USA > Ohio > Darke County > The history of Darke County, Ohio, containing a history of the county; its cities, towns, etc.; general and local statistics; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; > Part 34
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HISTORY OF DARKE COUNTY.
the first work built as a fort in the county; New Castine and Ithaca, in 1832 ; Braffettsville and Palestine, in 1833; Webster, 1835 ; Beamsville and New Har- rison, in 1837; Ilollandsburg, 1838; North JJacksonville and Gettysburg, 1842 ; Dallas, 1845 ; Sampson, 1846; Hill Grove and Coleville, in 1848; Gordon, 1849 ; Tampico, 1850 ; Rose Hill, 1852; De Lisle, 1853; Nevada, 1854; Stelvidio, in the same year, and Woodland, in 1859. There was now an interval of seven years, during which the stormy scenes of warfare embittered feeling and absorbed pub- lic attention, but again the current rolled on, and, in 1866, Pikeville was platted, next Bradford ; then Rossville, in 1868, Painter Creek in 1870, and Wood- ington in 1871. A number of these are promising, prosperous villages, while oth- ers are lively hamlets, convenient of resort for meals, grists, trade, lumber conven- iences and church privileges. Fine pikes bearing the name of the village of which they are a terminus, or through which they extend, render wheeling conven- ient and make all points accessible, regardless of seasons. Railroads traverse the townships in various directions. and the difficulties of early transportation are now unknown. The obstacles of the past cannot be conceived from any observation of the present. The fields traversed by open or covered drains, and bearing fine crops of wheat and corn, the groves free from all undergrowth. and the unob- structed streams, require personal knowledge or strong faith to believe the stories of the battles of civilization with the rude, strong elements of nature.
The county occupies a position inclining its surface southward from the west- ern limits of the great watershed dividing the basins of the Wabash and the Miami. It is classified as a portion of Southern Ohio. A good knowledge of the general topography of the county, so far as relates to the dip of the land and changes induced by the action of water, is afforded by the statement that "the summit ridge enters the county in the northeastern part, bearing southwest through the northern part of Patterson Township, through the southern parts of Wabash and Allen, and passing out near the middle of Jackson Township." Persons familiar with lands like situated, could derive analogous information of the surface or con- tour features of this and give proper weight to agencies concerned in alluvial deposits and erosure of higher lands. The general surface is, in the main, flat, and slopes almost uniformly from the summit line northwest and southeast ; there are, there- fore. no distinct topographical features to avert the sight. Something approx- imating monotony is presented by the basins of Greenville and Stillwater Creeks, the numerous wild and beautiful cairns and other variations originating in local causes. There are occasional striking manifestations perceived upon the underly- ing rocks of a tremendous erosive power, but the deposit of an average of 100 feet of drift, conceals most effectively this truth, and the surface contour presents no indication of this interesting geologic fact. Portions of the surface are a level plain, others are hilly and undulating, while to the northeast there is low, waste, inundated land, rich in its deposit of vegetable debris, treacherous to the foot and useless for cultivation, till ultimately co-operative drainage shall render its wealth available.
The summit ridge is not strongly marked, nor is it of uneven outline. For ages, active agencies have divested the surface of loose material and worn down inequalities until we simply behold a broad, rounded belt of elevated land. The rock, gradually crumbling has been swept down as varied alkali clays, and spread as a layer over the low, wet basins of the Wabash and Stillwater, thereby com- mingling with the black, loamy soil, and supplying those elements of fertility which have given this section its reputation, while leveling the carly broken out- lines of surface. The ridge is yet prominent, as it bounds the line of the extreme southern limits of the northern lakes and stands as a marked feature in thetopog- raphy of the State.
