The history of Madison County, Ohio, Part 83

Author: Brown, Robert C; W.H. Beers & Co., pub
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago, W.H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1180

USA > Ohio > Madison County > The history of Madison County, Ohio > Part 83

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In 1803, William Taylor, a native of Virginia, on the Potomac River, emi- grated to Ohio, and located in Darby Township, where he married. He finally settled in Canaan Township, on land now owned by Harvey Kilgore. He mar- ried Elizabeth Casto, and the place where he settled, and an adjoining farm which he subsequently purchased, he resided through life. He was the father of fourteen children-Sarah married Philip Harris, and are residents of Wash- ington Territory ; Hannah married Henry Fuller and settled in Missouri, where they died ; Samuel, deceased ; Polly, deceased ; Jacob married Rebecca Kil- gore ; Rhoda married Richard Edgar and settled in Illinois, both now deceased ; Margaret married Isaac Arthur, and are residents of Missouri ; William mar- ried Martha Arthur, is now deceased ; Nancy married Thompson Finch, is de- ceased ; Mary married James Talpniny, both deceased ; Moses. deceased, and three died in infancy. Mr. Taylor was a man of reserved habits, and a great lover of home and his family ; a man of firm principles and noble character, a good farmer, kind neighbor, and a much esteemed and respected citizen.

Henry H. Gandy settled one mile south of Amity, about 1812-14, and lived and died here. He raised a large family of children, all believed to be deceased. Luke Knapp, an Englishman by birth, emigrated to America and became a settler in Connecticut, where he resided several years; thence removed to New York, where he died. In 1812, his son, Elihu Knapp, came to Penn- sylvania, and in 1815 to Madison County, and settled on land on the west side of Big Darby, where the cemetery is now located, and here he died in 1823, and

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his wife in 1836. His wife was Amy Anders, by whom he had three children-Electa, married Joshua Holtner, and settled at Worthington in 1808, where she died soon after; Cynthia, married Solomon Norton, and settled in this township: subsequently they moved to Illinois. where she died; and Elihu, married Kesiah Norton, and settled on the place now owned by Henry Kent, in Darby Township. Subsequently he purchased a farm in Union County, Ohio, where he lived eight years; then in 1833, he pur- chased and located on the place where he now lives. In 1831. his wife died. By her he had five children; four grew to maturity; three now liv- ing-Alburtus, Jacob and Amy. Subsequently Mr. Knapp married Polly Ilayse, by whom he had two children, one now living-Melvin. His wife died and he married Hannah Patch; she died in about four years, and he married Mrs. Phebe Converse; she died, and he married Mrs. Jane Tarpning, by whom he has one child-Lolie. Mr. Knapp is now in his eighty-third year, one of the oldest residents of the township, having been a resident here sixty-seven years, and has been fully identified with the growth and improvement of the county; has held many of the offices of his township; and served as Justice of the Peace for many years. He has had his " ups and downs," has been very unfortunate in the loss of his wives, but has kept a steady course onward and upward, having sustained an unblemished character, and an undoubted integ- rity, and has the entire confidence of his community; has accumulated a good competency of this world's goods, and is a much respected citizen of Canaan Township.

Richard Stanhope, with his family, settled on the William Atkinson land, in 1812, the only colored family in that day in the neighborhood. He was a very honest man and quite a good farmer, yet very illiterate, with no advan- tages of an education. He was nevertheless affable and good natured, with the politeness peculiar to his race. James Guy was then one of his nearest neigh- bors, and practiced a good many little jokes on Richard, one of which we will mention. All the early settlers cultivated flax for the fiber, which was con- verted into clothing. This erop was always sown in a certain change of the moon. The following Friday after this change was the proper time, which hap- pened to be Good Friday. Mr. Guy informed him that Good Friday of that year came on Sunday. Being a religious man, Stanhope was unwilling to dese- crate the Sabbath, so he sowed his flax late on Saturday evening. Mr. Stan- hope was a slave of Gen. George Washington, and was with him during the Revolutionary war. He subsequently sold his farm on the Plains and removed to Urbana. in 1836. where he died, it is claimed at the advanced age one hun- dred and twenty years. He married and became the father of at least three chil- dren, one son and two daughters. One of the latter, Sallie, is now residing in Mechanicsburg. the only survivor of the family.

