The History of Union County, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its townships, towns military record;, Part 147

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 147

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Jonathan G. Miller accompanied his father to York Township in Febru - ary, 1828, and became one of the sturdy pioneers who developed the agricult- ural resources of his adopted township. He was influential and respected among his acquaintances. He had married Anna Wasson, and had a family of six children-Beriah, now of Hardin County: Thomas, a farmer in Trego County, Kan .; Wilmot, the wife of William Longaker, living in Kan- sas; Anna; Jamies, who was marked missing after a battle for his country, and never heard of again; David, who, while in service, was captured, im- prisoned in Libby, exchanged, and when on his way home drowned on an ill- fated steamer on the Mississippi. Mr. Miller moved to Trego County, Kan., in 1878, and died there two years later.

James C. Miller moved to the Miller survey in February, 1830, two years after his father had settled here. He had married Roxana Wasson, in Frank- lin County, in 1828. They built their first cabin a short distance east of the present residence of Mrs. Miller. Mr. Miller was engaged solely in agricult- ural pursuits. His children were Justus; Evaline; Dennison, who died in service; Gilbert, who died at Gallatin, Tenn., while in service: Jane, the wife of David Davis; Martha, who was married to Samuel McNeil and is now de- ceased. Mr. Miller died in this township September 4, 1878.

One of the earliest settled portions of York Township was the land em- braced in the three John Bowen surveys, surrounding and south of Summers- ville. Harmon Patrick is believed to have been the first settler here, though the exact date of his arrival is unknown. He was from Hardy County, Va .. originally, but directly from Ross County, Ohio, and came to the township about the time the Miller settlement was made. He occupied a farm of 129 acres in Survey 3,470, about a mile south of the village. He was a high- spirited, enterprising and esteemed citizen, and remained in the township for many years. He removed to Marion County, on the Scioto River. His brother, John Patrick, owned 100 acres in Survey 3,469, and lived here for a few years.

Caleb Arahood, also from Ross County, came soon after, and settled on a piece of land near the center of Survey 3,469, now the Peter Staley farm.

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YORK TOWNSHIP.

He was a native of Hardy County, Va., and had emigrated to Ross County, Ohio, and from that county to Liberty Township, this county, whence he moved here about 1830. He was a real backwoodsman, rude and uncouth, but clever and kind hearted. As befitted his situation in life. he was an adept with the rifle, and could bring down the noblest game the forests then afforded with ease and dispatch. His wife was Elizabeth Shirk. He sold his farm to David Davis a few years later, and departed with his family for Coles County, Ill. His earthly existence was terminated there shortly after.

William Hartford was among the early arrivals in this locality. By birth he was a Canadian. When the war of 1812 agitated the American continent, his sympathies were enlisted in behalf of the American cause. With his father he came to the United States, and soon after was in the service. At the close of the war, he returned to Canada, and was imprisoned for bearing arms against his country. Effecting a release in some way. he came to Ohio, and settled in Muskingum County. Thence he came to York Township, about 1830, and settled in the southwest corner of Survey 3,470. His nature was positive and impulsive, and to whatever cause he embraced he brought ardent and unwearied efforts. He was at first intensely Democratic in his political preferences, but later in life was strongly identified with the Republican party. Notwithstanding his positive disposition, he was universally esteemed by his acquaintances. He emigrated to Illinois, and invested his means in land, by the rise in the value of which he became wealthy. Within a very recent period, he was living in Iowa. His wife was Eliza (James), and his children Mary, Scott, Almira, Selina, Margaret, Nancy, Isaac and Grace, none of whom now reside in this vicinity.

Jonathan Shirk, uncle to Aaron Shirk, now living in York Township, was born in Hardy County, Va., and emigrated to Greene County, Ohio. About 1830, he came to York Township with his wife, Elizabeth, and family, and engaged in the arduous labor of making a farm from the wilderness, a short distance south from Summersville. His wife died, and he sold his posses- sions here and removed to Taylor Township, and afterward to Indiana, where he died.

