more or less nominal militia organi- zation was effected and carried on in that county; but the semi- annual musters were enjoyed by the crowds who attended more because of the frolic and roustering than of any improvement in military discipline. Aud thus, a system that had been so popular and efficient during the old Indian wars on the frontier, had loosened its hold on the public mind during a protracted period of profound peace. The cities and larger towns in the State were the only places where military drill was appreciated, and where strict discipline and military pride attained a proficiency nearly equal to that which pre- vailed in the regular army.
The mutterings of internal strife, which had engaged the attention of statesmen for some years prior to 1860, in that year began to take tangible shape, and the people came to realize that the settle- ment of the questions of State sovereignty and slavery extension could no longer be deferred by legislative compromises. The result of the Presidential election portended the abolition of slavery in the territories and all new States to be admitted thereafter; but in exactly what manner the decision in regard to State sovereignty should be made was a subject not agreed upon, even by national leaders at the North, where the dominant party disclosed its strength. The incoming National administration, in 1861, faced an unprecedented crisis in American history and apparently was uncertain how to pro- ceed in the midst of the alarming dilemma that confronted it. A number of the slave-holding States had passed ordinances of seces- sion, thereby exercising a right that had been generally claimed and not seriously disputed since the adoption of the Constitution, and those who desired the maintenance of the Union were vainly searching for a solution of the difficult problem. Able and patriotic statesmen, regardless of party affiliation, were giving their time and talents to the perplexing question, hoping to discover a pathway that would lead to a satisfactory adjustment of all differences-when
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all plans were disarranged by the firing on Fort Sumter, and the administration was afforded a pretext, if not a justification for waging a vigorous war of suppression. This overt act on the part of the South cleared the atmosphere for those who had advocated a policy of coercion, and to a large extent lessened the number of those who had talked of peaceable secession.
But all were not of one mind. In Fulton county, as elsewhere, there were those who denied the right and expediency of the gov- ernment's action; but they were comparatively few in number, and owing to the heated condition of the public mind they were the sub- jects of bitter denunciation, epithets and contemptuous opprobrium. However, it is not the purpose of this apparent digression to recall unpleasant memories or argue questions long since settled-we de- sire merely to describe conditions and record pertinent historical facts, before entering upon the proud record of Fulton county. during those dark days of internecine strife.
The news of the firing on Fort Sumter was followed in a few days by the President's call for seventy-five thousand troops. By the 29th of April, just seventeen days after the first shot was fired, the old Buckeye State offered seventy-one thousand soldiers, and eight days later increased her offering to eighty-one thousand. Public meetings were held all over Fulton county and, in a few days, two full companies were raised. Owing to the rapidity with which Ohio's quota was filled, but one of these companies could be accepted. It was ninety-seven strong and was commanded by Epaphras L. Bar- ber, captain : Thomas M. Ward, first lieutenant, and Rezin A. Franks, second lieutenant. The other company was ordered to Camp Her- rick, in Swanton, where, after being drilled for about one month, it was mustered out and paid off by the State. Captain Barber's com- pany enlisted in the three months' service, and served in the Four- teenth regiment.
Enlistments and company organizations followed in rapid succes- sion, and while the Wauseon company was the only completed or- ganization from the county in the first three months' service, the men who composed it were not the only troops, as some twenty or thirty boys residing in the northern part joined Michigan regiments, others went into Williams county, and still others sought military organi- zations in Henry and Lucas. It is probable that not less than sixty boys thus found means to serve their country outside the county limits. Counting these and the company in the Fourteenth, it will be seen that fully one hundred and fifty men from the county were in the first three months' service. The professions, merchants, me- chanics, farmer boys and laborers, all were imbued with the same spirit, and promptly laid aside their several vocations, and joined in the supreme effort to preserve the Union of the States. Gentlemen of the cloth laid aside their shepherd's crooks and went to the front in various capacities. During the four years of bloody warfare, Ohio met every call for troops in advance of the time limit, and Fulton county was always among the first to respond with her quota.
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And while the "boys" were at the front, the citizens at home were rot idle, and the devoted mothers, wives, sisters and sweethearts, imbued with the same spirit which had taken their loved ones from them, assisted in organizing relief associations. There was much outward show of sympathy and interest during the first few months, but by the following year, after the disasters of the Peninsula cam- paign, matters settled down to a war basis, and sentiment was ban- ished in the interest of helpful needs. Public and private donations to the Federal cause were kept up until the final capitulation at Ap- pomattox.
