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 38
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"THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD IN DARKE COUNTY.
" When African slavery existed as an institution in the Southern States, there was an organization in most of the free States known as . the underground rail- road.' Although the term was very generally used to designate a society which gave aid and assistance to such fugitives as had escaped from their servitude, and were in search of liberty, yet there were but few persons in any community who had any practical knowledge of the workings of this mysterious and humane society. The cabalistic letters ' U. G. R. R.' were generally used when referring to the association. It was first bestowed by slave-owners. Fugitive slaves on their way to the free States were not unfrequently close upon capture when they sud- denly disappeared. Once, pursuit was so close that success seemed sure, when trace was lost, and one of the slave-hunters, on his return, gave it as his opinion that the Abolitionists had an 'underground railroad' on which the fugitives were spirited away. From this originated the term, which the Abolitionists adopted as the name of their organization.
" Although there was not a regularly established line of the underground rail- road in Darke County, there were persons in different localities who were always ready to render assistance when called on. Fugitives were often taken across the county to another line of road which was in active operation ; for example, from Miami or Montgomery County to Newport, Ind. This was necessary, sometimes, to throw the hunters off' the track, and was always effective.
" The question was often, and is even now, asked, 'How did the slave know whom to apply to in a strange country for assistance ?' In all towns and cities there are always found a large number of free blacks ; some of them have bought their freedom ; some are fugitives from far-off, distant States, and feel safe in their new homes. This class of persons are shrewd observers of things, and they read- ily detect a stranger. In this way, thousands became aware of the existence of the underground railroad, and entrusted themselves to its care. Many slaves, before they started on their hazardous undertaking, possessed knowledge sufficient to work their way to a free State. While up in the Red River country, in Louisi- ana, many years ago, an old house-servant came to me just as I was starting homeward. and in a low voice said : . Massa, I heard you tell ole Massa that you lived near Cincinnati, Ohio. I have often prayed to my Maker to take me to that blessed place before I die.' This language was strange and unexpected, but I soon found out how he, as well as others like him in the land of bondage, had learned some little about the free States. Slaveholders, in their social meetings, would become quite indignant against the people of the free States, branding them as 'nigger-thieves,' ete., because they sometimes aided a fugitive to find a refuge in Canada. Cincinnati was always spoken of as the headquarters of Aboli- tionists. These conversations were no uncommon occurrence among slave-owners, and the ignorant bondmen, while listening, would naturally reason : 'Cincinnati
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must be filled with good people who are friends to the colored folks. because Massa and the white folks are always cussing it and calling it a den of thieves, who help niggers run away to the British country, where they are forever free.'
" The underground railroad was bold and open in its operations until the passage of the 'fugitive-slave law' of 1850, when it became necessary to adopt a more cautious and less hazardous plan of operations. Instead of men of means placing themselves in front as depot-agents and conductors, as heretofore, they transferred these duties to trusty poor men, off whom the law could not collect the heavy penalties of transgression, and the funds were provided by men of wealth.
" The fugitive-slave law of 1850 was a firebrand cast at freedom by that Sen- atorial traitor. Mason, of Virginia; but it proved to be a valuable auxiliary to the cause of freedom. My old friend, Dr. Otwell, now living in Greenville, said to me upon the receipt of the news of the passage of the law : . It will arouse the North. agitation will follow, and it will result in good.'
" Some time since I cut the following paragraph from a newspaper. It is intro- duced here, because the fugitives mentioned were taken through Darke County, and because it will give the uninitiated a peep behind the curtain :
"'Judge Sharkey. at present a petitioner before the Supreme Court, is charged with being the author of an infamous decision, consigning a widow and her chil- dren into slavery. The former had been the wife of a Mississippi planter, who had legalized his marriage with her in a Northern State. The children had been educated in Ohio. Returning South, they were seized by relatives of the deceased planter, and on application to Sharkey were doomed to slavery.'
"It is true, the relatives attempted to seize the mother and five children under the decision of Judge Sharkey, but before the officers could secure their human chattels, they made their escape to Cincinnati, and were landed safely in Canada through the agency of the underground railroad.
"Prior to their last visit to Mississippi, they had consulted an eminent lawyer of antislavery proclivities, Salmon P. Chase, of Cincinnati, and he advised them not to risk anything in a Mississippi court. They therefore left what in common law was their property by the decease of the husband and father, and escaped to Cincinnati by steamboat. Although the children had been educated in Ohio, and papers confirming the marriage were on record. it was deemed unsafe to risk the decisions of the courts, so they were assisted on their way north, by those who sympathized with them. In a few days, they arrived in the city of Dayton, and were taken in charge by a well-known agent of the road.