The highest land in the region of the divide is in the northwest portion of the county. A little north of Union City, the altitude above low-water mark in the Ohio at Cincinnati. is 665 feet, which is the highest accurately known. On the
A A. Inclan
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crest of the slope between the Stillwater and the Wabash, the land has an eleva- tion thirty feet less than at the point named. On the line between Darke and Mercer, the elevation is 634 feet, although places in this vicinity have a possible altitude of 700 feet. The elevation at Greenville is about 590 feet, while, on the county line between Darke and Preble, in Harrison Township, there is a descent to 551 feet. At Ithaca, Twin Township, the elevation is 557 feet above the Ohio. The greatest depression is considered to exist along the bottom of Greenville Creek, in Adams Township, where the elevation is but 520 feet, while the bluffs in the vicinity rise 20 feet higher. Lake Erie is 133 feet higher than the Ohio, and, taking the former as a basis, these altitudes must be diminished to that extent for comparison. From this we find the highest land is 567 feet above Lake Erie, or 1,132 feet above the level of the sea.
In the study of these surface features, it is remarkable, that but one of those primitive lakes once so numerous and still frequently met with upon the water- shed in counties eastward, exists here. It is known as the " Black Swamp," and the extensive drainage is reducing its immense deposits of vegetable matter to the character of a bog.
Peat bogs are found in different parts of the county. Near Weaver's Station there is a peat deposit of two to three feet in depth, resting upon the limestone, and is a substance well calculated as a fertilizer for the more sterile, high clay lands. Just to the southwest of Greenville, on Mud Creek Prairie, which was formerly submerged almost to its source in Harrison Township, there is a considerable deposit of peat. To the southeast of the city, about one and a half miles, another is found. An incident illustrating the singular character of one of these peat bogs has been thus given : "Many years ago, in the construction of the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianapolis Railroad in the northern part of the county, the route of the track necessitated the running over one of these peat bogs. To the apparently dry loam, with its dense growth of vegetation, was added sufficient gravel and other material to complete the bed of the road, and in due time the rails were laid and the track used. But one morning, not long after, as the train came along, a great break was espied ; the track had evidently disappeared, and, upon investigation, the truth was revealed. The track, instead of crossing over a dry peat bog, was rather laid over a hidden lake. Vast quantities of mosses and aquatic plants, together with branches, trunks of trees, and other accumulations, had collected until they had formed, as it were, a super-aquatic soil of several feet in thickness, and of such a remarkable density and buoyancy as to support, for a time, the weight of a passing train.
Darke County was, to a certain extent, divided into prairie and timber land, and these were so interspersed that some farms were advantageously composed of tillable and woodland in fair proportions and compact form. Those so fortunate as to have acquired this land were indeed favored. The timber at once supplied building material, fences and fuel, and when a market opened, the forest wood was utilized and the ground cleared for tillage. Much the greater portion of the soil of Darke is well known to be rich and fertile to a remarkable degree, and the appearance of the farms strongly contrasts with those that may be seen in many other counties, and suggests a long-settled section. It is an actual granary of corn, oats and wheat. The yield is annually large and the quality is excellent. This fine yield is almost entirely the result of the drift. Deposits of clay, sand and gravel acted upon by heat, cold, air and streams, blended with vegetation and animal life for ages, have formed the present productive soil which gives celebrity to Darke and adjacent counties. The clays and sand become separated from the hardpan ; the rocks crumble under the alternate thaws and frosts, and their debris was washed downward upon the bottoms and assisted by vegetation ; plants grew and decayed; overflowing streams dissolving mingled these materials, and thereby produced a rich and varied soil. Three classes of soil are characteristic of this section, that of clay, of alluvial and of turf. The first-named predominates,
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HISTORY OF DARKE COUNTY.
and is a particular constituent of the region of watershed and all other uplands or higher portions of the county. Its hue is varied from yellow to red and brown. It is seen upon the crest of the divide to be of an almost white or ashen color from the weathering and drainage. This soil is in places solid and tenacious, but in the main is free and porous. The former is of value in the manufacture of brick and tile ; the latter is renowned for the crops of wheat and kindred cereals produced. The alluvial or bottom is of a black, loamy character, blending with a considerable amount of decayed plant matter and leavened with silica ; it is free, mealy and fertile, the natural soil for corn, which thrives thereon remarkably. The turf soil is of a dark gray color, covering the primitive surface, which, where it prevails, is low but dry. It is seen to advantage in freshly cleared forest lands, and blends clay with vegetable growth. and is adapted for the growth of pumpkins, potatoes and the like, together with the lesser grains.
