The History of Union County, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its townships, towns military record;, Part 104

Author: Durant, Pliny A. [from old catalog]; Beers, W. H., & co., Chicago, pub. [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago, W. H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1254

USA > Ohio > Union County > The History of Union County, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its townships, towns military record; > Part 104

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The Robinson family, now widely connected in Darby and other town- ships, was one of the earliest to acquire and possess a heritage in this new, rich land. A temporary settlement was effected in the year 1800, though it was five years later before the Robinsons became permanently identitied with this locality. Samuel and James Robinson, the sons of James Robinson, were born and raised on their father's farm of several hundred acres, in York Coun- ty, Penn., a few miles distant from the Susquehanna. James had acquired the cooper trade, and Samuel was equally proficient as a carpenter. They possessed the pioneer element strongly, in their natures, and when young men came West to seek their fortunes. They reached Tennessee, and there met Lucas Sullivant, a surveyor, who wished them to join his surveying party. With a view to selecting a good location for their future homes, they entered his em- ploy-James as a chain carrier and Samuel as marker-and came to Ohio. The party consisted of five men, the sole business of one of them being to pro- vide the company with game. For six weeks they were busily at work, and during the time they saw no white men. The Robinson boys selected the Samuel Robinson survey of 600 acres, No. 2,977, located in the southeastern part of Darby, and early ir the spring of 1800, cleared a small piece of land and planted it in corn. During their stay, they boarded with Joshua Ewing. They remained until fall, then returned to their home in York County, Penn. Both were unmarried, but James was betrothed to Jane Morrison, the daugh- ter of a York County farmer, and soon after his return married her.

In the spring of 1805, James and his family, Samuel and another brother, Thomas, again bade adieu to Pennsylvania and started on their pioneer jour- ney to Darby Township. Samuel and James had divided between them the

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HISTORY OF UNION COUNTY.

survey they had purchased, James taking the northwestern half. He sold this to two brothers, Thomas and John, and purchased from Lucas Sullivant 330 acres adjoining it on the northwest, the fractions of Surveys 3,482, 3,682 and 3,881. Upon his arrival, James built a cabin on this new land, where the residence of William H. Wolford now is, and lived here till his death in Sep- tember, 1523, at the age of forty-nine years. He had been a man of unusual activity and energ .. and was an earnest member of the Presbyterian Church. A family of eight children survived him. They were Anna, the wife of James Reed; Sarah, wife of Stephenson Curry; William M., of Marysville; Eleanor. wife of Robert Snodgrass; James, of Jerome Township; Jane, wife of Thomas Reed; Samuel, residence on the homestead; and Nancy, wife of Perry Buck.

Samuel Robinson, in 1805, did not conclude the journey with his brothers, James and Thomas, the entire distance to their property. When they reached Franklinton, Franklin County, Ohio, this little village was growing vigor- ously, and the demand for carpenters induced him to remain and work at his trade. He purchased a lot and built for himself a large frame house, which he valued at $1,000. Columbus, however, just across the Scioto River, was soon after laid out and began to grow with such rapidity that property in Franklinton depreciated greatly in value. Mr. Robinson disposed of his prop- erty finally for a three-year-old colt and cow, their value being about $60. While here, he married Martha Hunter, the daughter of Joseph Hunter, who then lived on the site of North Columbus. About 1809, he removed his family to his forest farm in Darby, and until his death, in 1849, at the age of seventy-seven years, was one of the foremost men of the township. He was for many years Justice of the Peace. He was a member of the Seceder or United Presbyterian Church, and in politics was in earlier life a Whig, but afterward an Abolitionist. His farm of 300 acres of excellent land, favorably located on the north bank of Big Darby, is still held in the Robinson name. His children are as follows: Margaret, wife of Samuel Mccullough; Sarah, wife of ; William Snolgrass; Joseph H., of Hardin County; James, deceased; Samnel D. and William H., of Darby; Martha. wife of William Beard; John, and Alexander, deceased.

Thomas Robinson was born in 1776. His farm consisted of the south . west part of the upper half of Survey 2,977, now owned by John Funk. He dwelt in the old cabin on the place, which was erected in 1800 by James and Samuel, until he could build a large, hewed-log house. He came unmarried, but soon after returned to Pennsylvania and married Sarah Modderwell, who lived in Lancaster County, across the Susquehanna from his old home. He at once brought his young wife to his own home, and remained a resident of Darby Township until his decease, aged about seventy-seven years. He had always been a farmer by occupation. In politics, he was at first a Whig, then an Abolitionist, and his religious preferences made him a member of the United Presbyterian Church. His children were Sarah J., wife of George Pollock: James D., of Jerome Township; Thomas. of Columbus; John M., of Jerome; Alexander, deceased.

