The History of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, Part 35

Author: Warner, Beers & Co.
Publication date: 1884
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1017

USA > Ohio > Tuscarawas County > The History of Tuscarawas County, Ohio > Part 35

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precious thing in those very early days." The first mill erected within what is now this county, was a small affair at Gnadenbutten in 1801; it was operated by horse-power. Four or five years later, Isaac Deardorff erected 8 water mill near the mouth of Sugar Creek, and Michael Uhrich another on Still- water.

The forests were filled with a wide variety of game when first known to the pioneers.' The buffalo had gone, though several were killed in Eastern Ohio as late as 1800. The elk, too, had departed, but the numerous, wide- spreading antlers found, indicate that it had been here at no remote period. Panthers, though not numerous, were occasionally seen or heard, and some- times fell a prized trophy of the hunter's skill. They disappeared not many years after the first settlement. Bears abounded in greater numbers and re- mained much longer, an occasional straggler being seen as late as 1845. Wolves were found in great abundance, and proved a great annoyance to the settlers. Deer was perhaps the most precious game to the pioneer. They were here in large numbers, and for many years supplied the pioneer's table with most of his animal food. They were easily killed, and it was a poor bunter who at the end of an hour could not bring down a fine buck or more palatable doe or fawn. Wild turkeys, too, were very abundant, and often graced the backwoodsman's board. They could often be shot from the cabin door. Of smaller game there was no scarcity. Raccoons and groundhogs are yet found occasionally. Both gray and red foxes were plenty and afforded fine sport to the huntsman. Rabbits and squirrels, if not here before the set- tlement of the county, came soon after in great numbers, and still remain. Many beavers and otters were here, and they were much sought after by the trapper for their valuable furs. The former has long since disappeared, but the latter has occasionally been seen in later years. Muskrats were numerous, formerly as now. Eagles, vultures, hawks, ravens and owls were very numer- ous, but have been slowly disappearing. Wild geese and ducks were found along the streams. Pheasants have almost disappeared. Quails, crows, black- birds, bluebirds and turtle-doves were not natives of the wilderness, but came soon after the settlements began. Cranes, woodcocks, woodpeckers and pigeons were plenty, and yet remain, except the first.

Poisonous serpents were numerous-vipers, copperheads and black rattle- snakes-which often swarmed about the stables and into the cabins. So trouble- some and dangerous were the reptiles that in some localities it was customary before retiring to thoroughly examine the bed to see that it was free from these unwelcome intruders. The open cabins gave them easy entrance and the warmth attracted them. Many a time was a pioneer or a member of his family thrilled with horror at finding he had been cherishing a venomous viper. Mr. Roth, one of the earliest pioneers of Dover Township, was awak. ened one night by the sobbing of his little girl who complained that her finger pained her. Bidding her cease crying, he attempted to regain his former re- pose, but the moans from the trundle-bed continued. Finally arising, he examined his child's hand, and found it greatly swollen. Further investiga-

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tion discovered a poisonous snake coiled under her pillow. The reptile was speedily destroyed and the prompt application of remedies saved the child's life. Whisky was the efficacious antidote usually resorted to in such cases.

The streams abounded in fish of large size. The pike were from two to five feet in length. It has now almost, if not wholly, disappeared from the waters of the county. Catfish were plenty and of large size, as were also the white perch and sucker. The black jack and clear jack were here and grew large, but have long since disappeared. The streams contained many more fish than at present, and contributed largely to the support of the pioneer's family. Bees were plenty and the table of the early settler was usually sup- plied with honey.

"The ginseng plant abounded in most localities in early times, and was an article of extensive traffic both to whites and Indians for many years after the first settlement of the county. Every merchant bought it. Beeswax, tal- low, hides, fur, feathers, coon-skins and whisky were not more general articles of trade and barter than ginseng. It disappeared as an article of commerce in the county about 1835, and has not since been known. It was wholly of spontaneous growth and never an article of culture. It was a jointed taper root, as large as a man's finger, and when dry was of a yellowish, white color, with a mucilaginous sweetness of taste, somewhat resembling licorice, accom - panied with a very slight bitterness. It was exported to China, where it was in demand for its real or supposed medicinal virtues. Many of the grape vines on the bottom lands were of enormous size, approximating in thickness a man's hody. These sometimes spread themselves through the branches of half a score or more of the largest trees, completely shutting out the sunlight, and bearing immense quantities of fruit. The huckleberry, confined princi- pally to the hills, yielded fruit bountifully. The strawberry, raspberry, black- berry, dewberry, and in a few localities the cranberry, grew spontaneously. The latter was in early days an article of traffic for the Indians as well as the pioneers. The early settlers laid up for use during the winter months large quantities of these wild fruits, and also chestnuts, hazelnuts, walnuts, butternuts and hickorynuts. Mayapples and papaws were plenty, and were used to a considerable extent."