Peter Strickland. a native of New England, settled on the east bank of Big Darby opposite Amity, and remained a resident of the township through life. Ile was married four times, and raised a large family of children, and all but one are residents of this township. Mr. Strickland was one of the early settlers, a very industrions man, a good neighbor and a well-to-do farmer. David Garton a native of New Jersey emigrated to this county and settled on Big Darby about two and a half miles south of Amity, about 1812-14. and re- mained a resident of the township till his death. He married Martha Harris, by whom he had two sons ; Hosea, married Rebecca Harris and resided here until his death ; and David, who settled in Missouri. Mrs. Garton died, and he married Hannah Rickman, with whom he lived till his death, and was buried in the family burying-ground on his own place. By his last wife he had several children. Mr. Garton was a man honest and upright in his life and character, and desired such with whom to live and transact business ; and such as were

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otherwise he preferred, in the language of Scripture, to come out from among them, and be separate from such. He was firm in his character and principles, and always reliable and a trustworthy citizen.

Isaac Fuller, a native of New York, married Lucy Warner, and settled on the east bank of Big Darby, about two miles south of Amity, about 1812, and here he erected a grist mill about 1814 or 1815, which was one of the first mills erected in Madison County, and though roughly and poorly constructed, yet it proved a great convenience to the early settlers of this vicinity. Subse- quently, he attached a saw mill to it. Mr. Fuller run his mill for thirty years, when he sold his mill property to Mr. Byers, and moved to Iowa, where he died. He was the father of the following children : Arnold, married Sallie Green, and moved to Iowa and thence to Oregon, and while performing the last journey his wife died-he died in Oregon; James married, but his wife lived but a short time, and he subsequently married Lucinda Francis and moved to Missouri (subsequently he made a trip to California, and on his journey back was taken sick and died before reaching his home and family) ; Shubel married Rhoda Ann Worthington, and moved to Iowa, where he died ; Henry married Hannah Taylor and settled in Missouri, where she died (he subse- quently died in Illinois) ; Olive, married William Harris, and settled in this township, and resided many years, an excellent citizen and a Deacon in the Baptist Church (finally removed to Franklin County where she died ; subse- quently he died in Champaign County, Ohio) ; Naney, married George Harris, and settled near Fuller's mill, where he died (she subsequently removed to Iowa, where she now resides). These children are all by a former wife whose name is forgotten. By his last wife, Lucy Warner, he had one child, Isaac, who married Arminta Fuller, and settled in Iowa, where they still reside. Henry Robey settled just west of Jacob Millikin, about 1816. He married a Miss Johnson, by whom he had no children ; she died and he married Mrs. Millie McDonald, by whom he had four children-Hezekiah, Henry, Nelson and Millie. About 1830, he removed to Hardin County, Ohio, where he resided till his death. He was a man of very reserved habits, never holding or desir- ing office, but an excellent man and neighbor, and one of the best blacksmiths and mechanics of that day ; possessing great skill, he could make any kind of tool or manufactured article for householdl or farm use, and hence was a very useful man in this new country in that carly day.

Elisha Bidwell settled in the southwest part of Canaan Township, on land since owned by William D. Wilson, about 1816. Of his children, Isaac, deceased; Nathan, now living in Jefferson Township; Urial, deceased: Ephraim, deceased; Addison, married and lives in Monroe Township; and Mahlon, who never married. Mr. Bidwell was a man of excellent character, and took a great interest in educational matters and the general good of the community ; but as a busi- ness man, was not very successful, yet his children grew up and have become quite successful business men. Knowlton Bailey settled here about 1816-17, but resided here only a few years and moved into Jefferson Township where he died a short time previous to the late war. He raised a large family, but all are now deceased but two, Margaret and Knowlton. Samuel Beebe, a native of New England, became a settler of this township about 1815. Of his chil- dren were Orley, Charles, Samuel, Judith and William. Mr. Beebe served in the Revolutionary war. Stephen Hallock, a native of Vermont, was another early settler here, probably about 1816-18. He married Rhoda Beach, by whom he had two children, Hyman and Washington. Mr. Hallock died in a few years after settling here, in one of the sickly years of 1822-23. Lemuel Greene settled one mile below Amity about 1818-20. He married for his sec- ond wife Rachel Brown, by whom he had a large family of children, of whom were Asa, Ira, Sallie, Maria, Louisa, Nancy and Cynthia. Mr. Greene was a

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shoe-maker by trade, and resided here till his death. Levi Francis probably settled in this township about 1820 ; he raised a large family of children.