The natural products of Darke County were those little known to the present occupants. The times when Jefferson and Greenville were built and trains of pack-horses traveled the traces of armies, saw an unbroken forest stretching from the Ohio away to the shores of the Great Lakes. Here could be seen the various oaks, white, red, black, burr, chestnut and pin ; sugar and swamp maples, the former rich with the juices of the frosty spring's rising sap ; the sassafras, whose root bark made healthful drink; the white and slippery elms, the latter with its viscous inner bark; the walnuts, black and white, the one prized by the cabinet- maker, the other known as the "butternut," and freighted in the falltime with brown oval nuts; the sycamore, as often known as "buttonwood ; " the shagbark hickory, whose bark gave light for evening labor; and besides all these, the cot- tonwood, the flowering dogwood, the buckeye, the white ash, the beech, and a sprinkling of black cherry, mulberry, thorn, iron wood, black willow, wild plum, and trembling aspen. The sap of the sugar maple supplied the pioneers with sirup, sugar and vinegar, and from the earliest days till now this manufacture of a native product has been a springtime occupation. Pickles were made by plac- ing freshly plucked cucumbers in a mixture of one part whisky to four of water, and a little salt. They were soon fitted for use. Molasses was made from pumpkins, and pared pumpkin, stewed, was placed in the juice, boiled down, all- spice was added and pumpkin butter made. Early fruit was of indifferent quality, but later years were marked by attention to its cultivation. The apple thrives. and in 1877, over twenty-five thousand bushels were produced from the orchards. The peach is foreign to this region, and to partake of this fine fruit it is needful to plant out trees each year. Pears thrive with ordinary attention, and during the year last named the product in this county was upward of a thousand bushels.
While the position of her territory admits no rivers, the lands are not deficient in water-courses. The numerous springs and surface drainage occasion many water-ways, which, from proximity to their sources, are but headwaters of ultimate large streams. The chief stream is known as Greenville Creek, which has its origin in the northern divide, a short distance without the county. Conforming to the direction of slope land, it flows in an almost uniformly southeast course, until arrested by the bluff upon which the county seat is located ; its course trends around its cairn toward the northeast, and then, with many a curve and turn, runs eastward to its junction with the Stillwater in Miami County. All its affluents are received from the south, since the highlands on the north press close upon its bank and divert all its streams into the basin of the Stillwater. Painter's Creek drains the county to the south, and the two constitute a system of which there may be said to be four-small, but clearly outlined.
Stillwater Creek rises in the summit ridge, in the northern part of the county, and traverses the shallow valley lying between the plateau and the watershed. Like Greenville Creek, it pursues an easterly course, following the natural inclina- tion of the surface. The rivulets which form its affluents originate in the clayey
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HISTORY OF DARKE COUNTY.
drift deposits of the divide. This and the Greenville system drain the most fer- tile lands of the county. The once well-known "spread of the Stillwater " has been rendered the richest and most productive of soils by removing obstructions in the water-course and by ditching.
The Mississinawa and the Wabash rise upon the northern slope of the divide. A little further east these streams would be directed toward Lake Erie, but are intercepted by Wabash Ridge and turned westward into Indiana. Not much area is drained by these headwaters in Darke County, where the basin of the Wabash begins in a narrow, gentle valley, which gradually broadens into an immensely fertile belt in its course through Northeastern and Central Indiana. This course of the Wabash to the southeast may be thought to indicate the course of an ancient gap whereby waters and icebergs were borne into the valley of the Still- water. Upon a different declivity far to the southward in the county, are the sources of Whitewater, Miller's and Twin Creeks, together with other creeks of minor importance. All these streams are shallow in the main, and flow within modern basins, the greatest elevation of Greenville Creek not exceeding about thirty feet.
Many fine springs are found in different parts of the county. The well-water, as well as the spring-water along the water-sheds, is sulphurous and not desirable for use. Near Weaver's Station, New Madison and that vicinity occur numerous springs, which rise upon the surface of the magnesian limestone, and which are in consequence impregnated with carbonate of lime, magnesia and other mineral properties exuded from the rock and the clay. Thus mineral springs exist, some of whose waters are as fully charged with minerals as are the famous Cedar Spring of New Paris, Preble County. The supply of water is of ample volume and good quality. The best well-water is obtained from a depth varying from thirty to fifty feet, and is drawn from the deposits of sand and gravel upon the surface of blue clay. All in all, situation, soil, climate and product unite to make Darke County one of the most desirable portions of the State.