Hunting occupied a large portion of the pioneer's time. Nearly all were good hunters, and not a few lived almost wholly from the products of the chase. The adventures of these hunters were often exciting and their narra- tion would be interesting, but space forbids As the valleys became settled, the game disappeared to the upland hills and deep ravines, where it could be found for many years. The fall and early part of winter was the season for hunting deer, and the whole of the winter and part of the spring for bears and fur-bearing animals. As soon as the leaves were pretty well down and the weather became rainy, accompanied by light snow. the pioneer hunter felt un. easy in his cabin home and longed to be off in the great woods. Hunting was not a mere ramble in quest of game without skill or calculation, for the hunter must know in what situation he might reasonably expect to find his game H ·

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In stormy weather the deer always sought the most sheltered places and the leeward side of the hills; in rainy weather, when there was not much wind, they kept in the open woods on high ground. In the early morning, if pleas- ant, they were abroad feeding in edges of the plains; at noon they were hid- ing in the thickets. In every situation, it was necessary that the hunter ascer- tain the course of the wind, so as to get to leeward of the game; this he often did by warming his finger in his mouth, then holding it overhead. The first sensation of cold indicated the source of the air current. The trees, the sun and stars sup- plied the place of the compass. The bark and moss of an aged tree is much thick- er and rougher on the north side than on the south; hence the hunter could walk freely and carelessly through the woods and strike the direction intended. From morning to night he was constantly on the alert to gain the wind of his game and make the approach without discovery. If he succeeded in killing a deer, he skinned it, hung it up out of the reach of wolves, and resumed the chase till nightfall, when he bent his course toward the camp, where he cooked and ate his supper with a keen relish, and then, with pipe in mouth, related to his companions the adventures of the day.

With the Indians there was little trouble. The Goshen Moravian Indians hunted over almost the entire county, and were on terms of familiarity with all the foremost pioneers. When on hunting expeditions, they often stayed over night at some settler's cabin, if conveniently close, and were seldom, if ever, refused this privilege. The wild Indians were numerous at first, and except in consequence of their occasional pilfering, occasioned no difficulty with the settlers. Few returned after the war of 1812.

A few domestic animals were brought with the earliest pioneers and served an important part in the economy of life. Cows furnished milk, butter, beef and leather. Hogs were ear-marked and turned into the woods to fatten upon mast. They soon became quite wild and ferocious, and in many instances the ownership of them was lost. Their greatest enemy was the bear, to which a fat young pig was a very toothsome morsel. When a young pig was attacked by bruin, it was often successfully defended by the older hogs, but the bear had no scruples in attacking these older hogs individually and feasting upon their quivering flesh while the animal was still alive. A settler's swine often came home badly bitten and lacerated by the teeth of a bear from which it had es- caped. It was not uncommon for a bear to approach a pig-sty near the pio- neer's cabin and assault the occupants, but this procedure was often followed by a shot from the rifle, and bruin had to pay the death penalty for his rash- ness. Many sheep were not introduced to the new land at first, for the prowl- ing wolves were their inveterate and deadly enemies. To permit the sheep to run at large, or even to range in fields, was certain destruction. They had to be watched at day and closely corraled at night near the cabin door, and even then it was not uncommon for intruding wolves to dispatch them. The pre- mium offered for the scalps of wolves, as well as the need of protection from this pest, contributed to effect their extermination, and they were hunted and killed in large numbers. Wolf hunting was a sport sometimes engaged in.

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The pioneers would turn out generally, inclose a large scope of country and push to the center, usually destroying whatever wild game was found within the circuit. As late as 1842, an organized wolf hunt took place among the Zoar hills, at which seven wolves were killed.