Mathias Slyh, a native of Virginia, settled on the place where he now lives about 1820. He buried his first wife, and married for his second Sallie Patterson, with whom he still lives. By his first wife he had three chil- dren-John, who resides in Franklin County; Lydia married Alburtus Knapp, and now resides in Kansas; and Rebecca Jane, who married and resides in Franklin County. By his present wife he has had Isabel, who married Daniel Walker and resides in Franklin County ; Betsey married William Millikin ; Ann married Robert Reece and resides in Franklin County ; Mary married William Wilson. Jr. ; Ruth married Isaac Beach and resides in Plain City ; Robert married Sarah Smith, and Charles married Eliza Kilgore. Mr. Slyh is one of Canaan's good. substantial citizens ; is now eighty-three years of age, and has been a resident here for more than threescore years. He is a mem- ber of the Baptist Church. and is one of the oldest and best esteemed citizens of this community. Warren Frazell, from the Eastern States, settled east of Amity about 1825, where he resided till his death. He was a preacher in the Methodist Church many years ; he raised a large family of children. who became good, respectable citizens of community.

Richard Kilbury, a native of Vermont, married Obedience Baldwin, and in the fall of 1814 emigrated to Ohio and settled in this township on land now owned by William Atkinson, in Survey 7386. After residing here a short time, it proved so sickly that he moved to near Cleveland, and subsequently to the Mau- mee Valley. But after a short residence there, he returned to Madison County, and resided here till his death. He was a blacksmith by trade, which business he followed through life. He was a member of the Methodist Church ; a man of firm and substantial character and undoubted integrity, and held several offices of his township. Mrs. Kilbury died in a few years after their settling here. Subsequently. he married Mrs. Calhoun. By his first wife he had eight children -Sophia, who married a Mr. Sherwood. and resides in Wisconsin ; Thomas married Martha Finch she died and he married Polly Clark ); Rich- ard, deceased : Dexter. deceased ; Asa married Ruth Clark and resides in Union County : Laura married Mr. Dennich , she is now a widow and resides in Wisconsin ; Naney married Guy Harris, both now deceased; Emily married John Finch he is deceased, and she is now a widow and resides in Darby Township .. By his second wife he had one son. Alexander, who now resides in California. Mr. Kilbury died in May. 1854.

Luther Lane. a native of Massachusetts, married Lodica Green, a native of Connectient. They removed to Vermont about 1800. In 1817 they came to Ohio, and settled in Union County, near Milford; thence in 1829 he removed to Pike Township. Madison County, where he died the same year; his wife pre- viously died while they were residing in Union County. in January, 1823. They had the following children: Fannie married David Harrington, and settled in this county, where they resided several years, where she died; Eliza married David Gitchel, and settled in Union County, thence removed to Illinois, but subsequently returned and died in Plain City; Lodica died unmarried; Eliza- beth married Otis Witham. and settled in Madison County, where she died; Hannah became the second wife of Otis Witham. and settled and died in this county; David. the youngest, married Elizabeth Cox, and settled in Union County, where they still reside : and Luther, next older than David, married Elizabeth Morrisson. and in 1833 settled in Canaan Township. In 1834 he he entered upon the mercantile trade with Dr. Lorenzo Beach, in Amity, in which he continued about eight years. In September, 1841, he purchased and located upon the farm where he now resides. Mr. Lane has now spent nearly a half century in Canaan Township. and has been intimately identified with its

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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY.

general improvement and progress; has been one of its active business men and hield many of the offices of the township, and is one of Canaan's promi- nent, reliable and respected citizens. He has been an earnest member of the Baptist Church forty-one years, and a Deacon in the same for twenty years. He and his companion have now traveled the journey of life together for halt a century.