Not uncommonly, settlements were formed by a number of pioneers, hail- ing from the same vicinity. The tide of emigration from a settled locality would receive its impetus from the success attending the removal of one of the community to the new country. His neighbors, friends and acquaintances, prompted by a desire to share in the benefits which are the reward of faithful and persevering labor in an unsettled region, and preferring the society of old and tried acquaintances as neighbors to new ones, one after another would leave their old homesteads and purchase new homes in the vicinity of those who had gone before them. An emigration from Harrison and adjoining counties to York Township was thus begun by one, who, however, did not live to enter upon his labors in the township. Duncan McArthur purchased a large portion of the John Bowen Surveys, in the southeastern portion of York Township, for a small consideration, and desired its settlement. Samuel Hyde, of Harrison, was slightly acquainted with Gov. McArthur, who offered to sell him, among others, a farm in that vicinity.

Mr. Hyde was born in Maryland, and when a boy, moved, with his father, to Pennsylvania. In Washington County, Penn., he married, and settled on a farm in Harrison County, Ohio. Having concluded to emigrate farther west, in the spring of 1832, in a lumbering wagon drawn by a yoke of oxen, he traveled toward the setting sun till he reached the slight settlement just south of what is now Summersville. Satisfied with the locality, he fashioned, out of the unbroken wilderness, a small, rude cabin, cleared about eight acres

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HISTORY OF UNION COUNTY.

of land, fenced it in from the surrounding forest, planted it in corn and re- turned, by a tedious journey, home. In the fall, he again visited the locality, this time in company with his young son, John B., and harvested his crop. They brought with them a load of household and other goods. Mr. Hyde had eight children, one son and seven daughters, five of whom were at this time married and settled in homes of their own. One unmarried daughter-Nancy, afterward Mrs. George Davis -- was living at the home of a married sister. In February, 1833, Mr. Hyde, with his wife Elizabeth, son John B. and daughter Rebecca, who afterward married Sedgwick Coons, bade a final adieu to Har- rison County, and, in a four-horse team, began their pilgrimage to York Township. At Berkshire, Delaware County, Mr. Hyde was taken sick. Thinking he would be fully restored to health in few days, he directed that his family proceed to their new home. They concluded the journey in two days, and took possession of the cabin which Mr. Hyde had erected the sum- mer previous. Rebecca then returned to Delaware County for her father, and upon her arrival she was greeted with the sad tidings that he had died and was buried. His disease was lung fever, doubtless induced by exposure and ex- cessive labor. John B. at this time was seventeen years of age. His father had not yet contracted for the land upon which he built his cabin, and John B., in his own name, in a short time bought 100 acres of land, paying for it $2.25 per acre. In 1837, he married Eliza Davis, and still resides on the old place, one and a half miles south of Summersville, enjoying the reward of a well-spent life, and possessing the highest esteem of his large circle of ac- quaintances. In politics, he has been Whig and Republican; in religion he is a faithful adherent to the Methodist Episcopal Church.

Of the seven daughters of Saumel Hyde, six became residents of York Township. The eldest, Catharine, settled with her husband, Hugh McAdow, in the adjoining township of Taylor; Eliza had married Elias Johnson; Ellen had married Charles Bennett; Margaret was the wife of John Sterling; Mary the wife of John Johnson. As before mentioned, the other two daughters, Nancy and Rebecca, afterward married pioneers of the township.

Elias Johnson came in the fall of 1833, settled near Summersville, and there raised a large family. He had served, for a short time, in the war of 1812. He taught several of the early schools, was a well-respected member of society, and died in 1865 at a ripe old age.

Charles Bennett settled in the township at the same time. He occupied the James Seran place in the southeast part of Survey 3,468 for a number of years, then moved to Illinois. Returning, he remained but a short time, and emigrated to Missouri, where he now lives.

John Sterling first located in York Township in the same fall. He was born in Ireland, and, after his arrival in America, settled in Tuscarawas County. Thence he came to this township, and purchased 100 acres in the wilderness, south of Summersville, now known as the Fulton farm. He soon after sold this, attended school for a time at Delaware, Ohio, and returned a Methodist minister. aud was an earnest and faithful pastor until death.

David Sterling, his brother, was also an early settler. He located a faim in the Coons settlement, in the northern part of Survey 12,124, where John H. Sterling now lives. Mr. Sterling remained here the remainder of his life. He possessed more than ordinary intelligence, and was highly and universally esteemed. Both he and his brother were earnest Whigs; both were elected to the office of Justice of the Peace, and both resigned before the expiration of a term of service.