" The same evening, the slave hunters arrived. for they learned the colored fam- ily had taken passage on a canal-boat. Fortunately, by the blustering"manner of the slave-hunters, the antislavery people of Cincinnati became apprised of their errand, and a courier was at once despatched to Dayton, arriving but a short time in advance of the pursuers, and measures were at once adopted for the protection of the fugitives. They were stowed away in a dark eellar. and at 12 o'clock at night, they were conveyed out of the city in a close carriage, and taken across the country toward Newport, Ind. The person having this valuable freight in charge was ordered to go by way of Ithaca, Castine and New Madison. At Ithaca he took the road leading to Fort Jefferson. which took him several miles out of the way. They reached New Madison about breakfast-time. Dr. Rufus Kilpatrick took charge of them and conveyed them westward to Anderson Spencer. On the fol- lowing morning, they were forwarded to Newport, Ind., and thus escaped the clutches of those who would make merchandise of their own flesh and blood.
" A few days after these occurrences. the Circuit Court met in Greenville. Judge Holt, Judge Crane, and several lawyers from Dayton, had witnessed the furor which had taken place at the hotel in Dayton, when the slave-hunters found their victims had escaped. They raved and swore. and denounced the people of the North as a pack of negro-thieves. This outburst produced quite a sensation, even
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in the proslavery element of the community. The Judges and lawyers were espe- cially severe in their condemnation of such sentiments.
" A fugitive by the name of Wash MeQuerry, who resided for a time in the western part of Darke County, took up his residence near Troy, Miami County, believing he would be safe from the pursuit of his old master, one Henry Miller, near Louisville, Ky. It appears that a man named John Russell, living near Piqua, learned that Wash was a fugitive, and ascertaining the name and address of his owner, basely, or. perhaps actuated by a desire for gain, wrote a letter to Henry Miller, informing him where his chattel could be found.
" A posse of slave-hunters visited Miami County, and Wash was arrested while working on a canal-boat. There were other fugitives supposed to be in Miami and Darke Counties. The hunters visited Greenville, and after consultation with a certain law firm, they went in the night to the colored settlement and searched several cabins. I received information from Greenville that the slave-hunters were hunting lost property in the neighborhood. I immediately started with a friend, in a buggy, for the colored settlement, arriving about dark. I found the whole settlement in arms. Every cross-road was guarded by armed men. Being somewhat acquainted, I was allowed to pass without molestation. That night I tarried in the academy, but the news I was so anxious to convey was there ahead of me.
"Wash, the fugitive, was taken to Cincinnati, and, after an able defense by Messrs. Birney & Joliffe, was ordered to be delivered to the claimant. This was the first case under the law of 1850. It was tried before Judge McLean.
"One of the most interesting events during my connection with the under- ground railroad, was the following :
"Twenty-eight slaves escaped one night from Boone County, Ky. They were delayed in crossing the river, and it was nearly daylight before they arrived in the suburbs of Cincinnati. Carriages were obtained from a certain German in the city to convey them into the country, as it was deemed unsafe for the fugitives to remain in the quarters where they were secreted. After food and suitable clothing had been furnished them, at the suggestion of the late Levi Coffin, they formed procession as if going to a funeral, and moved solemnly along the road to Cum- minsville. The route decided on by the agents of the road, was via College Hill, Hamilton, West Elkton, Eaton, Paris, to Newport, Ind. The same night on which these twenty-eight fugitives arrived at Newport, three slave-hunters from Boone County, Ky., stopped over night in the village of Castine. Newport is sixteen miles west of Castine. But from the fact that the fugitives took the longest route from Paris, by mistake, they must have been overtaken. My suspicions had been aroused that these strangers might be in search of lost property. As they were about leaving the village, one of the party recognized an old friend and classmate, in one of the bystanders. They had been classmates in the Ohio Medical College some years before. To this friend he confided his business, but gained no infor- mation from him. After their departure, my friend,* who was a leading Democrat, informed me all about the business of the three strangers-where they were going, etc. They had tracked the fugitives to Eaton, where they lost the trail. From Eaton the hunters came to Castine.
" A few minutes after I received this information from the Doctor, I was on the road to Newport. The hunters arrived ahead of me, had already put up their horses when I arrived, and were walking the streets, asking the price of furniture, garden-seeds, etc., and taking a general inspection of things.
"When I made my mission known to the agents of the road, it created a sen- sation. One of them said that only ten minutes before, he had seen some of the chil- dren of the fugitives at play in a yard near the main street of the village, and might be seen by any one passing along.