John ;Robinson, the brother of the preceding, took possession of his land in Survey 2,977. in 1810. He had received a collegiate education at Cannons- burg, Penn., with the intention of entering the ministry of the United Presby- terian Church, but for some reason he abandoned this calling and adopted farm- ing as his life pursuit. His first wife, Elizabeth Fink, died a few years after his emigration to Darby, and he re-united in marriage with Jane Mitchell. Their children were Charles M., of Marysville; Eliza J., of Marysville, widow of William Taylor; Sarah Jane, of Marysville, wife of James Woodburn; and John, of Darby Township. Like his brothers, Mr. Robinson was an ardent Whig and Abolitionist. He attained the age of about seventy-eight years.

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DARBY TOWNSHIP.

Another brother, Alexander Robinson, removed to Darby Township in 1818. He, toc, had received a liberal education. His farm of 100 acres was in survey 3,687, now owned by G. Hegenderfer and P. S. Blummenschein. Besides attending to agricultural duties, Alexander devoted considerable time to surveying and school teaching. He was the first Treasurer of Union County. His wife was Nancy Caldwell. Mr. Robinson died childless, several years ago at the age of ninety. two years.

Still another brother, George Robinson, came in 1852, too late to be ranked among the pioneers.

The exact date of the settlement of the Sagers is not known. It was about 1805. This family was not only one of the earliest, but probably the largest in the vicinity. It consisted of George Sager. Sr., and his children-George, Christian, Frederick, Jacob, Henry, Samuel, Abraham and Barbara. The chil- dren were grown, and some of the sous were married when they came. Within a few years after they arrived, the cabins of the various members of the Sager family dotted the valley of Big Darby from Union to Jerome Township. They were Germans and emigrated from Loudoun County, Va. The farm upon which they first settled was in Survey 3,272, on the south bank of Darby, about a half mile below Unionville, where Michael Sager now resides. Until they had erected their cabin, the family took up their abode in the cabin of James Robinson, across the creek. In early days, they were all Jackson Democrats. Few members of this once extensive family now remain in Union County. Michael, the son of Samuel, now occupies the old homestead, and J. F. Sager, of Marysville, the County Surveyor, is the grandson of Christian Sager.

George Sager, Jr., settled in the western part of the township on the farm now owned by his daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth Reed. He had four children and died upon this farm, where he had engaged in farming and gunsmithing.

Christian settled on the site of Unionville. He had married Elizabeth Shover, raised a large family of children and died a farmer of Darby Town- ship, in January, 1866, aged ninety-six and one half years. He had been & church member for sixty-eight years. Most of his children removed West, and his descendants are now widely scattered. He possessed a strong constitution and temperate habits, and by industry and close economy accumulated consid- erable property.

Samuel Sager settled on the farm now owned by Michael, his son east of Unionville, and died here after a long and faithful career as a farmer. He was honest and possessed good judgment, and though he had enjoyed few edu- cational advantages, he was careful that his children received as thorough education as the times afforded. He had married Elizabeth Sanbower, and his six children were Susanna. who died young; Joseph, who died in Darby; Ann, wife of James M. Andrews, of this township; Michael; Sarah, who mar- ried Gregory Hawley, of Paris Township; and Lydia, who died young.

Jacob settled in the southeast corner of the township, where he farmed and operated a still house. Later in life, he removed with his large family to Carroll County, Ind.

Abraham, Frederick and Henry settled in Jerome Township. Barbara, their only sister, was several times married.

The "Post road" crosses the township, east and west, near its southern line. This road was so called from the fact that over it were transported the military stores to Ft. Defiance on the Maumee from Franklinton, which was then a small military post. The plains on either side of this road were occu- pied mainly by Yankees.

Dudley Bridges, from Vermont, came about 1815, and occupied for a few years the land George Stevens now owns. He did not acquire the title to it, and about 1830 he removed with his family to Illinois.

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HISTORY OF UNION COUNTY.

Elihu Knapp was one of the first settlers on the plains. He came from Vermont and purchased a farm in Survey 10,793, about a mile south of Union- ville, some time prior to 1810. He was a shoe-maker and followed that occupa- tion besides farming. Afterward he removed to Madison County.

Ahira Petty, probably in 1814, emigrated from Vermont and settled on the farm in the southern part of Darby which is now occupied by G. W. Stevens. He subsequently moved West, and when last heard of was living in Indiana.