Whisky was the universal beverage. It was believed to be indispensable to health, and was drank in summer to cool the system, and in winter to warm and vivify. But the article was pure. It was used just as it came dripping from the numerous little copper-stills that were operated throughout the forest settlements. Nearly every settler kept it, and treated his acquaintances and strangers when they called. It was excusable perhaps in those days to neglect inviting a visiting neighbor to partake of the hospitality of the board; but to permit him to return without first quaffing the potent liquid was unpar- donable. It was regularly used in harvest time, and on occasions of great physical labor; but the ruinous consequences which are now entailed by its consumption, did not then follow, for the article was not poisonous. Whisky was about the only article that could be marketed and exchanged for a coin equivalent in earliest times. Farm products were in little demand, and were too bulky to wagon over the mountains to the East; but whisky was better adapted for mercantile purposes. It was worth from 12 to 15 cents per gallon, and, whatever surplus corn existed after satisfying the needs of the settlements for food, was converted into spirits. This was purchased by traders, who conveyed it by flat boats or pirogues down the Tuscara vas, Muskingum, Ohio and Mississippi, as far as New Orleans, where it was converted into Spanish gold. The trader usually performed the return trip afoot.

There was but one grade of clothing. The rich and the poor dressed alike, the men often wearing hunting shirts and buckskin pants, and the women course fabrics produced by their own hands. The hunting-shirt, says Dod- dridge, was a kind of loose frock, reaching half way down the thighs, with large sleeves, open before, and so wide as to lap over a foot or more when belted. The cape was large, and sometimes handsomely fringed with a raveled piece of cloth of a different color from that of the hunting-shirt itself. The bosom of this dress served as a wallet to hold a chunk of bread, cakes, jerk, tow for wiping the barrel of the rifle, or any other necessary for the hunter or warrior. The belt, which was always tied behind, answered several purposes besides that of holding the dress together. In cold weather, the mittens, and sometimes the bullet-bag, occupied the front part of it. To the right side was suspended the tomahawk, and to the left the scalping-knife in its leathern sheath. The hunting-shirt was usually made of linsey, sometimes of coarse linen, and a few of dressed deer-skin. These last were very cold and uncomfortable in wet weather.

Moccasins were the usual covering for the feet. "They were made of dressed deer-skin, and were mostly of a single piece, with a gathering seam at the top of the foot, and another from the bottom of the heel without gathers, as high or a little higher than the ankle joint. Flaps were left on each side to reach some distance up the legs. These were nicely adapted to the ankle

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and lower part of the leg by thongs of deer skin, so that no dust, gravel or snow could get within the moccasins. In cold weather, they were stuffed with deer's hair or dry leaves, to keep the feet warin, but in wet weather it was usually said that wearing them was ' a decent way of going barefooted,' on account of the spongy texture of the leather. Owing to this defective covering for the feet, more than to any other circumstance, the greater number of the hunters and warriors were often afflicted with rheumatism in their limbs. Of this disease, they were all apprehensive in cold and wet weather, and there- fore always slept with their feet to the fire to prevent or cure it as well as they could."

Linen was usually worn in warm weather. Flax was grown in summer; scutched in the fall, and during the long winter evenings was heard the buzz of the little flax wheel, which had a place in every cabin. From its spindle, the thread was reeled off on a wooden reel, and was then ready for the great loom that occupied the loft. Wool went through about the same operation; it was spun on the large wheel; dyed with butternut bark or other coloring matter, and woven on the loom and made into winter clothing. The clothing which the pioneers brought with them were replaced by these home-made textures. The girls, who wanted something nice for dresses, sought the tall, delicate flax which grew on the side of the patch next to the woods. This was carefully pulled, rotted, broken, scutched, hackled, spun, dyed in divers colors, and carefully woven in cross-barred figures.