AGRICULTURE, TRADE AND MARKETS.
Darke County has a soil, a climate and a local position which constitute the essentials of a first-class agricultural county. For a time, the wave of immigra- tion swept around her lands and beyond, but ultimately those far seeing selected from her territory their farms and began their work. Half a century ago, Darke County was yet in a state of nature, except here and there where the pioneer had kindled his camp-fire and cut away a small area of timber from about his dwelling ; then the settler had at his option the best land in the county, and his successors continued to make choice until not only the bottoms along the streams and the more inviting upland was entered, but even the "flats " and "slushes," that the settlers thought "would forever remain unentered, and give pasture and range for their stock." The virgin soil produced in abundance with indifferent tillage, and the woods supplied meats for the table.
The ax was vigorously plied, the deadening was extended, and from spring to spring time again, the smoke could be seen to rise from the clearing. Little by little improvements were made, one succeeding another, and here and there the old settlers died until it is seen to-day, that the foundation and the founders are pass- ing from memory in present labors. As was said by Hon. Abner Haines before the agricultural society on September 18, 1853, "The early settlers had many obstacles to contend with in the development of the country which no longer obstruct the progress of this generation. It required much labor to clear the land and prepare it for cultivation. This labor has been performed, leaving to the pres- ent generation time to think and improve, as well as to work." We have in earlier chapters depicted the perils and the crudities of early agriculture. We see the settlers flying in panic from their homes, from dread of the hatchet, suffering from
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HISTORY OF DARKE COUNTY.
chills and fever, hindered by insufficient implements from doing good farming, deprived of access to store and shop, without roads, almost without mills, and dependent upon the soil and the forest for the supply of every want. It is well worth a review to note the gradual transition of field, dwelling, habits and per- sons, machinery, stock and crops, bringing soil and occupant to the front, the one to become celebrated, the other to be marked as independent and progressive. Old times have passed away ; the ax, the maul and wedges, the sickle, the seytlie, and hoe are relics now of a past system. Splitting rails is no longer an occupation, though the most common fence is still the zig-zag rail fence. The cradle displaced the siekle, to be itself superseded by the Dorsey Reaper, and then others improved to the present perfection. The stumps are gone from the clearings, the log houses have been abandoned, used as granaries and stables, torn away or rotted down, the old well-sweeps have all finally disappeared, and, annually at the old and prosper- ous agricultural fair, are seen the various plows, chilled, diamond, champion, sulky and others, so of cultivators, corn-planters, seed-drills, harrows, pulverizers, harvesters, hay-rakes, thrashers and separators, cach contrasting to the experienced mind, changes of method in agriculture, relieving the husbandman of toil, and assuring in uniformity and perfection in preparation and cultivation a yield of profit and the means of ready harvesting, thrashing and marketing. Contrast the dropping of corn and covering with the hoe, with the swift movements of the planter, the irregular broadcast sowing by lands or landmarks with the seed-drill, the former harrow with the present, the old reaper even with its man to rake off the gavels with the self-dropper, the old method of haying with scythes laying the swaths. with hand-rakes forming the windrows, with forks placing in cocks, and finally the wearisome labor of pitching and stowing away in the barns, in striking contrast to the music of the mower as the farmer rides, always leaving circles about his meadow, shaving and spreading the grasses at cach round, the buggy-rake gather- ing with wide sweeps, the hay-fork and hoisting tackle depositing the fragrant hay in the capacious bay for winter's food to choice breeds of domestic animals.
The staple grain product of Darke has constantly been corn. Fully twice as many acres have been devoted to this cereal as to any other. It has always played an important part in the agriculture of the country. From being the almost sole dependence for food to the farmer, it has become the source of an important income by export, as well as food for stock. Next in order came wheat, always desirable for food, not so certain as corn, and of later years a second great source of profit to the farmer. In the earlier day, the market was at the mills of Piqua, where the farmers went with doubled teams upon a three-days trip to realize from 35 to 40 cents a bushel. Reports were circulated of good prices, a rush of team- ing followed and the market was overstocked. About 1837 or 1838, a colony of Germans moved into Darke and bought rejected lands, entered some and paid as high as $12 to $16 per acre for farms partially improved, and gave a stimulus to farming, but it was not till after the completion of the first railroad, a dozen years before the pikes began to have an existence, that that the most powerful stimulus was given to agriculture.