It would be impossible to trace the record of Fulton county's val- iant soldiers through the ranging fortunes of four years of bloody war; neither would space permit, should such be possible. Without disparagement to the heroic services of any, it shall be the purpose of this article to mention the organizations, which, as a whole, are more closely connected with Fulton county than other military organizations. Reference is here made to the Fourteenth, Thirty- eighth, Forty-seventh, Sixty-seventh. Sixty-eighth, Eighty-fifth, Eighty-sixth, One Hundredth, One Hundred and Eleventh, One Hundred and Thirtieth, and One Hundred and Eighty-second regi- ments of Ohio Infantry. the Forty-fourth Illinois Infantry, and the Third Ohio Cavalry. While other regiments may have achieved equal honors on the bloody fields, it is morally certain that none sur- passed those mentioned in the performance of stern duty. The Fourteenth, in the three months' service, contained one Fulton county company and was organized at Toledo. In three days it was ready for the field, and in twelve days after the fall of Sumter it moved from Toledo to Camp Taylor, Cleveland, where it was drilled and the organization completed. On May 18, 1861, it was trans- ferred from the State to the General Government. On the 22nd, it received its arms at Columbus, then moved to Zanesville, Marietta and Parkersburg, Va., at which latter place its first services were required in protecting bridges from the torch of the enemy. On the 29th, Clarksburg was reached, where trains were put to running for supplies. On June 2, the march from Webster to Phillipi (thirteen miles) was made on a dismal rainy night to surprise 2,000 Confeder- ate cavalry, upon whom an artillery fire was poured at daybreak. The enemy was routed and scattered to the hills, leaving stores, arms, and munitions behind them. The Fourteenth went into camp in the rear of the town of Phillipi, expeditions being sent out against the guerrilla bands which infested that region. It was engaged before the enemy at Phillipi, June 3, Laurel Hill, July 8, and Carrick's Ford, July 14, with a loss of eight brave men killed and many wounded. The regiment remained in camp on Laurel Hill until July 22, when its term of service having expired, it was ordered home, arriving at Toledo, July 25, and on August 13, 1861, was mustered out of the United States Service.
The war had been in progress nearly six months and the "before breakfast job" of the three months men had been prolonged to nearly
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twice their term of service, and up to this date, the Confederates had been successful on nearly every field. An enlistment for three years' service at this time meant more than a brief term of a few months. The first spontaneous outburst had been succeeded by a candid and thoughtful consideration of the momentous task, with the record of past events pointing to possible failure. This was the condition of affairs when the gallant Thirty-eighth was raised in response to the President's first call for three hundred thousand troops for a period of "three years or during the war." Capt. Edwin D. Bradley, of Stry- ker, who commanded Company E, of the Fourteenth, accepted the colonelcy, and the second position went to Edward H. Phelps. Re- cruiting stations were established in Williams, Fulton and adjacent counties, and the headquarters of the embryo regiment were located at Defiance. Company encampments were opened in other places. Enlistments moved along slowly, but by September 22d, the regimen- tal organization was complete, and on October 5, 1861, it was mus- tered into the service of the United States at Nicholasville, Ky. The work of drilling and equipping the regiment had been well attended to and by the time it was ordered to the field the discipline, drill and apparent efficiency of the regiment were alike creditable to the officers and the men.
It might be said that Company E of the Fourteenth regiment in the three months' service, which contained several Fulton county boys, was the nucleus of this regiment, and, as before stated, its cap- tain was chosen as the colonel of the new organization, but he re- signed on account of ill-health on February 6, 1862. That the reader may have some idea of the casualties of the regiment, let it be said that sixty-four men were commissioned as field, staff and line officers, while thirty-six is the complement for a regiment. Of these, a few resigned, and some were promoted, but it is safe to assert that at .least twenty officers were killed or disabled in the service. The regi- ment lost one hundred and twenty-seven men, killed in battle or died of wounds; while the number who died from disease and accidents, or were incapacitated, either by wounds or ill-health, for further ser- vice, amounted to five hundred and thirty-one. The regiment when mustered in was fully a thousand strong, hence the casualties equalled at least sixty-five per cent. of the number of men entering the service with the organization of the regiment.
The active service of the Thirty-eighth began in the army operat- ' ing in Kentucky, under Gen. W. T. Sherman. It would be inter- esting to follow the regiment through its wonderfully active career of nearly four years at the front, but a brief resume of events must suffice .. It participated in ten hard-fought battles, some of which were the most disastrous in the annals of the war. To reach these various scenes of carnage in several different states, it traveled thousands of miles on weary marches, through rain and snow and mud; in intense heat, or equally uncomfortable cold; wading streams, climbing and descending mountains, each soldier carrying, in full equipment, some sixty pounds of baggage. It is estimated that in
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ordinary warfare, a soldier is under fire in skirmishing, and other desultory fighting. at least five times to each general engagement in which he participates; hence a record of battles is no fair estimate as to a soldier's actual service.
