USA > Ohio > Champaign County > The history of Champaign county, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its cities, towns, etc.; general and local statistics; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; history of the Northwest territory etc > Part 34
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In 1811-12, when the jail stood on the corner of Locust and Market streets, he was jailer, and for a year was kept within prison bounds. Under the old law permitting imprisonment for debt, he was arrested on an execution issued by some Kentucky creditors. To avoid being locked up in his own prison, he availed himself of his privilege of prison bounds, which at that time extended from the alley on Scioto street, adjoining Dr. J. C. Brown's property, to High street ; and from Ward to Reynolds streets. These bounds afterward, by legis- lative enactment, became co-extensive with the county. Healways walked with a long staff, which he grasped about a foot from the upper end. This end was charred, as he constantly used it as his poker to stir the fire. When walking within his prison bounds he would draw near the line as though about to pass, when he would bring up with a sudden halt, and though his own jailer, neither violated his duty nor the obligation of his bond.
In 1824, he visited the Legislature of Kentucky, then in session at Frank- fort, to solicit a release of some claims held by the State on some mountain lands owned by him. He was now old and poor, and presented that tattered appearance which on first sight provoked the smiles and inattention of the members. But as soon as it was known that the old man was Simon Kenton, the companion and friend of Boone, he was the lion of the day, and received all due honor and consideration. The Legislature not only remitted the State claims, but was active in securing him a pension from Congress of $240.
Many of the older citizens of Urbana and Champaign knew and remember him well. Mr. John H. James, some time prior to the death of Gen. Kenton,
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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
spent several days with him, and learned from himself many facts connected not only with his own life, but of the history of the country not generally known. In his interviews with him, Mr. James was not only impressed with the simplicity, sincerity of purpose, and integrity of the man, but also with his peculiarity of manner and phraseology and shrewd comments, and with the tenacity of his memory. Mr. Patrick knew him from 1811 until his death in 1836, and sums up his character in these words : " He was one of nature's noblemen, and, taken as a whole, his life was in many respects worthy of all imitation."
The Scientific Association of Urbana has in its possession a copy of what is said to be an excellent portrait of him. It represents Kenton at apparently about the age of seventy, with a face clean shaven, a kindly expression of eye, a prominent chin, a well-shaped strong mouth, long nose, deep, overarching eyebrows, and high forehead, somewhat narrow toward the top. The face is a striking one and naturally attracts attention.
He was tall, nearly or quite six feet ; in younger life, erect ; compactly built and muscular ; blue eyes, inclined to gray, and a light sandy complexion.
His remains lie in Oakdale Cemetery, with no monument worthy of the man. There would be a fitness in the Legislature of the State granting a com- mission to John Quincy Ward, grandson of Col. Ward, and a native of Urbana, to erect over his grave a monument and statue of the old soldier, worthy the fame of Kenton and the genius of the sculptor.
GENERAL SIMON KENTON.
During the summer of 1846, I chanced to spend the night with a Mr. Sloan, of Zanesfield, Logan County, Ohio. Gen. Simon Kenton having ended his days, as well as spent the latter years of his eventful life in that im- mediate neighborhood, he very naturally became the subject of conversation. Sloan having for many years been the personal friend and intimate acquaint- ance of Kenton, received from Kenton's own lips many incidents and items of interest which never appeared in print, and which, as Kenton belongs to Champaign County, may be read with interest by the readers of your valuable collection of incidents and reminiscences.
About the year 1793, Kenton had been spending a season of inactivity in and around Boone's and Logan's Stations, Kentucky, and feeling that to him activity and adventure was life, while quietude and confinement were enervat- ing, to say the least, concluded to sally forth in quest of something to relieve the monotony of camp-life. Equipping himself with all the appurtenances pertaining woodcraft, he crossed the Ohio River and struck boldly into the domain of the red man. Pursuing a northerly direction, he continued with all the strength and activity of youth until admonished by the shades of darkness and the gnaw- ings of an empty stomach that arrangements for shelter and refreshments for the inner man required his immediate attention.
So, hastily improvising a shelter and bed from the branches of the trees, and preparing and dispatching his frugal meal, he wrapped himself in his blanket, and was soon in the land of dreams.