"Linen for Sunday clothes was cleansed with copperas and was white, checked or striped, and when bleached was pretty and soft. For very choice wear, it was all flax; for every day or second best, the warp was flax and the filling tow. Linsey-woolsey, or linsey, was wool and cotton, very much the same as water-proof or repellant is now, only that it was harsh and not fin- ished. Dye-stuffs in early times were in reach of all-butternut or walnut hulls colored brown; oak bark with copperas dyed black; hickory bark or the blossom of the golden rod made yellow; madder, red, and indigo blue; green was obtained by first coloring yellow, and then dipping into blue dye. Stock- ing yarn was dyed black, brown or blue, and for very choice stockings strips of corn husks were lapped tightly in two or three places around a skein of yarn and dyed blue. When the husks were removed, whitish spots were found, and the rare 'clouded' yarn was the result. The little tub of blue dye, with its close-fitting cover, stood in the warm corner in every well-regu- lated household, and it made a very convenient seat and the cover was always worn smooth. Many a lad inclined to matrimony has sneaked slyly along and seated himself on the dye-tub as soon as the old folks retired. When carding machines came and lessened the labor of the toiling women, one of the first indications of anything as fine as 'store clothes' was the soft, pressed flannel, called 'London brown,' grand enough for any uncommon occasion. The folds lay in it, and it shown to eyes accustomed to looking upon nothing finer than home-made barred flannel, like lustrous satin. It smelt of the shop, however; the odor of dye-stuff and grease and gummy machinery clung to it

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for a long while." When a fair damsel wished an unusually fine dress for her bridal day or some great occasion, her highest aspiration was to obtain a common American cotton check, which now sells at perhaps a shilling a yard, but then cost $1 per yard; five or six yards were deemed an ample pattern.

The social gatherings of the pioneers consisted of cabin-raisings, log-roll. ings, quilting parties, corn-huskings, etc. Log-rollings were a common oc- currence. Every settler would have one or more each year. Settlers for miles around came with their handpikes, axes and oxen; the logs were cut, hauled together and piled in great heaps to be set on fire after drying, while the boys and girls piled the brush and small sticks in immense heaps. Corn- huskings were usually held on bright, moonlight nights. Sometimes it was husked as it stood in the field, but oftener the owner jerked the ears from the stalk and hauled them to some dry spot in the meadow, where they were piled in a hugh circle. " About this circle on the outside, the men would gather in the evening and amid the rattle of husks and the general hilarity, the yel- low ears would flow toward the center of the circle in a continual stream. Occasionally the corn was, as nearly as possible, equally divided into two heaps; captains or leaders were chosen by the men, who, choosing their men, arranged themselves in opposition. Each of the opposing captains endeavored to finish his pile first, the bottle being passed frequently, each one helping himself to as much of the contents as he desired. The successful captain was elevated upon the shoulders of his men, amid prolonged cheers, and carried around the pile. Sometimes the beaten party were aggravated until knock- downs ensued, after which they would repair to the house of the host and par- take of the good things prepared for the occasion." Whisky was freely used on all these occasions. As constant work was the necessity of that day, the pioneers varied its monotony, and made it appear lighter by thus combining and performing a large amount of it at one time, at the same time enjoying the social advantages thus offered. During the long winter evenings, neigh- bors would visit each other, chat about the local happenings, and tell stories of adventure.

The great days were the Fourth of July and those upon which the militia assembled for muster. These were the holidays when the people turned out en masse with the expectancy of plenty of fun and whisky. The usual place of assembly for militia muster was in an open field near Uhrichsville. On the Fourth the Declaration of Independence was read by some local elocutionist, speeches were made, and general festivity among young and old was the order of the day.

A wedding was the occasion of a gala day. The neighbors for many miles around were invited, and seldom failed to attend. The ceremony often took place just before dinner, which was a substantial one, and sufficient for the throng at hand. Dancing then commenced and often continued until the fol- lowing morning. After the wedding, the next duty of the neighbors was to erect a cabin for the young couple and dedicate it by a "house warming," which meant a twenty-four hours' dance and carousal in the new cabin. Peo-

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ple generally married young in those days. There was little distinction of rank or fortune, and a family establishment cost little labor and nothing else.

Money was a scarce article, most of the settlers coming into the forest with scarcely the bare necessities of life. A few of the wealthier brought with them a little pouch of silver. Barter was the general system of trade both among the settlers and between them and the early merchants. Money was needed mostly to pay taxes, and it was often only by great effort that the re- quired amount could be obtained. The construction of the Ohio Canal offered the opportunity of converting labor into ready cash at the rate of $10 per month, and most of the settlers or their sons adopted this means of procuring a little money.