The Thirty-eighth fought under Buell in Kentucky; under Rose- crans and Grant in Tennessee, on the Atlanta campaign under Sherman and thence on the memorable "March to the Sea." At the assault on Mission Ridge, it was on the extreme left, and though the fire from the Confederate batteries was hot and terrific, it moved up, up to the very summit, losing seven men killed and forty-one wounded. It pursued the enemy to Ringgold, Ga., then returned to Chattanooga, and there "veteranized," only one hundred and twelve of the entire regiment refusing to continue in the service after the expiration of the first term of enlistment. January 14, 1864, the Fulton county contingent of the regiment reached home on veteran furlough, and a grand ovation was tendered it. A vast outpouring of citizens met the soldier boys at the station, but the veterans, after more than two years' absence, were anxious to meet loved ones around the home firesides, and so dispersed to their several homes to enjoy a thirty days' respite in the quiet pursuits of civil life. At the expiration of the furlough, the regiment reported at Ringgold, Georgia, and there resumed the routine of camp life until the be- ginning of the thrilling events in the campaign of 1864. It partic- ipated in. the battles, marches and skirmishes of the Atlanta cam- paign, and was among the first to enter the beleaguered city. Con- tinuing the triumphal march to the sea, and up through the Caroli- nas, fighting its way, as enemies confronted it, the Grand Review at Washington put a fitting finale to the record of the preceding years.
The Forty-seventh regiment of infantry was principally raised in the southwestern part of the State, and was organized at Camp Den- nison, Ohio, August 27, 1861. The odds and ends of several com- panies joined it at Camp Dennison, among which were fifty-two men from Fulton county, forty-two of which were mustered into Com- pany I, and the other ten joined different companies of the regiment. The term of enlistment was three years, and on the expiration of ser- vice the original members (except veterans) were mustered out, and the organization composed of veterans and recruits remained in ser- vice until August 11, 1865, when it was mustered out in accordance with orders from the War Department.
The Sixty-seventh regiment of infantry was organized in the State of Ohio, at large, from October, 1861, to January. 1862, to serve three years. At the muster in of the regiment there were 211 men from Fulton county, as follows: Company A, 63 men; Company B, 30 men ; Company C, 18 men; Company D, 2 men; Company E, 17 men; Company F, 35 men ; Company I, 46 men; total, 211. On the expiration of its term of service the original members (except veter- ans), were mustered out, and the organization, composed of veter- ans and recruits, remained in the service. The Sixty-second regiment of Ohio infantry was consolidated with it, September 1, 1865. It
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was mustered out, December 7, 1865, in accordance with orders from the War Department.
The Sixty-eighth regiment of infantry was composed in part of Fulton county troops, one company being gathered entirely from this county. This regiment was enlisted in Northwestern Ohio counties, and was organized at Camp Latty, Napoleon .. On Janu- ary 19, 1862, it moved to Camp Chase, and from there, on February 7, to Fort Donelson, where it arrived on the evening of the 14th, during the time of the fighting at the fort. It was assigned to Gen. Charles F. Smith's division and moved, about the middle of March, to Pittsburg Landing, and at the battle there guarded ordnance and supply trains. In the Spring of 1863, it worked on various canals in Louisiana, and, on April 25, it began to march around Vicksburg and reached the Mississippi at Grand Gulf. May 1, 1863, by a forced march; it fought at Thompson's Hill, and subsequently at Ray- mond, Jackson, Champion Hill, and was engaged throughout the siege of Vicksburg. On February 5, 1864, it fought at Clinton and Jackson, Miss. Just before this, it "veteranized," and soon after returned home, where it was received with all the "pomp and cir- cumstance of glorious war." On June 10, the regiment joined Sherman's army at Acworth, Georgia, and during the remainder of the Atlanta campaign, the Sixty-eighth was almost constantly under fire, being on the advance sixty-five days. It fought at Kenesaw Mountain, Big Shanty, Nickajack Creek, Atlanta, July 22 and 28, Jonesboro and Lovejoy Station. It then moved with Sherman to the sea, up through the Carolina campaign; then by the way of Washington to Louisville, Kentucky, whence it was ordered to Cleveland for payment and discharge-the latter taking place on July 18, 1865.
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