John Johuson came with his family from Harrison County, Ohio, in 1834, and settled near Summersville. Before emigrating to this township, he had

John Mgunden

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YORK TOWNSHIP.

traveled on the circuit as a Methodist minister in the Pittsburgh, Penn., con- ference and in New York, but after his arrival in Union County he officiated in a clerical capacity only as a local preacher. In physique, he was large and portly. He was one of the original proprietors of Summersville; engaged, to some extent, in clearing his farm; opened a store at the little village he helped found, and was otherwise variously engaged until 1844, when he re- moved to Marysville, having been elected Auditor of his county. At the ex- piration of two terms of service, he opened a drug store at the county seat, and remained in business till failing health obliged him to seek a more active life. He returned to his farm in York Township in 1855 or 1856, and there passed the remainder of his life. His children were Almira (Wall), Thomas, Margaret (Davis), Mary (Malin), William S., John, Helen (Smith) and Belle. He taught the first school at Summersville for $8 per month, and boarded him- self. He did more, perhaps, to build up the Methodist Episcopal Church at Summersville than any other member of it. He was a useful member of so- ciety, and exerted a wide influence. He died in July, 1873, at the age of seventy-three years. His wife survived until June, 1882.

David Davis, a Pennsylvanian, came to what is now York Township in 1833, from Harrison County, Ohio, and settled about a half mile south of Summersville, on Bokes Creek. He first purchased a small tract of land, but soon after increased the amount to about two hundred acres. About eight acres of the place had been cleared by Caleb Arahood before Mr. Davis pur- chased it. About the year 1841, Mr. Davis purchased 500 acres of uncleared land, about one mile south of York Center, and moved to it with his family. His wife was Keziah Dickson, and his children, ten in number, most of whom now live in York Township, were George, Eliza (Hyde), Amon, Nancy (Pat- rick), David, Washington, Finley, Rebecca (Storms), Susan (Moffitt), and Thomas. Mr. Davis was attached to rural life, and always lived on the farm. He was in early life an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, but subsequently he became a member of the United Brethren Church, and for a few years preached on the circuit. He died July 16, 1878, at the advanced age of eighty-two years.

Washington G., Elza and Amon S. Davis, three younger brothers of David Davis, settled in the township in 1837. Amon was married when he came; the other two were single. Amon S. Davis settled in Summersville, and worked at the carpenter trade for about three years, at the same time reading medicine under the instruction of Dr. Hamilton, of East Liberty. He then entered upon the practice of his profession at Summersville, and contin- ued it very successfully until 1866, when he removed to Decatur, Ind. He died there of milk sickness in 1874.

Elza Davis married Elizabeth Patrick, who died a few years later. He afterward married Mary Walker, of Marion. He, for awhile, followed brick- masonry, but has mostly given his attention to farming. He died in March, 1882. Three children survive him.

Washington G. Davis married Martha Ann, the daughter of James R. Smith, and still lives in York Township, about a half mile north of Summers- ville. Another brother, George Davis, settled in the township, south of Sum- mersville, in 1841, and died here.

James R. Smith was one of the original proprietors of Summersville. He was a native of Maryland, where he was born in 1794, and emigrated to Ohio when a young man. He lived at Leesville, Carroll County, till 1834, when he came to York Township and purchasd a farm in the southwest corner of Survey 3,468, now the Sylvanus Taylor place. By trade he was a shoe- maker, and, in connection with clearing his farm, he followed his trade. His

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HISTORY OF UNION COUNTY.

wife was Anna Masters, and his children William M., Lewis G., Martha (Davis), Lemuel, Margaret (Roberts), Louisa (Coe), James, Susan M. (Richard- son), Matilda (Wood), Melissa, Thomas, Albert and Edwin. Only two of these now reside in York Township. At first, Mr. Smith lived in a small cabin in Summersville, but soon he erected and moved into a two-story hewed-log house. He was Justice of the Peace two terms, and an Associate Judge of the county for nine years. For about six years, he sold goods at Summersville, and was then elected Probate Judge of Union County, and served in that capa- city for ten years. At the expiration of this service, he returned to Summers . ville, from Marysville, and cultivated a small fruit and flower garden. Judge Smith was one of the leading men of York, and attained the age of eighty- three years. He died suddenly, of heart disease, at Summersville, September 27, 1877. His wife died about 1850. Judge Smith had served a short time in the war of 1812. He is reputed to have organized, in the spring of 1836, at his own house, the first Sunday school in the township.

Thomas R. Price was born in Pennsylvania December 27, 1809, and re- moved to Harrison County, Ohio, when a small boy. In 1836, he came to York Township, and settled in Summersville. He entered into several enterprises successively, including hotel-keeping, selling goods, running a boot and shoe shop, until his health failed, in 1865. He was long an invalid, and died March 15, 1877.