Contrary to Kenton's usual precaution, or from fancied security, he neglected to put out or cover up his camp-fire before retiring. Certain it is, however, that a party of straggling Indians, attracted by the light or by accident, discovered
* By S. H. Wallace.
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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
his retreat, and while reveling in the arms of Morpheus, little suspecting a visit. from his enemies, he was brought to a realizing sense of his situation by a. hearty kick in the ribs, accompanied by the command, expressed in good En- glish, to " get up." Springing to his feet with the agility of a cat, he was con- fronted by four stalwart warriors. To resist or attempt to escape under such circumstances would be worse than madness. So, making a virtue of necessity, Kenton with an affability and grace, peculiar to himself, after being deprived of his accouterments, took up his line of march as a prisoner.
Pursuing a northerly course, after six days of hard travel the party reached the Indian village, at a point somewhere in what is now Northern Indiana or Southern Michigan, Kenton maintaining meanwhile a demeanor so cheerful and hilarious that his captors extended many little acts of kindness, and even went so far as to return his arms and ammunition while on the march ; at night, however, he was deprived of everything, and was compelled to sleep between two of the warriors, whilst the other two took turns standing guard.
Upon arriving at the village, Kenton was conducted into the presence of the chief, who seemed to be impressed with the manly proportions and pleasant, smiling countenance of the prisoner, and resolved at once to adopt him as a son, which he accordingly did, and Kenton was at once regularly installed a mem- ber of the family, and heir apparent to the rulership of the tribe. Being de- sirous of gaining the esteem and confidence of his new father and mother, as well as making himself useful in his new home, Kenton conceived the idea of improving his prospective winter quarters, and it was not long until the wig- wam, with the hole in the top, bad been supplanted by a neat log cabin, with door, floor and chimney. The chief, together with the tribe, were electrified with this new acquisition, and Kenton at once became a hero, and would have become in a short time, chief architect and practical builder to the entire com- munity, but for the intervention of the chief, who at once entered his protest that his adopted son should not be the slave of the tribe, being a member of his family. A compromise was effected, however, by which Kenton became superintendent of re-construction-men being detailed to perform the labor.
Thus the summer passed away, and the fall winds and eddying blasts her- alded the approach of winter, which to the Indian is an important period, as it involves the necessity of providing sustenance in advance. A grand fall hunt was arranged, and, although Kenton desired to be one of the party, he was informed that he must remain at the village. Consequently, when the party left, Kenton and another prisoner were left in charge of two braves. Although Kenton had never exhibited any signs of discontent or dissatisfaction with his situation, yet there never was a time during his captivity that he did not meditate an escape when the proper time came and a suitable opportunity offered. The tribe having gone to the hunt, there remained only the old men, the women and children and the two warriors, the auspicious moment seemed to be approaching. The escape could be effected without trouble or opposition but for the two guards, who always went armed, and who watched Kenton and his companion with unceasing devotion. Finally an opportunity offered, a de- tailed account of which will close this chapter.
About a mile from the village was a small lake, which abounded in fish, and to which the Indians were in the habit of resorting, both for the sport of fishing as well as a means of sustenance.
A few days after the departure of the hunters, the guards proposed and ar- ranged an excursion to the lake, to spend the day in fishing. Each one of the
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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
party being provided with hook and line, started. Kenton and his companion having discussed the probabilities, had previously determined to make the at- tempt at escape this day, if any possible opportunity should offer. The most eligible point for taking fish was where a large tree had fallen so that about thirty feet of the trunk extended into the lake. The Indians, in their anxiety to obtain the best point, were some thirty feet in advance of Kenton, and, thoughtlessly, no doubt, laid their guns and ammunition on the tree near the margin of the lake. Kenton, with his characteristic sagacity, took in the sit- uation at once, saw his opportunity at the instant the Indians saw their mistake, snatched up one of the guns, and, as the Indians sprang to their feet, shot the foremost one, killing him instantly. The other Indian being so close upon him he had no time to use the other gun, clubbed the one he had in his hand, made a pass but missed his antagonist, and before he could gather for another blow, the Indian had clinched, and they both went into the water. In the struggle which ensued, the Indian succeeded in getting Kenton's head between his legs, and evidently intended to keep him under the water until drowned, to which arrangement Kenton did not so readily acquiesce; so, with a mighty effort for life, he got one of the Indian's thumbs between his teeth, causing such acute pain that Kenton was enabled to extricate his head, and they both came to the surface, Kenton still holding on to the thumb, and, grasping the Indian by the throat, he succeeded in getting the Indian's head under water, where he held it with the determination of desperation until death ended the struggle. Kenton's companion meanwhile stood a quiet spectator of the scene. Arming themselves with the arms of their enemies, they struck out for home, which they reached in due time, to the surprise and joy of friends who had long mourned Kenton as dead.