" About 1 o'clock P. M., the hunters left Newport, but the friends of the fugi- tives were fearful that they had gone north to Winchester, for assistance. Before
* Dr. John E. Matchett, now of Greenville.
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evening, however, we found that they had made no discovery. That night the fugitives were taken to Cabin Creek, Randolph Co., Ind., and, after a few weeks, were forwarded to Canada.
" Nine thousand dollars reward was offered for these fugitives ; $1,000 to any one who would put the owners on the trail. One of these male fugitives had been pur- chased eight months before for $1,200. Another was a Baptist preacher, a smart fellow, though he did not believe the New Testament a slave code.
* * * *
" The rising generation can have but a faint conception of the state of public opinion thirty to forty years ago. The influence which the slave power exercised throughout the United States, was almost irresistible ; it controlled every depart- ment of government. The leading churches pandered to its power-the Bible became a slave code. Free speech was crushed out, under the plea of protecting public liberty."
ROADS-TURNPIKES AND RAILROADS.
The construction of roads and water ways are characteristic of ancient and powerful nations advanced in civilization, and knit together in all their interests hy bonds of profitable commerce Rome made her roads for the expeditious marches of her legions, but America has made hers for the facility of peaceful intercourse, in the interests of commerce, trade and agriculture. It was a discouraging aspect shown by Darke in the earlier day, when trails, traces and tracks were numerous and roads none, and it was true as at the time said, "There is not one beyond the mountains and but few this side, that is acquainted with the hardships of the pioneers. Twenty or thirty years must elapse before they can have a comfortable road to get to mill or to the court house. How many thousands would rejoice if they had the privilege of working out upon the highways a per cent of the pro- ceeds of the common domain, rather than to pay cash for which they receive no benefit whatever." The privilege was in time accorded of working out tax, but it is questionable whether taxes paid and expended under a competent roadmaster would not be a better procedure. At the first settlement of Darke, and for many years after, all State roads were laid out and established by the Legislature by special act. The first State road laid out in the county was the highway from Troy to Greenville. This was the road traveled by the settlers coming into the county in 1811, although the locating may not have been regularly done farther than the boundary line west of Miami County. It crossed Greenville Creek, where the road now crosses near Gettysburg, and this intersected Wayne's old trace from Fort Recovery to Greenville. It came up on the north side of the creek and crossed again north of the Turner Mill, at what was called the Boomer- shire fording. It had, however, been altered during the period of the war of 1812; at that time it crossed the creek at the lower end of Main street, Greenville, about where the Beamsville road now crosses. A short time before 1817, a survey had been made, and a road located from Piqua to Greenville, but the road had not at that time been opened. This intersected the Troy road near the present site of Gettysburg. When there was no established road opened between Piqua and Green- ville, settlers made their own road till they struck the Troy road at the Studabaker block-house. At that time there were but two or three families living between Piqua and the point just named. The following named roads had been laid out just after the organization of the county, and their original and present routes do not materially differ : the Milton, Shanesville, Fort Recovery and Fort Jefferson. The roads that were first laid out under the order of the County Commissioners were generally located to suit the people of the different neighborhoods through which they passed ; they circled about ponds and marshes, angled and curved their way the nearest and best track from one house to another. As a result, most roads located by first settlers have been changed or entirely vacated. The location of roads was not always according to the unanimous wishes of the settlers, and as an
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instance. we give the history of what was known as the " Western or Winchester road," which caused considerable strife and difficulty. The settlers west of Green- ville joined in a petition to the Commissioners for a county road from Greenville to the State line in the direction of Winchester. A view was ordered; viewers met, started at or near the mouth of Mud Creek, ran nearly direct until they inter- sected the old Indian trace leading from the Indian town on Mud Creek to Muncie, Ind. This was at the crossing of the West Branch, from which they ran as close as practicable with the old trace to the State line. This location did not satisfy all parties to the petition, and another party arose. Names were bestowed upon each. The first was known as the Squaw road party, the other the Jersey road. The latter petitioned for a road to run a course about a mile north of the other ; their petition was granted. There were now two roads, and each party, emulating the other, set to work to open the respective roads. Not long after, an order was received from the Legislature to lay out and establish a State road from Troy via Greenville to the State line. In the mean time Randolph County, Ind., had laid out a road from Winchester to the State line, ending at the corner of a section about midway between the two Ohio roads. The State viewers learning at Green- ville of the two roads and the strife, ran their line midway to strike the Indiana road, and in proportion as the one party rejoiced the other was displeased. The line is now the Greenville and State Line turnpike. Soon the defeated party peti- tioned at Columbus for change of location ; it was granted without delay or inves- tigation, and for a number of years the Squaw road was traveled as the State road. Partially foiled, the Jerseys went to work vigorously to open and put in repair their road. It thus happened that there were two roads running parallel not a mile apart. No bridge had been built over the mouth of Mud Creek, and the only entry or exit from the town was around and across Greenville Creek. For several years this anomalons condition of affairs continued ; finally the people undertook of their own accord to build a bridge over the mouth of Mud Creek. Abutments were erected. laid on the sills and it was partially floored with split slabs, but its completion was delayed and it was not made passable for teams. It stood in this condition several years, until the timber became rotten, when, at one of the terms of court, some lawyers strolled out one evening, laid hold and shook it down. The County Commissioners then made an appropriation for the building of a bridge at this place, and a temporary structure was in time erected. The rival roads were maintained a score of years, much to the public disadvantage. As a finality there came an order from the Legislature to lay a State road from the branch of Mad River in Champaign County, via Piqua and Greenville to the State line. This was located on the track of the former road, and the difficulty was thus finally settled.