William Kirk, who was raised near Alexandria, Md., came to the town- ship about 1834, and bought a little farm just east of Summersville. He farmed, made shoes, tailored a little, and for a few years was a local minister of the Methodist denomination. He lived to a good old age, and died in 1874, well respected by all who knew him.

Samuel Kirk, an uncle of William, and also a prior denizen of the State of Maryland, came from Logan County about the same time, and engaged in shoe-making in Summersville. He was a migratory individual, and termi- nated his earthly career at Pharisburg.

The third settlement in the township was made by George Coons, in the T. Bowyer Survey, No. 5, 289. Mr. Coons purchased 100 acres, about two miles north of York Center, and in the fall of 1829 came out from his home in Fairfield County, and built a cabin. During the winter, he brought out several wagon-loads of goods, and in the spring following came with his fam- ily, arriving at the new home April 1, 1834. The Miller settlement, and the settlement just below the site of Summersville, were the only portions of the township occupied by settlers at this time, and the labor of cutting a wagon road to his home in the wilderness devolved upon Mr. Coons, and was per formed by arduous labor. Mr. Coons was a farmer, and spent the remainder of his life on the farm he first settled. He died October 19, 1856, aged seventy-eight years. His wife, Keziah, survived him twenty years, and died at the age of ninety-three. The family of the pioneer and highly-esteemed couple consisted of four sons and four daughters, all of whom became early residents of the township. The four sons, John, Thomas S., Brice and Harris, and two daughters, Letitia, who afterward married Levin Wright, and Rhoda, who afterward became the wife of A. G. Brooks, accompanied their parents to the township. The other two daughters had entered married life in 1829 -- Sally with Jacob Bollenbaugh and Allie with John Stamates. Mr. and Mrs. Bollenbanglı, in 1830, at the same time the Coons family settled here, moved from Fairfield County to Hancock County; but after a sojourn there of several years came to York Township, and settled among their friends. Mr. Bollen- baugh was a straightforward, industrious German, Democratic, and afterward Republican in politics, and, like the Coons, of the Baptist persuasion. Besides

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YORK TOWNSHIP.

farming, he operated a little tannery for a time. He died a few years ago, leaving a family of children to possess his homestead.

Nathaniel Brooks settled in the Coons settlement in 1832. He was from New York, and was class leader in the Methodist Epicopal Church. In poli- tics he was strongly Whig. He died in 1836, leaving a family of four sons, Archibald G., James, Joseph and Robert, and several daughters. Archibald G. was a man of prominence in the township, and died recently.

John Stamates, hailing from Muskingum County, came with the Coons, and lived with them during the first year of his citizenship of York Township. He then bought a place in the Miller settlement, and is still living there.

Levin Wright came from Fairfield County about 1835, and settled in the Coons settlement. He remained a lifelong resident of the township. By his first marriage-with Letitia Coons-he had three children. His second wife was Sally Thornton, and the children of this marriage still reside in the town- ship.

Heman Tobey, in 1831, moved to the township from Saratoga County, N. Y. He purchased the survey of 1,000 acres in which York Center is located, No. 3,234, for about $1,000, and, retaining a portion for himself and his sons, disposed of the rest to incoming settlers. Mr. Tobey was twice married. His first wife was Hannah Rowland, and their children were William, Henry, Harlow and Rosanna (Shirk). His second wife was Mrs. Martha Tobey, the widow of his brother, Samuel Tobey. By her prior marriage Mrs. Tobey had two daughters, Melinda (Wheeler) and Amanda (Comer). The children of Heman's second marriage were Jane (the wife of A. E. Knox), Charles, Ema- line and Evangeline (wife of Robert Negley). Mr. Tobey was a shrewd, honest Yankee, and a member of the Baptist Church. He died while on a visit to some of his children, in Madison County, aged sixty-four years.

Sarah Ann Suddith, a widow, moved with her children to the wilds of York Township, near York Center, in 1831 or 1832. She purchased a little place of fifty acres, and with the aid of her boys managed to earn from it a livelihood. Her children were William, Priscilla (married to Moses Dean), George, Jemima (married to Milton Smith) and Mary, who was the wife of David Davis, Jr. Mrs. Suddith afterward removed to Iowa.