We have elsewhere noted a variegated soil, well adapted to wheat, corn, rye, flax. potatoes and various grasses. The improved facilities for market of surplus products and the influence of a newly formed agricultural society, produced a marked and favorable change in farming, and became apparent in every depart- ment. The year 1853 may be regarded as the revival of agriculture. The fertility of the soil seems to have been realized, plowing was deeper, manuring was begun, rotation of crops was considered, farm lands were extended by clearing woodland and by bringing into cultivation swamp lands, much of which had been deemed valueless, through the application of judicious draining ; there was improvement in agricultural implements, and the greatest interest and progress seems to have been made in the breeds of domestic animals. The building of the Pan Handle enhanced values, bringing wheat to 75 cents a bushel and making prices for land.
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HISTORY OF DARKE COUNTY.
It will be seen that this year the county was rapidly growing into note and importance, growing out of an ability to enjoy natural and local advantages. Farm- ers from the Eastern States, and industrious foreigners, were constantly moving in and occupying the new lands. Now, at last, the capabilities of Darke were to be realized. Her territory was extensive, fertile and mainly serviceable. The crops of small grains were generally sure and abundant, and confidence not altogether devoid of speculation seized upon the minds of the residents of towns and the dwellers upon the farms.
To present at a glance the condition of agriculture in Darke twenty-seven years ago, we refer to the following table of
THIE STATISTICS OF 1853.
The valuation of the 371,053 acres of land in the county was placed at $4,211,- 858, or an average of $11.35 per acre ; the value of buildings was estimated to be $399,734, while the aggregated value of all taxables was nearly $5,000,000. This was a net increase over 1846, but seven years previous, of $2,297,144. There were now of arable or plow lands, 98.542 acres ; of meadows and pasture, 22,469, and of woodland and uncultivated, 250,863 ; this gives us about 60 per cent yet in a state of nature. The wheat crop of 1852 was 324,958 bushels, and of corn, 661,- 019. There were of domestic animals 8,798 horses, 14 mules, 19,717 cattle, 23,731 sheep, and 45,010 hogs.
Four years later, improved farms about Greenville were held at $40 per acre, at which figure several changed ownership. Among them was the sale of 1523 acres by W. A. Weston to John C. Schmidt, for $6,100 ; L. H. Byran sold 97 acres for $4,000; and Tunis Denise disposed of 80 acres at the same rate. These figures premise rise in values and wealth of purchasers.
The future was not less prosperous than the past ; an aroused intelligence, increased numbers, ready appliances and the command of means brought Darke County, during the years up to 1860, and thence to 1868, into the front rank in all staple products of the State. In the yield of wheat for the eight years from 1860 to 1868, Darke stands fifth among the foremost ten counties, and in average per acre the seventh. She had during these years turned her energies to the con- struction of pikes, and speedily advanced toward the van. A writer of that day thus depicts the local feeling, "Ours is a level county, a rich soil susceptible of easy, rapid, cheap cultivation and yielding bountifully to the husbandman who is up with the day, in the purchase and use of improved farm machinery. Darke is not dark, but as smiling, beautiful, healthy and pleasant a locality as can be found in the country, possessing good schools and fine dwellings."
The following was the annual yield of wheat from 1860 to 1868, inclusive : 554.149 bushels, 437,004, 671,355, 505,972, 493,513, 340,611, 260,611. 337,550. During 1863-64, the yield brought Darke to the fifth from the first in the State. The total yield for the eight years was 3,610,756 bushels. The county stood ninth in corn product in 1866, with a yield of 1,397,968 bushels ; in barley the sixth, and in flax culture the fourth. She stood second in the number of turnpikes, there being 34, with an aggregate length of 293 miles, and, in 1868, ranked eleventh in the number and value of horses, there being 11.300, valued at $756,139.
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