J. S. Patterson, of Berlin Heights, Huron County, in an article to the Ohio Farmer, written in 1870, said : " Who would have thought thirty-seven years ago, when the writer first saw 'old Darke County,' that it would ever stand foremost among the counties of State for its road enterprise. Why the county should have surpassed every other in the State in this regard. I am unable to explain. It may be accounted for on the theory of extremes-the roads were very bad, they are very good. Perhaps the people thrown upon their own resources pushed their way in this direction. It is certain that the pike business became in time a local epidemic. The many rival stations fostered a spirit of rivalry. A condition of things that favored the enterprise of turnpike construction was the tendency of the people to invest in what promised to be a permanent improvement. Whatever may be the explanation, the Secretary's report for 1868 puts down 393 miles of turnpike roads for Darke County ; Warren follows with 224; Clermont and Wood, 200 each ; Hamilton, 193; Montgomery, 152; Champaign. 136; Greene, 117; Butler 112, etc.
Of course. the burden of taxation is heavy and not every farmer is in con- dition to pay $4 an acre road tax. Some were obliged to sell off land to enable them to meet assessments, but hard as it was, even such gained in the end by the
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rise in local values. It is quite a general feeling among the people that they have taken too much upon their hands at once. And as wheat is their staple product. the county ranking fifth in the State, the low price at which their surplus will probably have to be sold, may operate somewhat discouragingly ; but the resources of the county are abundant, and the people will no doubt come out all right, and all the better for their excellent system of roads. Parts of the county with which I was perfectly familiar ten years ago, I did not recognize when passing through them last summer." There are now over 700 miles of turnpike in Darke County, and several short roads are building. The writer of the above was correct in supposing that the outcome of this special enterprise would be favorable even to those most heavily taxed, for so it has proven. Within an area of 600 square miles there are just about 200 piked roads and part of roads, having a separate name. To merely enumerate them would be a task; to state their individual history would require almost a volume. The first one was built from Greenville to Gettysburg in 1853. It was then, and is still a toll pike. All the others are free. The turnpikes of this county are estimated by competent authority to have cost in the aggregate just about $1.500,000. The lines radiating from Greenville, as seen on the map, resemble somewhat the radiating lines of a spider's web, while the con- necting cross roads complete the ideal comparison. Railroads began to exercise their powerful influence in this section about thirty years ago. The pioneer road of this county was known as the Dayton & Union Railroad. The company was chartered Feb. 26, 1846. as the " Greenville & Miami Railroad Company," for the construction of a railroad from the town of Greenville to any point on the Dayton & Western Railroad, or any point on the Miami or Miami Extension Canal, which the Directors might determine. The incorporators were Daniel R. Davis, Hiram Bell, William M. Wilson, Rufus Kilpatrick, John Colville, George Ward, John Mc- Clure, Jr .. John C. Potter, Erastus Putnam, Alfred Kitchen, James Hanaway, Henry Arnold, W. B. Beall, I. N. Gard, Abraham Scribner, Russell Evans, John C. Shepherd, Adam Baker, Abraham Studabaker, Charles Hutchins, Joseph Ford and Solomon Riffle, of Darke County ; Gen. H. Bell was the first President ; Henry Arnold, Esq., first Treasurer ; and Hon. William M. Wilson, the first Secretary. The capital stock of the company was $200,000, divided into shares of $50 each. At the expiration of a year. Dr. I. N. Gard was elected President, succeeded by David Studabaker. During 1848. the enterprise was first fully presented to the people of the county for their support. Among those most active in forwarding the undertaking. not only to obtain a favorable vote, but to secure means to do the necessary preliminary work, were Dr. Gard, Judge Wilson, Gen. Bell, Mr. Studa- baker, Mr. Kitchen and Maj. Davis. There was then but little money in the connty; the largest subscriptions that could be obtained were $500, and there were but eight of ten of these.