Other names conspicuous in the history and prosperity of the county might be mentioned. These will be remembered in the sketches of the several town- ships.
Many names identified with the general prosperity have been mentioned'in the preceding pages. More special notice may be made of them and others, residents of Urbana Township.
Among the early merchants and business men of the county was
JOHN REYNOLDS.
He was a man of simple tastes, quiet, unpretending and unambitious. He was a man of enlarged views, and, in an early day, took an active interest in all matters of public concern. The marked features of his character were great integrity and rare common sense. He never neglected his business, prospered in his undertakings, contributed to the prosperity of all connected with him, and had the open hand of a true charity. He died at an advanced age.
HENRY WEAVER
came from Kentucky when a youth, and soon became one of the first shots with the rifle in the country. The killing of a white man by the Indians in the south- western part of the county alarmed many settlers, and most or all who came with him from Kentucky returned, he alone remaining. About 1830, he opened a store in a small frame building on the corner of the public square, where the Weaver hardware store now is. He had a judicious eye for a speculation or purchase, invested his profits in loans, mortgages and profitable enterprises, and
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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
died a few years since at an advanced age, having accumulated perhaps the largest private fortune of any citizen of the county. In advanced life, his appearance showed little of the encroachments of age, and he continued the practice of horseback-riding to the last.
SAMUEL M'CORD,
one of the earliest residents of the county, and among the first to be chosen Sheriff. He opened the first store in town, and always had an interest in the general prosperity. The crushing of his foot by a saw-log, in 1844, gave him much inconvenience for the remainder of his life. He was fond of a practical joke, and was in the habit of attending auctions and bidding on all goods offered, apparently for the purpose of exciting a spirited bidding among the bystanders, and as a consequence had his cellar full of useless " traps." He built, in 1821, the brick residence on the corner of Scioto and Locust streets, which, for many years, was considered a model house. During a long life, he continued the hospitalities of the early pioneer, and the stranger and friend were made welcome. The table always had an extra cover laid for the probable guest. He died in 1849 at a green old age.
WILLIAM M'DONALD,
for many years a prominent citizen of Urbana, and partner in the mercantile firm of W. & D. McDonald. He represented the county in the State Legisla- ture, and was considered a man of good sense, general intelligence and great integrity.
SAMUEL KEENER
was from Baltimore. Had been formerly connected with a wholesale drug establishment, and, on removal to Champaign, became a farmer, and brought the training of his mercantile life into the business of the farm. He was a man of general knowledge, a considerable reader, and of fine practical sense. He was a good talker, " of infinite jest," and, in matters of business, a man of posi- tive convictions and plain in their expression. Few men, perhaps no one in the township, did more for the development of a higher farming than he, both in the introduction of thoroughbred stock and in his system of agriculture, and, by his success, demonstrated that "farming may be made to pay." He died in 1854, aged fifty-six. Mr. Griffith Ellis is in possession of a fine oil portrait of Mr. Keener.
Other names might be mentioned equally meritoricus-men of industry, integrity and worth, among whom may be named William H. Fyffe, John A. Ward, James Smith, William G. Keller, Ira Bean, Matthew Magrew, Jacob Kauffman, Dr. J. S. Carter, William Rianhard, John and William Glenn, Dr. William Happersett, Edmund Hovey, John Goddard, Joseph White, Erastus Sheldon, Milo G. Williams, and others, who were known as useful and valu- able citizens-men who build up and give character to a town and country.