Gregory Storms, in 1833, moved from Orleans County, N. Y., with his wife, Melinda, and seven children, to a farm of 150 acres just north of York Center, and between it and Bokes Creek, which he had purchased from Henry Tobey for $1.25 per acre. None of it was then cleared, and he at once gave his entire attention to the improvement of his home, and became an indus- trious and well-respected citizen. He was an earnest Whig and a zealous Methodist. For several years the services of the little religious class, which he helped to organize, were conducted in his cabin. He died on the farm he first settled in the seventy-fourth year of his age. His children were James, Roxana (wife of Amon Davis), Judson, William, Joseph, Elizabeth (wife of John Mar), John, Harriet (wife of Lathe Richeson), Eliza (wife of Henry Stalder) and Gregory. The last three were born in this township.

David Thurston, a carpenter by trade, hailing from the Empire State, settled, in 1834, on a portion of the Aaron Shirk farm, in Survey 3,234. He was a skillful craftsman, and followed his trade here for a number of years. He died in Liberty Township, whither he had moved.

Hiram Parker, another early settler in the central portion of the town- ship, came from Meigs County, about 1833, and settled about three-fourths of a mile southwest from York Center. He was an industrious citizen, and one of the first Trustees of the township. He afterward moved away.

Aaron Shirk was born in Hardy County, Va. In 1818, when he was eight

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HISTORY OF UNION COUNTY

years old, his father, Aaron Shirk, moved with his family to Ross County, Ohio; crossing the mountains in a tive horse team, and consuming six weeks on the journey. After a two years' sojourn in Ross County, Aaron Shirk, Sr., moved to Liberty Township, Union County. Here his son grew up, and spent his time in clearing his father's land and in hunting. Aaron Shirk, Jr., was married, May 9, 1833, to Rosanna Tobey. He at once purchased 145 acres from his father-in-law, Heman Tobey, at $1.50 per acre, north of York Center, built his cabin the summer of 1833, and in November of the same year settled on the place. His house was a hewed-log building, of superior finish for those times. Mr. Shirk had procured the services of a competent carpenter, and the cabin boasted of a good board floor and three twelve-light windows- an unheard-of extravagance then. Most of the cabins had windows of but four to six panes of glass, or more probably were content with deer skin or oiled paper for window-panes. Mr. Shirk has ever since resided on this farm, engaged chiefly in farming, but at times he has followed other pursuits. He has made brick, burned lime, followed shoe-making, and in early times passed much time in the woods in quest of game. He thinks he has killed more than five hundred deer. He possesses an active, restless spirit, and is ill at ease unless actively engaged. Of his five children, only two are now living, Sarah, the wife of Sanford Spain, and John, of Mount Victory.

The vote of the township in 1840 was eighty-four, about one-fourth the present vote. The settlers mentioned beretofore are believed to have been the first, and among the first, in the township. All the following were residents of the township prior to 1840, some of them several years before:

James Bennett occupied the James Seran place, southeast corner of Sur- vay 3,468, subsequent to 1835. He came from Maryland to Tuscarawas Coun- ty, Ohio, thence here; was a Democrat, and removed to Missouri, where, from last accounts, he was still living.

Simon Coder made the first improvements on the Samuel Johnson farm, in the northeast part of Survey 3,469. He came from Ross County before 1834, purchased 150 acres and followed blacksmithing. He sold the place to Thomas Butterfield, and removed to near Marysville. He is now living, in his old age, in Taylor Township. His political affiliations were Democratic.

Thomas Butterfield came from Harrison County. He was of Quaker ex- traction, and his political principles ranked him a Whig. He raised a large family and died on the place.

John Barkdale settled in the eastern part of Survey 3,468, north of the Richwood pike, on the place now owned by James Seran. He was a Whig and a Methodist, and removed with his wife and a son to Iowa, after his re- maining children had married.

Hiram Beal located in the northwest corner of Survey 3,470. After a residence here he removed to Illinois; thence to Iowa. He was a Democrat. His father, Nicholas Beal, was an early merchant at Summersville. George W. Baxley was the son of George Baxley, one of the most extensive original land-holders of the township. George W. was raised in Baltimore, Md., and came West to occupy a portion of his father's possessions. He settled on about five hundred acres, the southern part of Survey 3,238, but not being accustomed to the sturdy labor of a pioneer, did not reduce it to a cultivated state with any great rapidity. He gradually disposed of his land, and at length purchased a mill site at Newton, and removed to that village.

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The History of Union County, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its townships, towns military record;, Part 147

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