Elisha Perkins was one of the early settlers of the Plains. He came here when these prairies were nature's pasture grounds, the wild animals roaming unmolested, so far as the march of civilization was concerned. Mr. Perkins purchased and settled on the farm now owned by his son, Eli Perkins. But he was not permitted to remain but a few years, for in the sickly year of 1823. death claimed him as his own, and he was ruthlessly snatched away from his family and friends. His sons were Isaac. James. Eh, Horace and Dr. Hiram Perkins. The last mentioned was not a resident of this part of the county Eli still resides upon the old home place. Lewis Ketch. the father of Esquire Ketch, of Union County. settled on the Plains in 1814. He was a shoe-maker by trade, and worked with Nahum King in a shoe shop at his tannery on the Plains, now included in the farm of Joseph Atkinson. The few years allotted to Mr. Ketch on earth were spent at his trade, but death had marked him for its victim. He passed into the invisible future, leaving a dependent and help- less family to the cold charities of the world. His widow married Parley Con- verse, with whom she lived till separated by death, after which she went to live with her daughter and son-in-law, Caleb Converse, of Unionville. Samuel Sher- wood. the father of A. H. and J. C. Sherwood. in the year 1814 moved on to the Plains, purchased and lived on the farm known as the Calhoun farm. The house in which he lived was built on a high piece of ground. which subse- quently proved to be a gravel bank. and was used to improve the Wilson pike. Mr. Sherwood was an economical and industrious farmer, but he fell a victim to death the second sickly year. 1823.

We have now mentioned most of the pioneers of Canaan Township ; in fact, have above described several families who would perhaps more properly be termed early settlers rather than pioneers. There still remains several per- sons of whom we must speak ; although not pioneers, yet they were early set- tlers. and came here at a time when energy, wealth and ability were necessary to develop the growth and interests of this naturally rich and beautiful town- ship ; and in its history we find them to have been the leading prime factors in all the main business interests, which set the wheels of industry moving, and have produced the great results of progress and prosperity which have attend- ed this township in the past ; and to leave them and their life's work from these pages, and call it a history of Canaan Township. would be as faulty as to take out the main spring and balance wheel of a watch, and still call what was left a watch. This is the reason of our bringing in names of many who settled at a more recent date among the early settlers. With the above remarks, we pro- ceed to speak of the following :

A large family of brothers and sisters came to Madison County in the ear 1817, following Uri Beach, who came in 1814. The brothers constituting the family were : Uri. Ambrose, Amos, Lorenzo. Roswell, Obil and Oren Beach ; the last two named were twins. They were natives of Vermont. They first settled in Darby Township, but subsequently most if not all of them became settlers of Canaan. But of these, their marriages and families will be more fully written of in another part of this work, while here we desire to speak of 'hem or of such of them as have been intimately connected with the develop- inent of the business interests and moral progress of this township and people.

Uri, when he first came from Vermont to Ohio in 1812, worked for a short time near Marietta ; thence he came to Worthington. Ohio, where he married'

JOSEPH KING. [DECEASED]

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CANAAN TOWNSHIP.

Then he settled in Madison County, on land now owned by Solomon Cary, in Darby Township, residing there until 1819, when he removed to Big Darby and settled where Amity is now located. Like all new countries, the great majority of the settlers followed agricultural pursuits. But time soon developed their wants and necessities. Consequently, some must turn their attention to other occupations in order to supply the demands and wants of the people. Among the first to make this sacrifice and labor for the good of the people in building up the country in which he lived was Uri Beach. The first enterprise that at- tracted his attention was the erection of a saw-mill. There was but one mill of this kind in this part of the county, which was the Saeger Mill farther above on the Darby, near the border of Union County. At that time, the people were compelled to live in honses with puncheon floors; some, however, had no floors except the mother earth. In view of this condition of things, he determined upon the erection of his mill, and though remonstrated against by his - better half," yet he proceeded, selected a site on what was called ". Finch Run." which crosses the lower pike just above Jacob Taylor's, and here he built the mill which proved such a blessing to this community. For a further description of this mill and its usefulness, the reader is referred to the subject of " Mills," on another page. Mr. Beach soon saw another great want, to facilitate the domes- tic operations in clothing the families and render them comfortable during the winter months. Among the early settlers, the manufacture of woolen goods for the family was a tedious operation. especially in preparing the wool of the sheep for spinning. Before this latter operation could be performed. the wool must be carded into rolls. which then had to be all performed by hand. with what was called a pair of "hand cards." This operation was exceedingly slow and laborious. Something to facilitate the labor of carding was the great want of the people. The operation of spinning and weaving was only a secondary consideration ; for a woman that did not know how to spin and weave was not considered at all qualified for matrimony. To supply this want came forward UTri Beach.