Clark Provin was a Yankee who was very migratory and often changed his place of abode. He lived for a time on the farm now owned by George Stev- ens; was once elected Justice of the Peace in Jerome Township, and at Plain City was an inn keeper for many years. He taught school a considerable por- tion of his time, and had a sufficient knowledge of law, it is said, to get people into trouble without being able to extricate them. He ultimately removed to Illinois.

In Survey 1,716, near the southwest corner of the township, where John W. Smith now resides, Charles McCloud, a Yankee, settled in 1814. He was born in New Hampshire September 2, 1769, married Sallie Taylor, of Massa- chusetts in 1797, and in 1810 emigrated with his family from Montpelier, Vt., to Franklin County, Ohio, four years later coming to Darby. His chil- dren by his first wife were Betsy, Curtis, Harriet (Newton), Miriam (Bigelow), Sally (Mason), Charles, Lucy, Polly and Thankful (Converse). The last was born in Darby in the fall of 1814. Mrs. McCloud died in 1817, and Charles united in marriage with Anna Benjamin, by whom he had two children-Rodney and Anna (Marine). His second wife also preceded him to the grave, and Mr. McCloud selected as his third companion in matrimony Polly Andrews. Of their two children, Almira died young; Rosella married Mr. Chapin. Mr. Mc- Cloud was an untiring farmer. He possessed strong religious convictions, and was an exhorter in the Methodist Church during his stay in Darby. In 1831, he removed to Michigan, but returned to Madison County, Ohio, in 1843, and died the following spring.

Samuel Tyler, a Pennsylvanian of German descent, purchased the small survey of fifty-five acres, No. 12,075, about a mile southwest from Unionville, and settled there at an early day. He afterward removed to Pike Township, Madison County, where he died at a good old age.

Orson Smith, from Vermont, owned and occupied in early times the large farm in the southwestern part of the township, where his son, John W., now lives. Mr. Smith still survives at this writing, and resides in Union Town- ship.

Benjamin Tinkham was born in Connecticut June 23, 1795. and came to Ohio about 1817, stopping for a time in Franklin County. A year or two later, he removed to this county, and he and his brother Noah took the con- tract for making the brick and building for Samuel Robinson the first brick house in Union County. While thus engaged, Benjamin became acquainted with and courted Jane Slone, a girl who had come from York County, Penn., with the Robinsons. He married her February 19, 1820, and immediately thereafter he purchased a little place of about fifty acres in Survey 6,602, on the plains; removed to it and remained there till his death, March 29, 1880, aged nearly eighty-five years. His wife died about 1876, having borne him two sons and two daughters. After her death, he resided at the home of his daugh- ter, Mrs. James McCloud. He was a man of more than ordinary enterprise, and his mind ran largely to the invention of machinery, perpetual motion, etc. He wrote his own funeral sermon, which was read at his funeral.

Judah Dodge, Sr., in 1812, journeyed from Vermont, his native State, to the E. C. Smith place on the post road, and there engaged in agricultural

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pursuits. He was a Justice of the Peace, and afterward removed to Jerome Township, where he died in May, 1856.

Judah Dodge, his son, was born in 1796, and in 1816 married Elizabeth Kilgore. In 1867, he removed from Darby to Marysville, where he died April 23, 1870. Hiram Dodge, another son, died, a farmer, in Jerome Town- ship.

James Russel, from Loudoun County, Va., was a comparatively early settler on the J. S. Smith place near the southern line of the township. He continued his residence here to the time of his death. Amasa Payne owned and occu- pied the E. D. Smith place in the southeastern part of the township.

Josiah Harrington, a Vermonter, about 1814, came to the land now owned by David Holycross, on the post road, and farmed it to the day of his . deatlı.

James Snodgrass, about 1815, came with his family from York County, Penn., and settled on Robinson Run in the lower part of Survey 3,687. His wife was Agnes Morrison; their children were William, James, Jane Ann, Nancy, Hannah, Samuel and Polly. Mr. Snodgrass was a member of the Presbyterian Church and a good-natured, upright farmer. He died about 1825; his wife survived him a few years.

James Marquis settled about 1812 on the farm now owned by Caleb Con- verse, located just south of Unionville. He had married Barbara Sager, and their children were Elizabeth (Smith), Nancy (Cutler), Martha (Ford), James B., George G. and Harvey. He was a farmer and a Methodist; in after life he removed to Illinois. None of his posterity now reside in this vicinity.