The religious advantages of the pioneers were not great; many of them had been connected with a church before their emigration, but for years after- ward were without preaching. The Moravians established the first church in Clay Township, and for about six years possessed the only religious organiza- tions in the county. The Methodists were next in the field. Rev. James Watts in 1807 formed Will's Creek Circuit, the circumference of which was computed to be 475 miles. The route of this pioneer preacher's travels com- menced at Zanesville, and proceeding east embraced all the settlements on each side of the Wheeling road to Salt Creek, and the Buffalo Fork of Wills' Creek; thence it continued down to Cambridge, and Leatherwood on Stillwater, to Barnsville and Morristown, and down Stillwater, including all the branches on which there were settlements, to the mouth; thence it passed up the Tusca- rawas River through New Philadelphia to One Leg and Nimishillen; thence up Sandy to Canton and on to Carter's; returning to Sugar Creek, it passed down that stream to its mouth, and down the Tuscarawas past William Butts' to the mouth of White Woman; thence crossing the river, including all the settle- ments on Wapatomica to Zanesville. Succeeding Watts, Revs. Holmes and West preached several times in this circuit, and in 1809, Rev. J. B. Finley took charge of the circuit. He says: " The first camp meeting ever held in this region was on the land of Mr. James Clark (Salem Township), on Tuscarawas River. This meeting produced a great excitement among all classes of peo- ple, and they came from all parts of the country to attend it. The Moravi- ans who resided a short distance above were prohibited by their good old priest from attending, but notwithstanding all the admonitions to prevent their at- tendance, when the time arrived for holding the meeting, many were there. Quite a number of these people experienced religion."

It was many years before meeting-houses were built. Not until the country had been well settled and societies had gathered sufficient numerical strength in one locality did the construction of churches become practicable, and they were then of the rudest description, corresponding in kind with the primitive cabins. The seats were merely rough slab or split-log benches, without backs, and the rough walls were chinked with mud. Itinerant preachers of various denominations passed through the settlements and preached as they went along. The Sabbath was not then reserved for religious worship, but preach-

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ing was conducted on any day of the week and at any hour of the day, as best suited the time of the traveling minister. On short notice, a small band of listeners would assemble at some cabin and hear the words of admonition and exhortation that fell from the lips of the preacher; then, when services were over, return to their labors. If an appointment was announced some time ahead, or a large congregation was anticipated, open air services were held, or the audience gathered in the largest building in the neighborhood, usually the barn of one of the most prosperous settlers.

The early schoolhouses resembled the cabins. Throughout the county, they were very much alike; a huge fire-place occupied one end of the building. A substitute for windows was made by cutting out a log on each side and pasting. over the openings thus made paper, greased with lard or tallow. Around the walls rough boards were fixed on pins for desks. Long benches, supported by four or five legs on either side, were placed along these desks, and were oc- cupied by those learning arithmetic and writing. Lower benches were placed in front of the fire for the smaller children. All the benches were without backs. The teacher made all the pens for his scholars out of goose quills. There was no uniformity of text books. Each pupil would take with him whatever school books his parents had brought with them from the East, if any, or if not, whatever book was most easily obtained. The New Testament was generally used as a reader by the more advanced pupils. The United States spellar was used for orthography, and in arithmetic the Western calculator was the popular guide. Reading, writing and spelling, with a little ciphering, was about all that was attempted in these primitive schools, and the capacity of the teacher to instruct was often no greater than this. The first schools were often held in deserted cabins, but after a little while the settlers of a neighborhood usually on a given day assembled and built a schoolhouse in a convenient locality. It was not uncommon for the children to trudge three or four miles before reaching the school. The teacher was paid by subscription at the usual price of 50 cents per month or $1.50 per term for each pupil. Many settlers could ill afford to pay the required amount, and in consequence their children were deprived of the meager rudiments of an education, which was all that was attainable. It often happened that a pioneer with a number of children of school age could only subscribe for one or two. There was usually but one term of three months per year, and sometimes several years would elapse between terms. There were settlements in the county where lit- tie attention was given to education, where the pioneers were genuine back- woodsmen and reared their sons to shoot and trap successfully but not to read or write. Generally, however, the first settlers felt the necessity of education, and gave the rising generation as great advantages as the time and place af- forded. Money was a rare commodity, and the subscriptions were often made payable, at least in part, in grain and other commodities, at current prices, delivered at the nearest mill. From $10 to $12 per month was the wages usu- ally received by the teacher. Besides this he "boarded around," remaining a week at each cabin. When Christmas came he was expected to treat the

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The History of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, Part 35

Author: Warner, Beers & Co. Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1017

Author: Warner, Beers & Co.
Publication date: 1884
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1017