Although the obstacles to overcome and the difficulties in the way were great for putting up machinery of any kind, the principal of which was the great distance and the difficulty of transportation of materials necessary for enterprises of this kind. Mr. Beach was in possession of the Yankee ingenuity so peculiar to the New Englanders. which gave him some advantage in an undertaking like this. The site was selected for his carding machine just below his saw-mill. not for the purpose of using the water of Finch Run for power, but because it was convenient to his other works .The building was erected, the machinery obtained, and all brought into running order. For a few years the machinery in operation in this establishment was a picking, carding and fulling machine. to which he afterward attached two small spin- ning jacks This factory was in operation for fifteen years or more, yielding quite an income to the proprietor, and equally beneficial to the people of this community, and for the people far away. as its patrons were drawn from thirty to forty miles distant. It is believed that the first frame house built in the township was the one standing on the hill, at the foot of which stood the factory.

Abont 1825, Mr. Beach erected a large frame house for his own residence. This house was then considered a very imposing structure and a fine residence, and is still standing, though not now used as a residence, and is shown on page 69 of Caldwell's Atlas of Madison County. In the view it stands to the left, opposite the residence of Jacob Taylor. Uri Beach. in company with his brother Lorenzo. purchased of Dr. Comstock a tract of land from which they laid out the town of Amity, and here Mr. Beach passed from earth to heaven. from works to rewards.

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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY.

Ambrose Beach, the next son in age to Uri, purchased a farm on the Plains, just east of his brother, in the same year they came to Ohio. This place, for several years, was his home. He having had some experience as a clothier, finally consented to connect himself with his brother in the factory, where for several years he was engaged in the manufacture of woolen goods. The weaving in this factory was all done by hand, with what was called a spring-shuttle loom. Subsequently he sold his farm on the Plains and pur- chased in Brown Township, Franklin Co., Ohio, and there he remained for many years, superintending the management of his farm. The industry and economy of his early life gave him a sufficiency in the evening of his days, and many years ago he passed away from earth, highly respected as a citizen and pioneer of the county.

Dr. Lorenzo Beach, the fourth son of this family was born in Vermont in 1797. and came to Ohio as early as 1813, and settled at Worthington, having no worldly effects other than a small bundle which be carried in his hand. His early education was only such as could be obtained by a farmer's boy of the Green Mountain State, where time was almost wholly taken up in a struggle with the sterile soil for subsistence. He studied medicine with Dr. Carter of Urbana, and commeneed practice at Amity, about 1820, being, it is believed, the first practicing physician ever located in that place. During the sickly seasons of 1822-23, he and Dr. James Comstock, who was associated with him, attended nearly all the sick of the smitten district, which extended over many miles in extent, but the center of virulence was between the two Darby's, on land now owned by William D. Wilson's heirs. His field of practice must have been very extensive. as old people of Georgesville, fifteen miles distant from Amity, still speak of him as the physician of that neighborhood half a century ago ; and from their testimony, he was an exceedingly popular and successful physician. But it is believed that he lacked confidence in himself and in his remedies, to a degree that prevented any enthusiasm in his profession, and that the responsibilities attached to the life of a physician became to him exceedingly irksome. Hence his inclinations led him to abandon the profession for the more Incrative and to him agreeable life of a merchant.

For several years subsequent to 1833, he was actively engaged in merchan- dising, and later in real estate operations Seeing an opportunity for the better employment of capital and his abilities, he removed, in 1853, to Livingston County, Ill., where he continued to reside till his death. He entered largely into real estate operations in the West, and was successful. In person, he was of medium height, and up to middle life was slight and spare. He was quick and active in his movements, of a remarkably cheerful disposition. . His energy in the prosecution of business was untiring, and he had a stock of physical and mental health that never failed him up to within two years of his death. He was a thoroughly honest man, who went through life doing thoroughly and earnestly whatever his hands found to do. He died in Fair- bury, Livingston Co., Ill., in August, 1878, in the eighty-first year of his age. His death was caused by structural disease of the heart.

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The history of Madison County, Ohio, Part 83

Author: Brown, Robert C; W.H. Beers & Co., pub Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Chicago, W.H. Beers & co. Number of Pages: 1180

Author: Brown, Robert C; W.H. Beers & Co., pub
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago, W.H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1180