James Boles, as early as 1810 or 1812, purchased and settled on the farm just north of Big Darby, in Survey 2,671, now owned by John Knock. He came from Greene County and married Margaret, the daughter of Judge David Mitchell. He followed farming and reared a large family of children. His religion was the faith of the Seceders. In 1828 or 1830, he removed with fam- ily to Indiana, where he died.

Lucas Low occupied for a few years in early times, the place now owned .by James Martin, just south of the Darby. His two brothers, John and Clark, and his father, who was a native of Germany, came with him. Lucas removed to near Newton, and died there about 1825.

John Jolly was a North Carolinian. His family was of the Quaker per- suasion, and he, imbued with the principles of that sect, left his native State from an abborrence of the institution of slavery and sought a home in Ohio. In 1818, with his wife, Hannah (Cook), and three children, he settled upon a tract of wild land he had purchased in the southern part of Survey 7,218, now the home of Charles Nicol. Here he cleared the land and tilled the soil, en- gaging also, to some extent, in shoe-making. He was an earnest supporter of the Methodist Church. His children by his first marriage were Elias, who re- moved to Kansas; Michel, who married Frederick Sager; Rachel; Joel; Mary, who married Adam Brown; John; Jeremiah, of Kansas; and Lewis, of Iowa. His second wife was Margaret Croy, who still lives with her daughter Eleanor, wife of A. J. Ferguson. By this marriage there were six children-Betsy, who married David and is now deceased; Eli, Eleanor, Margaret and two who died young. Mr. Jolly died July 31, 1860, at Unionville, aged seventy-eight years.

John W. Robinson was one of the most prominent of the early settlers, though he was not among the earliest. He was born in Washington Coun- ty, Penn., in February, 1803. In the fall of 1808, his father, Rev. James Robinson, of the Presbyterian Church, removed with his family to Pickaway County, and in 1821 to near Milford, to accept the pastorate of Lower and

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HISTORY OF UNION COUNTY.

Upper Liberty Churches. John W. pursued faming as his vocation, and in August, 1823, was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth daughter of Judge David Mitchell. The young couple at once settled on a small farm of fifty acres, part of the Mitchell farm, but in a short time Mr. Robinson purchased the farm south of the Darby. now occupied by David M. Robinson, and re- moved to it.

He resided upon this place, engaged extensively in stock-raising and farm- ing until his death, which occurred about 1853, from typhoid fever. His wife survived him many years. Their family consisted of ten children-David M., residing on the home farm; James M., of Marysville; Henry M., who died young; John, of Paris Township; Aaron B. and Robert N., of Marysville; , Joseph S., who died in youth; Martha, wife of William H. Robinson, of Marysville; Mary, who died in childhood; and Emma J., wife of Hon. Beriab Wilkins, of Uhrichsville, Ohio. Mr. Robinson had been an Elder in the Pres- byterian Church for many years, a Justice of the Peace and County Commis- sioner. He was mild but firm in address, upright in character, unswerving in his adherence to principles of truth and justice, and was universally esteemed and respected by the large acquaintanceship which his public life gave him.

Among other settlers who arrived prior to 1830, some of them many years before that date, may be mentioned Gideon B. Cutler, Garret Harris, Thomas Parr, William Orr, Thomas Andrew, Thomas Ally, John Bartholomew, Will- iam Cooperider. John W. Goldberry, John S. Irwin, Stephen Johnston, John and Jacob King, William Leeper, Robert Maze and Samuel Patch.

Gideon B. Cutler owned fifty acres in Survey 8, 167. He resided for awhile on the site of Unionville, and later removed to Illinois. Garret Harris owned seventy acres in Survey 5,008. northern part of township. came prior to 1825 and died in the township. Thomas Parr removed to Jackson Township. Thomas Andrew was a Pennsylvanian; lived for a time in Survey 3,4S2, then removed to Indiana. Thomas Ally was a blacksmith, owned ninety-nine acres in Survey 3,687, and removed to Chicago. John Bartholomew was a cooper from Jefferson County; he married Rosanna, daughter of Christian Sager, occupied the now Thomas West farm in Survey 5,005. for a time, then emigrated to the West. James Cooperider and William Orr were from Licking County; both lived in the northern part of the township. John S. Irwin lived on the west- ern part on the J. S. Kliber farm: he was from Pennsylvania. Stephen Johns- ton was from Madison County. John King occupied Survey 4,982, in the western part of the township, with his father, Bolser King, who entered the survey. Samuel, John and William Leeper were early settlers from Penn- sylvania. Robert Maze lived with George Sager until his marriage, when he settled on Mill Creek. Samuel Patch was a Yankee, and as early as 1816 or 1818, settled on a large farm just south of Unionville, now owned by Adam Brown and others. He had six children-Samuel, Stephen. Harmon, Caro- line, Charity and one whose name is forgotten.