In art-life, Champaign has a number of representatives. The first in point of time, was Harrison Hite, son of George Hite, who, forty years ago, might have been seen any day standing in the water, or sitting on the factory pond bank, with his rod and line, waiting patiently " for a bite." Young Hite had the reputation of a finished miniature painter. He located in New York City, where, it is said, his time was fully occupied in his profession. He died a number of years ago.
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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
William Sweet, son of Azel Sweet, had a decided talent for portrait paint- ing. Travel and study would have given him a name in his profession. He was making arrangements for a residence in Europe for the prosecution of his profession, about 1840, when he died, at the age of twenty-five or thirty years.
Andrew Way had considerable talent as a portrait painter. He studied in Europe, and is said to have painted a number of historical pictures. He lives. in Baltimore.
John Q. A. Ward, son of John A. Ward, a man of rare talent as a sculp- tor, and, by his designs and works, has now an enviable reputation. Emphat- ically a "home-made " man, having never had leisure to study the works of art in the old world. Central Park, New York City, contains a number of his works. The plaster statuette of Simon Kenton, to be seen in the Citizens' Bank, was designed and made by him.
Edgar Ward, son of John A. Ward, has talent for figures and landscape painting. He excels in depicting the country life of the old world. Several of his pictures were on exhibition at the Exposition in Chicago. He has spent some time in Europe, and is now in Paris.
Warren Cushman, a native of Woodstock, has a studio in Urbana, and has- painted portraits of a large number of the citizens of town. In crayon draw- ing, he has been very successful, and has made one of the very best of the many portraits of President Hayes.
Mr. De Voe, in connection with his photographic gallery, paints in oil colors, making landscapes a specialty.
Miss Lillie King paints both in oil and water colors, and, in some of her sketches and paintings, has shown considerable talent in landscape and natural objects.
ODDS AND ENDS.
Changes in fashion are so gradual we scarcely notice them, but it may not be uninteresting to note a few.
As the century came in, much of the fashion that prevailed during the Revolution began to make way for a simpler dress. The three-cornered hat, the cue, the Continental coat, with its lappels and buff facings, the breeches, knee-buckles and garters, were hardly suited to a new country, and, of necessity, made way for buckskin, tow shirts, coon caps and linsey-woolsey. Yet at the time of which we write, the "gentleman of the old school," who prided him- self on his "blue blood," held with pertinacity to his cue and his buckles.
A majority of the early settlers wore the buckskin hunting-shirt and trows- ers. There was no economy or comfort in it after linsey-woolsey could be obtained. After they had become wet, no amount of manipulation could restore their wonted pliancy ; and the boy running daily through the woods and high grass, soon found his trowsers not only rigid, but, in spite of his best endeav- ors, by skrinkage leaving a wide margin between his feet and the trowsers.
It is difficult to find a true dandy of that period. The common feeling was one of contempt for those who made a display of dress. At the log-rollings, corn-huskings and general social gatherings, there was rivalry for partners, pride in athletic sports, and in neatness of personal appearance ; but, so far as we have been able to learn, the animal we call a "dandy " was not known in the earlier part of the century. The same feeling of contempt for fashionable dress continued a marked trait of the rural population until, perhaps, within the present generation.
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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
The girl of the period dressed in homespun, showed the deft hand in the adjustments which give a charm to the humblest materials, at home. went bare- foot, tied up her hair in a knot with a string, wore sun-bonnets or hats made of straw, and, when she was married, put on a cap.
The changing fashions brought the "swallow-tailed " dress-coat and panta- loons into use, and a disuse of the cue, or "pig-tail," as it was styled among the profane among the younger set. The older class still held to the cue and knee- breeches. The clergy were in the habit of railing at the frivolity of the age. Martin Hitt wore what was then and has since been called the "shad-belly," cue, breeches and buckles, which he held to be the true dress of a gentleman as long as he lived.
About the year 1820, the Methodist Episcopal Conference sat in Urbana, of which Henry T. Bascom, then a young man, was a member. Bascom was a little foppish in his dress, and carried a light cane, and gave great offense to the "shad-bellies " for preferring broadcloth to jeans, and a fashionable swallow- tail to the distinctive style of the minister. Bascom had a ready answer, that he had no objection to a suit of the simplest sort, but his clothes had been given to him, and he was too poor to throw them away, and would be glad to receive another suit of plainer cut !