On January 5, 1848, an act was passed by the Legislature, authorizing the Commissioners of Darke County to purchase stock in the G. & M. R. R. Company to any amount not to exceed $50,000, provided a majority of the voters of the county were in favor thereof. On the first Monday of April, the proposition to aid was carried by a majority of 637 votes, and on the 13th, the Commissioners subscribed the maximum amount in aid of the road. August 21, the Auditor was authorized to issue an order on the Treasurer for $110, to pay for the survey of the road. February 2, 1849, the Town Council of Greenville was in like manner impowered to subscribe thereto any amount not exceeding $10.000. Judge Wilson continued Secretary of the company from organization to about 1850, that is, during the preliminary work of the company. In 1850, a new organization was effected, with E. B. Taylor as President, and an act was passed authorizing the county and town to sell any or all stock to said company, or any other formed to extend the railroad from Greenville to the State line. Mr. Taylor went to New York, negotiated a loan of $150,000, bought iron and other necessaries to equip- ment. In July, 1850, the first locomotive intended to be used for laying the track
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of the road from Dayton to Greenville, arrived at Dayton. It was brought from the establishment of Swinburn, Smith & Co., of Patterson, N. J., and weighed fourteen tons. The first installment of iron was shipped from New York for Day- ton on the 26th of June. The residue of the iron was then on the way from Liverpool to New York. It was of the T pattern, and weighed about nineteen pounds to the square foot. The bridge across the Miami River at Dayton was completed and intended for use by three roads, the others being the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton, and the Dayton & Western. The contract for laying the track was let to A. De Graff. The depot and other buildings were placed under contract, and all the work systematically pushed forward. Two additional loco- motives, weighing eighteen tons each, were contracted for delivery, one in Angust, the other in October. Two passenger cars were constructed at Dayton, in the establishment of Thresher, Packard & Co. The "burthen" cars were manufact- ured at the Greenville foundry and machine-shops of Messrs. Edmonson & Evans, and Taylor Brothers. The grain crop of 1851 was unprecedentedly large, and the road was expected to highly benefit all interests, whether farming, mechanical, mercantile or commercial. It was stated at the time that this event "was an important epoch in Darke County history," and such it has since proved to have been. It enhanced values and facilitated communication. It was noted that " the running time between Greenville and Dayton will be less than one hour and a half, and the distance may be performed with perfect safety in less than one hour." On February 19, 1851, De Graff started out from Dayton with a train to be used for track laying. The train was platform cars with houses built on them-three for sleeping-rooms, one for dining and one for a kitchen. The job of laying the iron was in charge of John Horrien. On May 25, the main track of the road was finished to the depot buildings, and a meeting was called to arrange for a celebration of the event. The event duly honored, was marked by a large crowd, and made memorable by an emente at Greenville. on part of the roughs. The Board of Directors, at a meeting held at Dayton August 30, 1853, declared a 10 per cent dividend from the earnings of the road, from January 1 to September 1. This dividend was declared after deducting expense of repairs, running, interest and other expenses, and there remained a reserve fund of $5,000. The receipts for Angust were for passengers, $6,261 ; transportation, $4,215; mail, $333; total, nearly $11,000. The cost of the road was about $550,000. Outstanding bonds, $341.000. and the liberal dividend to stockholders created an enthusiasm which greatly facilitated the induction and completion of the road to Union, and of other roads constructed through the county. Mr. Taylor continued to be Presi- dent of the road until JJuly, 1855, when he resigned. Meantime, the company had been authorized by the Legislature to extend the railroad to the Indiana State line, by such route as the Directors might select, within the county of Darke." and the act had been accepted by resolution of the Board of Directors as an amend- ment to the charter of the company. The road was built through to Union City three years after its completion to Greenville, that is, in 1853. When President Taylor resigned, the road went into the hands of the bondholders, by whom it was operated. At length. suit was brought for foreclosure of the mortgage August, 1861, but a plan of re-organization and capitalization of stock and debt was agreed upon, and the road was sold October 30, 1862, to H. C. Stimson and S. J. Tilden for $1,000, subject to the mortgage of $150,000. In 1855, Judge Wilson, Secretary, resigned, and the chief office was removed to Dayton. All control of the road passed from the citizens of the county that year.
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