THE SICKLY SEASONS.

During the years 1822-23, a terrible epidemic visited Darby plains and scarcely a family escaped its ravages. As the greater portion of the plains lie in Madison County. the loss there was greater, but Union County suffered its full share in proportion to its area of prairie land. To Dr. Jeremiah Converse, of Madison County, is due the following account of the dread disease: "There was scarcely a family but what had its sick or dying. The few. who were not prostrated with the disease were soon down with constant watching, yet these messengers of mercy visited each day all the sick that were assigned to their division. No tongue can describe nor pen portray the scenes of suffering,

Walter

Beecher

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DARBY TOWNSHIP.

witnessed and experienced by these early settlers. All business transactions ceased, gloom brooded over the minds of the people and many a stout heart was made to tremble over the impending doom, which seemed to await him. Men and women who were not prostrated with disease, were busy night and day administering to the wants of the needy, mitigating the suffering of the sick and consoling the bereaved. There were a few instances where the father was compelled to construct the rude coffin, dig the grave aud deposit beneath the clods of the valley the loved form of his child. The territory invaded by this epidemic extended from a short distance east of Big Darby to perhaps the same distance west of Little Darby." The cause of the disease was sup- posed to arise from the decomposition of vegetable matter and the malaria, which would ensue. The tall, luxurious growth of grass on the prairie lands was at first burned every autumn, but after the settlers began to occupy this land this habit was abandoned through fear of setting fire to the grain and buildings of the pioneer. During the few years that then elapsed before the land was mostly occupied and cultivated, this rank, native growth of grasses became a wet, thick mass of decay and breeded the germs of disease. The symptoms of the disease were various. Usually a general lassitude, nausea and thirst would continue several days, when the disease would be announce d by a severe rigor or chill. The skin would become livid and purple; the pulse quick and feeble; the respiration accelerated. Subsequently severe heat would ensue, the pulse becoming full and frequent, accompanied by thirst, severe headache, nausea and vomiting, and sometimes delirium. In children, there were convulsions generally. The patient. would sink into an inflammatory type of fever, which ran its course in from seven to fifteen days; most fre- quently death occurred about the eighth or ninth day of the inflammatory stage.

FIRST SCHOOLS.

John Robinson was one of the earliest school teachers in the Mitchell set- tlement. When he first came to the township he lived for a short time on Mr. Mitchell's farm, and while there held one term of school for the benefit of the few children in that vicinity. The house occupied for this purpose stood near the graveyard. The schoolhouse was afterward built near by, where Alexan- der Robinson taught. The first schoolhouse erected in the Robinson neighbor - hood stood within thirty rods of James Robinson's cabin. It was built by the Robinsons and the Sagers. Miss Henrietta Millington was the first teacher here, about 1820. Her successors were Misses Narcissa and Helen Topping, daughters of Dr. Topping, of Jerome Township, Jeptha Peasley, a Yankee pedagogue, Alexander Robinson and Charles McCloud.

CEMETERIES.

On the north side of Big Darby, on the Mitchell farm, is an extensive burying ground which has been used for this sacred parpose for eighty-three years-even longer, for previous to the settlement of white men it had been a burial place for the dusky Indians who frequented the hunting grounds on Big Darby. It is a sandy knoll, rising above the surrounding land, and lo- cated near the stream. It is the oldest cemetery in the county. Samuel Mc- Cullough, who died in the spring of 1800, was buried here. Undertaking es-

tablishments were not then within access, and nowhere near the settlement was there even a foot of lumber with which to fashion a rude coffin. A walnut tree was felled, and from its trunk rough slabs were split, and with this material a coffin was made. In it the mortal remains of Mr. Mccullough were encased and consigned to their resting place. In Mitchell's cemetery most of the early settlers of Darby Township lie buried. It is still used as a cemetery.

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HISTORY OF UNION COUNTY.

The cemetery at Unionville, formerly Sager's graveyard, is now under the care of the township authorities, and is used more extensively than any other in the township. In the northeastern part, at one time the Brown graveyard was the only burying place for the settlers in that region. It is now a neg- lected spot.

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The History of Union County, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its townships, towns military record;, Part 104

Author: Durant, Pliny A. [from old catalog]; Beers, W. H., & co., Chicago, pub. [from old catalog] Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Chicago, W. H. Beers & co. Number of Pages: 1254

Author: Durant, Pliny A. [from old catalog]; Beers, W. H., & co., Chicago, pub. [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago, W. H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1254