William Ward, more commonly called Col. Ward, who was grandfather of the families bearing the name in the vicinity of Urbana, during his life held to the old style of dress. Solomon Vause, discarding the rest, retained the cue until his death, which happened in 1837.
About 1830, the "shad-belly " and "pig-tail" were to be seen only on men of advanced age, though occasionally a young man affected the latter. About this time, singing-schools were places of common interest. One of them was conducted by Samuel Miller, afterward a man of some note in the village, who wore his hair in a cue. Some of the young fellows of the town started a manuscript newspaper, called The Wasp, of which half a dozen copies were gratuitously circulated. The Wasp was used to lampoon the follies of the day, and Miller's cue came in for a share of the ridicule, and was called the "skillet- handle." Miller was not invulnerable to the satire, and cut off the handle.
The style of wearing the hair during the first forty years underwent several changes. The young man of fashion at the first tied his back hair in a band- age of ribbon, leaving the extremity loose, and no Chinaman ever guarded his pig-tail with more jealous care. By 1830, the fashionable man "roached " his hair, and trimmed behind to a moderate length. By 1840, the hair of the back part of the head, in a line drawn from ear to ear across the crown. was cut very short, and the front part permitted to grow to the length of six to eight inches, which was nicknamed by the unfashionable "soap-locks."
The men of eighty years ago were all clean shaven, which was the custom generally until a very recent day. In 1840, the men who wore whiskers were the " border ruffiian " and the Mississippi steamboat poker player. The long beard and waxed mustache in the rural districts were a curiosity, and the big watch chain, flowing beard and fierce looks plainly indicated the proprietor to be somebody. In recent times, it has become almost universal to let the beard grow. The exceptions are to be found mainly among the " oldest settlers," who, to this day, wear clean shaved faces. Among these, we now recall the faces and names of Judge John Taylor, John Enoch, Samuel Humes, Robert M. Woods, John H. James, John Earsom, James McLean, William Patrick, John Hurd, Jacob Minturn, Simon Earsom and others.
yours Smiley Gabriel Prenten
MAD RIVER TP.
MRS. MARY A. KENTON MAD RIVER TP.
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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.
The fashions of the ladies have been so variable and complicated that e shall not attempt the task of describing them. 'Tis said the quantity requisite for a dress pattern has increased with the increasing years. It is a greater puzzle to the " old man " when he foots the bill, and remembers that Mrs. Laf- ferty, the largest woman in the county when linsey-woolsey was fashionable, required only six yards, and left a remnant for repairs !
The Urbana Union newspaper, in March, 1867, began a publication of the history of Champaign County, prepared by Mr. John H. James, running through the pages of that paper about a year. The papers abound in items of interest, and personal sketches of men who lived in the county. Having come to Urbana at an early day, and whose studies and pursuits brought him in close acquaintance with the old settlers, and an intimate knowledge of the projected improvements and changes which have taken place for nearly three-quarters of a century, no one is better qualified than he to narrate the details of the border life, and the progress that the hand of industry has wrought accurately and well. The history was copyrighted by Mr. Houx, the publisher, and we are authorized to make extracts from its pages.
The first Legislature had provided for an enumeration of the inhabitants. This was duly made, and the returns made to the General Assembly, which met in 1803, showed that there were then fifteen counties in the State, and that the number of white male inhabitants was 17,767. Of this number, Greene County, out of which Champaign was carved, had 446.
The first session of the Legislature passed an act to establish seats of justice. The law required three Commissioners, to be appointed by the General Assembly, to examine and determine what part of the county was most eligible for holding the courts. The Commissioner was not to be a resident of the county, nor own any land therein, and must have arrived at the age of twenty-five years. The Commissioners were to meet within sixty days of notice of their appointment, give twenty days' public notice to the people, take an oath to perform their duties, and then proceed to select a place as near the center of the county as possible. Report of what was done was to be made to the Court of Common Pleas, and, if no town had been laid off, the court appointed a Director to pur- chase the land, lay the same off into lots and streets, and sell the same at public or private sale for the benefit of the new county. The law is interesting, as showing the means adopted to secure justice and honesty in the discharge of a public duty.
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